

The Hard Truth - Inside the Football Industry with Darragh MacAnthony
Darragh MacAnthony
Having bought a professional football club Peterborough United aged 29 and been in the game for nearly 15 years Darragh shares his opinions on all things football as well as business discussion in this weekly podcast.
Brutally honest, direct opinion and insight of what happens behind the scenes, not in the public eye in the frantically busy and ever-changing world of football.
Hence the name of the podcast being “The Hard Truth”
Brutally honest, direct opinion and insight of what happens behind the scenes, not in the public eye in the frantically busy and ever-changing world of football.
Hence the name of the podcast being “The Hard Truth”
Episodes
Mentioned books

Oct 14, 2020 • 52min
EP24: Project Big Picture
Peterborough United Chairman Darragh MacAnthony and long-suffering Bradford City supporter Philip Ideson shine a light on the hard truths behind the football industry.
On this week's episode:
- Football in the community
- Salford City
- Project Big Picture
- The impact of promotion to the Championship
- Women's football
- Almost buying Orlando City
- and much more...
To submit a question for a future pod, email contact@hardtruthfootball.com. To listen to our back catalog, go to www.hardtruthfootball.com.

Oct 7, 2020 • 1h 2min
EP23: Deadline Day Realities
Peterborough United Chairman Darragh MacAnthony and long-suffering Bradford City supporter Philip Ideson shine a light on the hard truths behind the football industry.
On this week's episode:
- Crazy results
- Ollie Watkins
- Bury AFC
- Coming together to get fans back
- Doing business on deadline day
- Agent fees
- Republic of Ireland
- Pitching business ideas
- and much more...
To submit a question for a future pod, email contact@hardtruthfootball.com. To listen to our back catalog, go to www.hardtruthfootball.com.

Sep 30, 2020 • 59min
EP22: "Football Needs Help"
Peterborough United Chairman Darragh MacAnthony and long-suffering Bradford City supporter Philip Ideson shine a light on the hard truths behind the football industry.
On this week's episode:
- COVID testing saga
- Fans out for up to 6 more months
- Funding football over the rest of the season
- Cancelling games
- Sacking managers
- and much, much more...
To submit a question for a future pod, email contact@hardtruthfootball.com. To listen to our back catalog, go to www.hardtruthfootball.com.

Sep 23, 2020 • 1h 17min
EP21: Injury Time, Taking a Knee, and Much More...
Peterborough United Chairman Darragh MacAnthony and long-suffering Bradford City supporter Philip Ideson shine a light on the hard truths behind the football industry.
On this week's episode:
- Winning in injury time
- Verbals and making up with Joey Barton
- Macclesfield Town's debts
- QPR and taking a knee
- Can managers also be controversial pundits?
- The first meeting with a transfer target
- Advice on preparing for the next 12-24 months.
- and much, much more...
To submit a question for a future pod, email contact@hardtruthfootball.com. To listen to our back catalog, go to www.hardtruthfootball.com.

Sep 16, 2020 • 57min
EP20: "F*ck Football"
Peterborough United Chairman Darragh MacAnthony and long-suffering Bradford City supporter Philip Ideson shine a light on the hard truths behind the football industry.
On this week's episode:
- Posh players test positive for COVID-19
- Why players need to create their own bubble
- Boris Johnson's rule of 6
- Sammy Szmodics signs!
- Financing big transfers
- Players speaking out about their club's transfer policy
- and much, much more...
To submit a question for a future pod, email contact@hardtruthfootball.com. To listen to our back catalog, go to www.hardtruthfootball.com.

Sep 9, 2020 • 1h 17min
EP19: Fans Forum Special - 20/21 Season Preview
Peterborough United Chairman Darragh MacAnthony and long-suffering Bradford City supporter Philip Ideson shine a light on the hard truths behind the football industry.
On this week's episode:
- Behind closed doors stadium protocols
- Twitter trolls are back
- Clock ticking for unattached players
- Special fans forum: we speak with supporters of Bolton Wanderers, Bradford City, AFC Wimbledon, Rochdale, Ipswich Town, Preston North End, and Leeds United to look ahead to their 20/21 seasons.
To submit a question for a future pod, email contact@hardtruthfootball.com. To listen to our back catalog, go to www.hardtruthfootball.com.

Sep 2, 2020 • 1h 9min
EP18: Big Transfers! / Posh Supporters Forum
Peterborough United Chairman Darragh MacAnthony and long-suffering Bradford City supporter Philip Ideson shine a light on the hard truths behind the football industry.
On this week's episode:
- Sold! The inside story on Ivan Toney's big-money transfer to Brentford
- Bought! Jonson Clarke-Harris returns to Peterborough
- Considerations when setting season ticket prices
- Stopping players from leaving against the Manager's wishes
- The motivations of silent owners
- A special look ahead to the new season with 4 Peterborough United supporters in a new fans forum section of the pod.
To submit a question for a future pod, email contact@hardtruthfootball.com. To listen to our back catalog, go to www.hardtruthfootball.com.

Aug 26, 2020 • 60min
EP17: Inside the Loan Market
Peterborough United Chairman Darragh MacAnthony and long-suffering Bradford City supporter Philip Ideson shine a light on the hard truths behind the football industry.
On this week's episode:
- Fixtures are out!
- Finishing up pre-season
- iFollow
- Transfer window updates
- Giving players 3-year deals
- Loan market deep dive
To submit a question for a future pod, email contact@hardtruthfootball.com. To listen to our back catalog, go to www.hardtruthfootball.com.

Aug 19, 2020 • 51min
EP16: "Hold My Beer"
Peterborough United Chairman Darragh MacAnthony and long-suffering Bradford City supporter Philip Ideson shine a light on the hard truths behind the football industry.
On this week's episode:
- EFL bailout (or not)
- FA Cup prize money
- Negotiating transfer fees
- COVID cases in Scotland
- Training camp
- Is hiring from within the cheap option?
- Lessons learned in business and football
To submit a question for a future pod, email contact@hardtruthfootball.com. To listen to our back catalog, go to www.hardtruthfootball.com.

Aug 12, 2020 • 47min
EP15: "It'll stop football clubs going out of business"
Peterborough United Chairman Darragh MacAnthony and long-suffering Bradford City supporter Philip Ideson shine a light on the hard truths behind the football industry.
On this week's episode:
Ivan Toney transfer latest
Deep dive on all the salary cap rules
Scouting a player
Strange requests in player contracts
Chairmen and dressing rooms
Competition winner
To submit a question for a future pod, email contact@hardtruthfootball.com. To listen to our back catalog, go to www.hardtruthfootball.com.