The Athletic FC Podcast

Hosts Dan Bardell and Flo Lloyd-Hughes are joined by The Athletic's Tottenham correspondent Charlie Eccleshare and News Editor Amitai Winehouse, to discuss Spurs' complicated relationship with an antisemitic slur - The Y word... The panel delve into this nuanced debate, reflect on the origins of its association with the North London club, how it continues to divide the fanbase and even the wider J...

Mark Chapman is joined by The Atheltic’s David Ornstein, Lauire Whitwell & Adam Crafton to discuss the dismissal of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as manager of Manchester United.  We’ll go inside the turbulent final weeks of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s reign with detail of how it went wrong and who Manchester United are planning to bring in next. Later in the pod Mark & Adam are joined by to The Athleti...

Hosts Dan Bardell and George Elek are joined by bet365's Steve Freeth to preview some much-needed Premier League football following the last international break of 2021... Antonio Conte welcomes Marcelo Bielsa to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in a fascinating tactical match-up and Arsenal travel to Liverpool to find out how much progress they've really made since the start of the season... Plus, h...

The Athletic's Matt Slater and guests react to the news that Gary Hoffman has announced he is resigning as chairman of The Premier League after just 18 months in the job. He is joined by Simon Johnson, currently chair of The Rugby Football League, he spent 5 years as Chief Operating Officer at the English Football Association and was Director of Legal & Business Affairs at the Premier League....

Hosts Dan Bardell and Flo Lloyd-Hughes are joined by Rangers correspondent for The Athletic, Jordan Campbell, to explore the warning signs that Gerrard had become unsettled at Ibrox... The carefully assembled back-room staff Villa are set to inherit, including revered assistant coach Michael Beale, and why the likes of Emi Buendia could be set to flourish under new management. Later, Liverpool wri...

Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic's Adam Crafton to look at the different challenges faced by three newly appointed managers in the Premier League.  We’ll hear about the unlikely bond between Steven Gerrard & Christian Purslow that played a part in Gerrard landing the Aston Vila job. They also look at how Newcastle United could be about to be given a new identity by new boss Eddie Howe an...

Hosts Dan Bardell and George Elek are joined by bet365's Steve Freeth to discuss Steven Gerrard's appointment as Aston Villa boss - Is it really a bad thing if he views Villa as a stepping stone to Liverpool? Plus, why Norwich choosing Frank Lampard to replace Daniel Farke would be a surprise... The trio also attempt to pick Gareth Southgate's England squad for the World Cup in Qatar next year and...

Mark Chapman & Matt Slater discuss the rise of sport documentaries that pull back the curtain on the lives of professional athletes and attract new fans into watching live sport. Guests include Christian Horner, Team Principal of the Red Bull Racing Formula One who features in the hugely successful Netflix series Drive to Survive. Then we’ll hear from Leo Pearlman from Fulwell 73 who has produ...

Hosts Dan Bardell and Flo Lloyd-Hughes are joined by The Athletic's European football writer Raphael Honigstein, to discuss one of the "forgotten super-coaches" - Ajax manager Erik ten Hag... Rafa, reveals the secrets to their re-emergence as a major European force, just two years on from *that* sensational Champions League run and their heart-breaking semi-final exit to Spurs. Plus, the trio comp...

Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic's Adam Crafton, David Ornstein & Gregg Evans to discuss the sacking of Aston Villa manager Dean Smith and who might replace him. Norwich City are also now looking for a new manager, Michael Bailey covers the club for The Athletic and tells us what he knows from inside Carrow Road & who might take over from Daniel Farke. The Athletic's Roshane Thomas b...

Hosts Dan Bardell and George Elek are joined by bet365's Steve Freeth to preview another fascinating weekend of Premier League action... Can Ronaldo outscore Man City and is Liverpool's trip to West Ham actually the game of the weekend? Plus, why Saints are quietly impressing George and Dan's ready to give Arsenal (and Ramsdale in particular) some overdue credit. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/pri...

Mark Chapman & The Athletic's Matt Slater are joined by Dale Vince, owner of Forest Green Rovers Football Club who is at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow. Dale's side are recognised by FIFA as being the greenest football club in the world - we’ll discuss how sport can take action against climate change.. And we are joined by Rob Sullivan, CEO of The Football Foundation to tell us about the...

Hosts Dan Bardell and Flo Lloyd-Hughes are joined by The Athletic's Andy Mitten to discuss Xavi's 'inevitable' return to manage Barcelona... Senior Writer Dom Fifield sheds some light on what Spurs fans can expect from new boss Antonio Conte and with David Ornstein reporting that Unai Emery could soon become Newcastle's first post-takeover head coach, they discuss the true value of 'club DNA' in m...

Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic's Jack Pitt-Brooke & James Horncastle to get the inside track on the sacking of Nuno Espirito Santo as Tottenham boss and the imminent arrival of Antonio Conte. We’ll also talk Brighton and their manager Graham Potter whose reputation continues to grow after an impressive draw at Anfield at the weekend with The Athletic’s Andy Naylor. And Phil Hay explain...

Hosts Dan Bardell and George Elek are joined by bet365's Steve Freeth, to discuss Leicester's return to form, as Maddison 'gets his swagger back' and with summer signing Patson Daka's star on the rise... Are Leeds "too good to go down", how much does David Moyes deserve a trophy and why it's too soon to expect Villa to move on from Jack Grealish. Plus, who's worse right now - Spurs or Man United?...

Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic's Matt Slater as they speak with Canada Men's Football coach John Herdman. Herdman is bidding to qualify for men’s World Cup in Qatar next year for the first time since 1986, having previously seen success with Canada's women's team at the Olympics, winning two bronze medals. Listen to his story and the way that he's been able to transform a nation's prospect...

Hosts Dan Bardell and Flo Lloyd-Hughes are joined by The Athletic's Jack Pitt-Brooke, to discuss his article on the "inevitable" re-launch of a Super League... The trio reflect on its failure to launch earlier this year, discuss why it was more successful than many believe and what a 'Super-league 2.0' might actually look like... Think boxing meets the biennial World Cup! Hosted on Acast. See acas...

Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic's Adam Crafton, Oli Kay & United writer Laurie Whitwell to analyse what is going wrong inside Old Trafford and what could happen next regarding the future of manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer after Liverpool inflicted an embarassing defeat on Sunday. Norwich City correspondent Michael Bailey drops in to discuss the future of manager Daniel Farke after the terr...

Hosts Dan Bardell and George Elek are joined by bet365's Steve Freeth, to preview Liverpool's trip to Old Trafford - could defeat really spell the end for United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer? Plus, how 'set-piece kings' West Ham have become favourites for their London derby against Spurs, whether Phil Foden could end up with both the Player AND Young Player of the Year awards at the end of the season...

Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic's Dan Sheldon to take you inside the extraordinary meeting that saw Premier League clubs vote to block potential Newcastle United sponsorship deals. Sports Lawyer Daniel Geey will also be with us to discuss the various legal ramifications, the wider context as to how it got to this point and what could come next. Matt Slater is away this week but we’ll also d...

Hosts Dan Bardell and Flo Lloyd-Hughes are joined by The Athletic's Adam Crafton and Tas Melas (of NBA podcast 'No Dunks' fame) to dive into sport's global vaccination effort... Why the Premier League are still lagging behind major US sports leagues in terms of vaccine uptake, the 'conspiracy culture' in English football, how Qatar's vaccine mandate could rock the boat ahead of the World Cup next...

Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic's David Ornstein, Adam Crafton & Simon Johnson to discuss issues involving Manchester United, Newcastle United & Chelsea. After a shambolic defeat at the start of a difficult run of games, we’ll discuss what the future holds for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer at Manchester United.. We’ll also talk about Newcastle United, who got off to a disappointing start und...

Hosts George Elek and Ian Irving (standing in for Dan this week) are joined by bet365's Steve Freeth to preview the return of Premier League football... The trio discuss Claudio Ranieri's tough start to life at Vicarage Road and whether Ismaila Sarr was guilty of 'coasting' last year? Plus, how the Arsenal faithful will feel if club legend Patrick Vieira, and his thrilling Crystal Palace side, can...

The Athletic's Matt Slater visits Championship club Queens Park Rangers to speak to club legend Les Ferdinand who is now director of football at the club & Ruben Gnanalingam, QPR vice-chairman to discuss the club's plans to offer their fans the chance to invest in the club's future both on & off the pitch. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosts Flo Lloyd-Hughes and Athletic Editor Dan Barnes (filling in for our usual Dan this week) are joined by reporter Michael Walker, to discuss his article on increasing attendances at non-league football... As Newcastle supporters continue to chant 'we've got our club back', the trio discuss real fan-ownership, a nostalgic match-day experience, out-dated stigmas about supporters and quality of f...