

World Football
BBC World Service
Original football stories and interviews from around the globe.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jan 14, 2021 • 33min
Good times for Santos
With Santos reaching the Copa Libertadores final, we speak to the former Santos captain Rildo Menezes. And we find out more about the game's all time leading goal scorer Josef Bican.Picture: Yeferson Soteldo of Santos celebrates after scoring against Boca Juniors (Andre Penner – Pool/Getty Images)

Jan 7, 2021 • 31min
Big plans and high hopes for Anguilla
Anguilla national team coach Stern John talks about his new job and his hunt for new players. Wales international Helen Ward tells us why she briefly considered quitting the game. And Pat Nevin meets Pat-Nevin, as we introduce our regular presenter to the Namibian international Pat-Nevin Uanivi!Picture: Anguilla's football players pose for pictures aha of a CONCACAF Nations League match in 2019. (JOHAN ORDONEZ/AFP via Getty Images)

Dec 31, 2020 • 29min
Tragedy on Stairway 13
On the 50th anniversary of the Ibrox stadium disaster, Roddy Forsyth, Pat Nevin and survivor John Hodgson join Mani Djazmi to remember the tragedy which killed 66 people and injured many more at the end of the 1971 New Year match between Rangers and Celtic. This programme contains graphic eyewitness accounts.Picture: Rangers and Celtic fans observe a one minutes silence to mark 40th anniversary of the Ibrox disaster (Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images).

Dec 24, 2020 • 30min
Nights out with Maradona and Ice Hockey with Cruyff
Thomas Rongen shares some fascinating stories and memories, from the glory days of the North American Soccer League in the early 1980s, to leading American Samoa to it's first ever international victory.Picture: Thomas Rongen appeals to the fourth official during a match between the Carolina RailHawks and the Tampa Bay Rowdies in 2015 (Photo by Andy Mead/YCJ/Icon Sportswire/Corbis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Dec 17, 2020 • 26min
A new era for Beitar Jerusalem?
We look at the historic co-ownership of Beitar Jerusalem by an Arab and a Jew. Beitar have never had an Arab player but now they have an Arabic co-owner. Moshe Hogeg, who signed a partnership with Sheikh Hamad of Abu Dhabi, tells us that he had to consult the most important religious and political figures in Israel first.Picture: Fans of Israeli Beitar Jerusalem football club show their support during the team's training in Jerusalem (EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP via Getty Images)

Dec 10, 2020 • 30min
Walking off in solidarity
Başakşehir's Nacer Chadli discusses the decision to abandon a Champions League match after an alleged racist incident. And we pay tribute to Italy's 1982 World Cup hero Paolo Rossi.Picture: The score board and empty grandstand after the game was suspended in the first half as the players walked off amid allegations of racism by one of the match officials during the UEFA Champions League group H football match between Paris Saint-Germain and Istanbul Basaksehir FK at the Parc des Princes stadium in Paris. (FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images)

Dec 4, 2020 • 34min
Tears in Lima and joy in the Arctic
We reflect on differing fortunes for Norway's Bodo/Glimt and Peru's Alianza Lima. Plus, Icelandic goalkeeper Guðbjörg Gunnarsdóttir talks about the challenge of balancing motherhood with football.Picture: A fan of Alianza Lima lights a flare during a match against Estudiantes de Mérida (Raul Sifuentes/Getty Images)

Nov 26, 2020 • 38min
El Diego: A tribute
We pay tribute to Diego Armando Maradona. We hear from Claudio Marangoni, who played against him in his early years in the Argentinean league. He describes Maradona as being like a hurricane. Antonio Nunez, who signed him as the unlikely coach of a Mexican second division team remembers how playful Maradona was. And we also recall Maradona's demons and his shock expulsion from the 1994 World Cup for doping.Picture: Diego Maradona of Napoli celebrates during a Serie A match between Napoli and Fiorentina (Etsuo Hara/Getty Images).

Nov 19, 2020 • 33min
Yannick Bolasie, The Gambia and winning in China
The DR Congo and Everton winger Yannick Bolasie talks about the frustration at not getting game time with his club, and the joy of being back playing for his country. Plus, the Gambia coach Tom Saintfiet discusses the chaos that came before their match against Gabon, as unhappy Gabonese players slept on an airport floor the night before the game.Picture: Yannick Bolasie playing for Sporting CP against Vitria SC in 2019 (Paulo Nascimento / DPI / NurPhoto via Getty Images).

Nov 12, 2020 • 26min
Sassuolo flying high and African politics
South African FA supremo Danny Jordaan discusses the race to become the President of the Confederation of African Football. And Sassuolo's Pedro Obiang discusses his team's impressive start to the season and the attributes of his coach Roberto de Zerbi.Picture on website: Pedro Obiang of Sassuolo celebrates during a Coppa Italia match against Spezia (Nicolò Campo/LightRocket via Getty Images).


