The Athletic FC Podcast

Crystal Palace are flying.  They’re the FA Cup holders, they’re in Europe and they’re on an 18-game unbeaten run across all competitions. So… what is the secret behind their success? Host: Ayo Akinwolere With: Reuben Pinder and Jon Mackenzie Executive Producer: Abi Paterson Producer: Mike Stavrou Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Graham Potter is the latest manager to be shown the door at West Ham. In comes a new challenger - Nuno Espírito Santo. But do West Ham’s problems go beyond their manager? Host: Ayo Akinwolere With: Roshane Thomas and Benji Lanyado Executive Producer: Adey Moorhead Producer: Mike Stavrou and Nick Thomson Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s 17 defeats in 33 Premier League games for Ruben Amorim’s Manchester United after Saturday's latest defeat at Brentford. So, how much more misery can they take? Host: Ayo Akinwolere With: Adam Crafton and Oli Kay Executive Producers: Adey Moorhead and Abi Paterson Producers: Guy Clarke and Paul Iliffe Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to The Preview on The Athletic FC, where this week our main focus is Newcastle vs Arsenal. Eddie Howe's side have won each of their last three home games against Arsenal in all competitions without conceding a single goal, and are looking to make it four in a row for the first time since August 1969. With Liverpool five wins from five, will anything but a win keep Mikel Arteta's title hope...

FIFA have discussed making the 2030 World Cup a 64-team tournament. So who actually wants it and could it really happen? Host: Ayo Akinwolere With: Adam Crafton, Phil Hay and Felipe Cardenas Executive Producer: Adey Moorhead Producers: Guy Clarke and Paul Iliffe Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ousmane Dembele scooped the Ballon d’Or on Monday night. His 35 goals helped PSG clinch their first ever Champions League. So how did he evolve from a promising winger to a ruthless goalscorer? Host: Ayo Akinwolere With: Seb Stafford-Bloor and Tom Williams Executive Producer: Adey Moorhead Producer: Mike Stavrou and Nick Thomson Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Aston Villa are currently 18th in the Premier League and have scored just one goal so far. So is the team really "lazy” or does Unai Emery need to change? Host: Ayo Akinwolere With: Jacob Tanswell and Dan Bardell Executive Producer: Adey Moorhead Producer: Mike Stavrou and Nick Thomson Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Arsenal have fallen five points off the pace in the Premier League, after drawing 1-1 with Man City on Sunday. And in the boardroom there are changes as well, so how much do they have to do, to catch Liverpool? Host: Ayo Akinwolere With: David Ornstein, Adam Crafton and Matt Slater Executive Producer: Adey Moorhead Producers: Guy Clarke and Paul Iliffe Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for mo...

Welcome to The Preview on The Athletic FC, where this week our main focus is the Arsenal vs Manchester City. In what is often dubbed as master vs apprentice, Mikel Arteta is looking to become the first manager to go 5 games in a row unbeaten against Pep Guardiola. Mark Critchley and Nick Miller join Matt Davies-Adams to look ahead to Sunday's clash before turning their attention to some of the fix...

Chelsea’s young squad were given a reality-check on their Champions League return, losing 3-1 in Munich to Bayern after two years out of the competition. Prior to Wednesday night The Blues Champions League squad only had a combined 117 games in the tournament under their belts in comparison to Bayern's 860. So, will a lack of experience cost them in Europe and the Premier League? Host: Adam L...

Real Madrid are back to winning ways in Champions League. In their 2-1 win over Marseille on Tuesday night, Kylian Mbappe shone bright, whilst Vinicius Jr was benched again. So… why are the two Galacticos on such different paths right now? Host: Ayo Akinwolere With: Guillermo Rai & Colin Millar Executive Producer: Adey Moorhead Producer: Mike Stavrou and Nick Thomson Hosted on Acast. See acast...

The Champions League is back this week. Last season we had a switch up in format, and PSG were finally triumphant. So what should we expect this time around? Host: Ayo Akinwolere With: Jack Pitt-Brooke, Tom Williams & Tomás Hill López-Menchero Executive Producer: Adey Moorhead Producer: Mike Stavrou and Nick Thomson Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Man City made light work of Man United in Sunday's Manchester derby thanks to Phil Foden and a double from Erling Haaland, who now sits on 90 Premier League goals from just 101 games. So how far can Haaland’s goals take Guardiola’s side this season? Host: Ayo Akinwolere With: David Ornstein and Adam Crafton Executive Producer: Adey Moorhead Producers: Guy Clarke and Paul Iliffe Hosted on Acast. Se...

Welcome to The Preview on The Athletic FC, where this week our main focus is the Manchester derby. Despite winning five of their last eight Premier League matches against Manchester United, Manchester City failed to win either game last season for the first time since 2020-21. Despite getting the better of the Pep Guardiola last season, Ruben Amorim is looking to win sucessive Premier League match...

What do Barcelona and Post Malone have in common?  Neither of them can play at Camp Nou. So what's going on, and will this stadium ever be ready? Host: Ayo Akinwolere With: Pol Ballus and Laia Cervello Herrero Executive Producer: Abi Paterson Producers: Guy Clarke and Paul Iliffe Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

So far in our series, The Future of Football, we've looked at the global game and the unstoppable power of the Premier League. But away from the top flight there are 72 other professional clubs across the English Football League - and some are fighting to survive. For the final instalment of the series we're joined by EFL chairman, Rick Parry, to discuss what the future holds for the EFL and what...

This summer, Premier League clubs set a new record for spending in a single transfer window at over £3bn, that’s more than La Liga, Serie A, Ligue 1 and the Bundesliga combined. On episode two of The Future of Football, we discuss whether the strength of Premier League and the widening gap between the English game and the other top European leagues is an issue. Host Adam Leventhal is joined by Mat...

Nottingham Forest have sacked head coach Nuno Espirito Santo and look set to replace him with former Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou. So what’s going on at the City ground? And is it the right move? Host: Adam Leventhal With: Tim Spiers and Matt Davies Adams Executive Producers: Adey Moorhead & Abi Paterson Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to The Future of Football, a special three part series asking the biggest questions shaping the game from the impact of the Club World Cup to whether anyone can keep up with the Premier League. With the 2026 World Cup on the horizon, which direction is the power, the politics and money around the game heading? The Athletic's Matt Slater and Adam Crafton join host Adam Leventhal for episode...

Huge news from north London on Thursday as Daniel Levy was removed from his role as Tottenham Hotspur’s executive chairman after almost 25 years at the club. We discuss what that means for the future of the club.  . Also, as the Premier League takes a break, Liverpool are the only perfect side, Aston Villa can’t score and Sunderland have won more games than Manchester City! We draw some hasty...

Record attendances at the Euros? Check. 65k in London to celebrate the Lionesses? Check. Rising attendances for the WSL? Not last season. So is women's football still growing? Plus, Nikki Doucet, chief executive of the Women’s Professional League - who took control of the WSL in 2024, joins us ahead of the start of the new season. Host: Ayo Akinwolere With: Charlotte Harpur, Megan Feringa and Nikk...

Premier League clubs went BIG on striker signings this summer. But how difficult is it to adapt to England’s top flight? Former Manchester United striker Louis Saha joins Ayo Akinwolere and Carl Anka to reveal what it really takes to adapt to the Premier League. From his own journey at Newcastle and Fulham to breaking down the challenges facing big-money summer signings like Sesko, Gyökeres and Is...

This has been a transfer window for the ages. There’s been sulks, sagas and over £3billion spent by Premier League clubs. Ayo Akinwolere is joined by the transfer guru himself, David Ornstein, to wrap up the window. And then, Jack Pitt-Brooke, Tim Spiers and Jacob Whitehead debate and rank the top 10 moments. Host: Ayo Akinwolere With: David Ornstein, Jack Pitt-Brooke, Tim Spiers and Jacob Whitehe...

David Ornstein joins Adam Leventhal, Chris Weatherspoon and JJ Bull to run through the top deals on deadline day.  Host: Adam Leventhal With: David Ornstein, Chris Weatherspoon, JJ Bull Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The summer's major transfer saga is over. Liverpool have agreed a deadline day deal for Alexander Isak. A fee of £130m will help take Liverpool's summer spending over £400m. So, with the imminent arrival of Isak who can compete with Liverpool? Host: Ayo Akinwolere With: James Pearce and Adam Crafton Executive Producer: Abi Paterson Producers: Guy Clarke and Paul Iliffe Hosted on Acast. See acast.c...