The Athletic FC Podcast

Hosts Dan Bardell and George Elek are joined by bet365's Steve Freeth to preview the BIG ONE: Manchester City vs Liverpool... Does Sunday's winner go on to lift the Premier League trophy in May, will Salah rediscover his goalscoring touch at the Etihad and who plays on the left in our combined XI?Plus, the trio assess Everton's demise, with relegation for the first time in 68 years looking increasingly likely, whether Erik ten Hag is the answer at Old Trafford, as well as, why it is fair to expect a busy summer at Villa Park and why it's 'advantage Spurs' in the race for Top 4. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Athletic's Matt Slater has a double helping of football business for you - looking at the ongoing debate around the future of the Champions League in the wake of Nasser Al-Khelaifi's suggestion that it needs to be more like the Super Bowl, and we also delve into the Championship to examine the ever-growing disparity between the haves and the have-nots as parachute payments continue to wreak havoc with competitive balance.Our guests today are sponsorship and marketing expert Tim Crow & football finance expert Dr Dan Plumley. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosts Dan Bardell and Flo Lloyd-Hughes are joined by The Athletic's Crystal Palace correspondent to assess how Patrick Vieira has totally transformed the South Londoners, hours after arguably the best performance of the season - beating Arsenal 3-0 on Monday night...Then, Lauren Cochrane, Senior Fashion Writer for The Guardian, the undeniably fashionable Carl Anka & former City defender Nedum Onuoha join in, to explore football's curious relationship with fashion. From Beckham's sarong & Rapinoe's suits to Jack Grealish's seven-figure Gucci endorsement deal - Is there more to it than the dressing room developing a dress-sense? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic's Adam Crafton and our Brentford correspondent Jay Harris to reflect on the remarkable victory for Thomas Frank's side at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, including a look at whether they can hope to keep hold of Christian Eriksen and how if things were slightly different Thomas Tuchel could have been in the Brentford dugout.Adam has been talking to PSG president and chairman of the European Clubs Association Nasser Al-Khelaifi about his views on how the Champions League can grow and be modernised in comparison with mega events like the Super Bowl.We're also joined by The Athletic's Matt Slater who has returned from Doha after last week's World Cup draw and found that Qatar was in much punchier mood than usual when it came to questions of their human rights record and suitability to host the tournament Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosts Dan Bardell and George Elek are joined by bet365's Steve Freeth to preview Liverpool's early opportunity to go top of the Premier League table... Plus, Maguire's move from Leicester to Manchester United revisited, Vieira's induction into the PL Hall of Fame, whether Marcus Rashford would benefit from a move to Arsenal and if David Moyes should be crowned manager of the season? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Chapman is joined from Doha by The Athletic's Matt Slater ahead of the draw for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.The theme of today’s podcast will be the criticism over the decision to stage the World Cup in Qatar because of concerns over the country's human rights record.Guests include Jonas Baer-Hoffmann is General Secretary of FIFPRO the global football players union & Wenzel Michalski a director at Human Rights Watch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic's Adam Crafton & Laurie Whitwell to discuss Manchester United’s recruitment plans for the summer.Our Italian football writer James Horncastle will join us from Portugal, where he was meant to be covering Italy in the World Cup play off final..And Liam Twomey will join us to discuss the contenders shortlisted to become the new owners of Chelsea. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosts Dan Bardell and Flo Lloyd-Hughes are joined by The Athletic's England reporter Jack Pitt-Brooke and Investigations writer, Matt Slater, to preview the World Cup draw and assess England's chances at the winter tournament... Qatar's ability to accommodate travelling supporters, Bale's international form, Foden's best position, Italy's misery and more...Plus, the guys check in with The Athletic's newsroom across the Atlantic to see how Canada and USA are preparing for the last tournament before hosting the World Cup in 2026 and Carl Anka enlightens us on a historic grudge match playing itself out over two legs in Africa. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Athletic's Matt Slater speaks to Chris Isitt chair of Chelsea Pitch Owners - the company that holds the freehold of Stamford Bridge stadium - as the sales process for Premier League Chelsea Football Club continues. Isitt tell Matt, CPO have been in communication with groups who have made heavily fancied bids.Matt is also joined by Professor Simon Chadwick an expert on sport and geopolitics, to look at the impact of investment from Saudi Arabia in a range of sports including football, boxing, WWE, golf and Formula One rolls into Jeddah this weekend.. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosts Dan Bardell and Flo Lloyd-Hughes are joined by The Athletic's Jay Harris - fresh from his recent visit to St. George's Park - to discuss how the FA are trying to put an end to the fact that an English manager has never won the Premier League title or The Champions League!You'll hear from some of the latest cohort of ex-senior England professionals embarking on a revolutionary coaching programme with the FA, how Italy and Germany have set the standard as well as how Gareth Southgate fits into the bigger picture.Plus, the trio debate recent comments from the likes of Steven Gerrard, Paul Scholes and Frank Lampard as part of a wider conversation about what modern day players actually need from modern coaches. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.