The GIST of It

Content warning: This episode contains mention of sexual misconduct. Co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz are talking fútbol and football on today’s episode of The GIST of It . The gals start off with some international women’s soccer news: Three French women’s national team players announced last week that they will not play internationally until changes are made within the federation, and now th...

Hey, hi, hello! Tomorrow is the one-year anniversary of Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, so on today’s episode of The GIST of It , co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz are chatting through the ongoing war’s impact on the sports world. The gals will then dive into Russia’s fraught history at international competitions, as well as the country’s use of sportswashing to detract from their prob...

Class is in session! On today’s episode of The GIST of It , co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz are heading back to school to chat about a major legal battle involving the NCAA. A federal court heard arguments yesterday in the case of Johnson vs. NCAA, which argues that former collegiate athletes should have been paid an hourly wage, similar to other student workers. College sports fan or not, th...

Happy Valentine’s Day! Content warning: This episode mentions hazing and sexual assault. And happy belated Galentine’s Day. Unfortunately, this episode of The GIST of It is short on love as co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz dive into two WTF stories claiming headlines. First up, the CanWNT’s ongoing labor dispute. The squad went on strike over the weekend, just days before the all-important She...

Are you ready for some football?! Sure hope so, because it’s time for the fourth annual Super Bowl episode of The GIST of It . The big game is set for this Sunday, so co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz are serving up everything you need to know before kickoff. Will quarterback Patrick Mahomes lead his Kansas City Chiefs back to glory? Or can the Philadelphia Eagles fly to a second franchise titl...

Hey there! Content warning: Today’s episode contains mention of sexual abuse. Thanks for tuning in for another episode of The GIST of It . On today’s pod, co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz are tackling a topic that’s become all too familiar across all levels of sports: athlete abuse. The latest example? Three U.S. snowboarders sued their longtime coach for sexual abuse and sex trafficking, as w...

Happy Groundhog Day! Content warning: Today’s episode contains brief mention of racism and verbal and emotional abuse. No, you’re not reliving the same day again — co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz are back with yet another WTF-filled episode of The GIST of It . The first relates to a topic oft-discussed on the pod: toxic hockey culture. Longtime Harvard women’s coach Katey Stone is facing alle...

Happy NGWSD eve! Tomorrow marks the 37th annual National Girls and Women in Sports Day, but here at The GIST of It , it’s a year-round party. On today’s episode, co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz are celebrating by digging into two of the biggest storylines in women’s sports this week: WNBA free agency and NWSL expansion. W players can officially ink deals starting tomorrow, but one big name (h...

Happy Thursday! It’s a Friday Jr. in January, so you know what that means: NFL playoff preview, baby. On today’s episode of The GIST of It , co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz break down everything you need to know about this weekend’s NFL Conference Championships. The NFC No. 2 San Francisco 49ers will meet the No. 1 Philadelphia Eagles, then the AFC No. 3 Cincinnati Bengals match up against th...

Hello! On today’s episode of The GIST of It , co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz are diving into a crucial topic — parenthood in sports. Over the weekend, WNBA star Dearica Hamby shared claims that her former team, the Las Vegas Aces, discriminated against her for being pregnant. Beyond unacceptable. Hamby’s allegations also come on the heels of other recent stories of mistreatment across sports...

Hey, what’s up, hello! Thanks for tuning in to another episode of The GIST of It . On today’s pod, co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz dig into the chaos that is the WNBA offseason. Free agency is barely underway, but there’s already been one league-altering move plus rumors swirling about a few more that could follow. Then, for part two, the gals preview this weekend’s NFL Divisional Round slate...

Happy Thursday! Content warning: Today’s episode contains mention of domestic violence. And happy NFL playoffs eve eve. On today’s episode of The GIST of It , Steph Rotz and guest host Lauren Tuiskula break down everything you need to know before the 14-team postseason kicks off with this weekend’s Wild Card action. Then after the break, Steph and Lauren dig into a story that’s gone stunningly und...

Hi there! Content warning: Today’s episode contains mention of sexual assault. Welcome to a jam-packed episode of The GIST of It . On today’s pod, co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz kick things off with yesterday’s breaking news that the NWSL issued lifetime bans to four coaches as part of the corrective action following investigations into widespread abuse across the league. El and Steph break...

Happy New Year! Content warning: Today’s episode contains mention of domestic violence. Thanks for tuning in to the first The GIST of It episode of 2023. On today’s pod, co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz discuss a story that’s gripping the sports world and beyond: the status of Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin, who suffered a cardiac arrest during Monday Night Football. El and Steph provide th...

Happy Tiny Friday! In today’s final episode of The GIST of It for 2022, co-hosts El and Steph take a walk down memory lane, reliving the top sports stories from 2022. Join us, won’t you! Show notes: More on The GIST: Subscribe: thegistsports.com/subscribepodTwitter: @thegistpod Email: pod@thegistsports.com IG: @thegistca @thegistusa

Hey, what’s up, hello! It’s time for the penultimate The GIST of It episode of the year, and this one’s all about, you guessed it, soccer. From a recap of Sunday’s absolutely jaw-dropping men’s World Cup final and a discussion of what it means for Lionel Messi’s legacy to what comes next for both the women’s and men’s international games, co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz have your footy lowdow...

Content warning: Today’s episode contains mention of sexual, verbal and emotional abuse. Today’s episode of The GIST of It is jam-packed with footy news, featuring one high and one low from the beautiful game. First, co-hosts El and Steph discuss yesterday’s release of the joint NWSL and NWSLPA investigation into widespread abuse across the league. There are, sadly, more damning details to break d...

Good morning! Today’s episode of The GIST of It is a good one, literally. Co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz chat through the fantastic news that WNBA star Brittney Griner is finally home after 10 months of being wrongfully detained in Russia, along with the league’s compensation issues that cause so many athletes to play overseas in the first place. Then the gals kick it on over to the men’s Wo...

Hello! Queue up today’s episode of The GIST of It, featuring a soccer smorgasbord of updates from the beautiful game. Co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz begin with the exciting news that a Canadian women’s pro league is set to kick off in 2025, launched by CanWNT legends Diana Matheson and Christine Sinclair. Great news for the Great White North. Then it’s time for a men’s World Cup quarter-fina...

Happy podcast day! Content warning: This episode contains mention of verbal, emotional and sexual abuse. It’s time for a fútbol-filled episode of The GIST of It. Co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz kick things off by chatting on- and off-field World Cup updates. The quarter-finals are nearly set with tourney favorites taking care of business in the knockouts, while a brand new potential off-field...

Hello, Hola, Salut! Content warning: This episode contains mention of sexual misconduct. Today on The GIST of It, co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz discuss the biggest story in pro football and the men’s and women’s big wins in World Cup fútbol. First, the gals start with this weekend’s notorious NFL game that will see Deshaun Watson back on the gridiron for the first time after serving his pal...

Long time no talk! Content warning: This episode contains mention of suicide and sexual assault. On today’s episode of The GIST of It, co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz are heading back to school to discuss two major stories from college sports. They’ll start in women’s basketball where squads competed in a hotel ballroom over the weekend, notably without EMTs present. Wish we were kidding. The...

Hello! The men’s FIFA World Cup is officially underway and, though we’re just three days in, it’s already a disaster. On today’s episode of The GIST of It, co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz detail the series of unfortunate events from opening weekend, spanning a last minute reversal on beer sales to cracking down on athlete protest. It’s giving Fyre Fest. Thank you to Sonos for sponsoring today...

Happy Thursday! And happy (almost) men’s FIFA World Cup kickoff. On today’s episode of The GIST of It, co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz cover everything you need to know about one of the biggest sporting events in the world. The gals start things off by chatting about the main story from the tourney — the many controversies surrounding it. Then they pivot to the pitch with a full breakdown on...

Hola! Co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz are back in your ears with yet another WTF–filled episode of The GIST of It, this time covering NCAA women’s soccer and the NFL. El and Steph start things off with an enraging story out of Iowa State University, where head women’s soccer coach Matt Fannon was accused of verbal abuse, body shaming and a toxic culture so, of course, the school just extended...