The Athletic FC Podcast

Host Mark Chapman and The Athletic's football news reporter Matt Slater examine the state of the TV rights market in English football as news emerged that the English Premier League has held talks to roll over its existing £5bn broadcast deal instead of holding an auction as usual.They are joined by Shaun Harvey, former CEO of the English Football League & Paolo Pescatore - a Tech, Media & Telco Analyst. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic’s David Ornstein, Adam Crafton and Oli Kay to discuss the backlash and protest from fans of the Premier League biggest clubs against their owners that has brought the game in England to a tipping point. What could happen next and are proposed reforms too little too late? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman and The Athletic's football news reporter Matt Slater are joined by former Real Madrid President Ramon Calderon to get his perspective on the how the Super League proposal was handled by his successor Florentino Perez and to get his unique insight on how to lead an iconic football super power. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic’s David Ornstein, Adam Crafton and Jack Pitt-Brooke to discuss a difficult week both on and off the field for Tottenham which was capped off in the League Cup final - so what’s the plan now for Daniel Levy and Spurs?David also reveals that Arsenal are still paying Mesut Ozil a huge sum of money has details on new contract for a young star.And The Athletic's Sam Lee joins the pod to give his thoughts on Manchester City’s Phil Foden - is he ready to start for England? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic's football news reporter Matt Slater to digest one of the most dramatic week’s in football history as plans for a breakaway Super League collapse and why the clubs involved might get what they want from UEFA anyway.They are joined by Peter Kenyon former Chief Executive of both Manchester United & Chelsea - two clubs that were part of the Super League plot - who shares his thoughts on the Glazers, Roman Abramovich and updates on the takeover of Newcastle United.Also on the pod, Keith Wyness, former chief executive at Everton & Aston Villa to shares his thoughts on what comes next and how the Premier League clubs not involved in the breakaway might react. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Athletic's Jack Pitt-Brooke and James Maw react to the news that Spurs have sacked Jose Mourinho.They discuss why it's happened now, the impact it will have on the squad, and whether the appointment was doomed from the very start. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic’s David Ornstein, Adam Crafton Dominic Fifield to discuss the staggering news that football’s biggest clubs are prepared to break away from UEFA competitions and establish a new European Super League..They also look at Crystal Palace ahead of what could be a summer of change - The Athletic has learnt that Patrick Vieira is being considered as a replacement for Roy Hodgson. And we’ll continue our look at how the England squad is shaping up ahead of Euro 2020 - is there enough of a goal threat beyond Harry Kane?Recorded before the sacking of Jose Mourinho - special pod on that story on this feed soon! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman is joined by NFL writer & host of 'The Athletic Football Show', Robert Mays, as well as, The Athletic's Ed Malyon (both live from Chicago) ahead of the 2021 NFL Draft... The trio preview this years event, discuss the changing landscape of TV & broadcast deals, mammoth player contracts and the money in college football - carefully translated for even an uninitiated Premier League fan! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic’s David Ornstein, Adam Crafton & our Manchester United writer Laurie Whitwell.On this week's pod, how United are working behind the scenes to avoid a summer transfer saga in their pursuit of a striker.Laurie will share some of the details from his piece on Jose Mourinho’s time at Old Trafford including his public falling out with Paul Pogba - and we’ll look at Mourinho’s position at Spurs.And we’ll continue our look at how the England squad is shaping up ahead of Euro 2020 - could Jude Bellingham force his way into Gareth Southgate’s starting eleven? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic's football news reporter Matt Slater are joined by Dr Tom Markham to explain how a football club is valued and how deals are negotiated between buyer and seller with our guest Dr Tom Markham - who is on the board of the group that has just bought EFL side Wigan Athletic.Analysing a raft of recent deals including the breaking news during recording of this week's pod that the pod that saw the completion of sales of both Ipswich and Derby County.Tom also reveals the club he thinks would be the toughest to buy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Athletic's Adam Crafton speaks to Valencia president Anil Murthy to get his view on the incident which took place during the game between Valencia and Cadiz on Sunday when Valencia defender Mouctar Diakhaby accused Cadiz's Juan Cala of racially abusing him, which lead to the Valencia players leaving the pitch for 20 minutes.The following days have seen Cala issue a strong denial that he used the language he was accused of using, and in turn Valencia have continued to come out strongly in support of Diakhaby.In this interview Anil Murthy explains his thoughts on how the incident was dealt with at the time, how he thinks La Liga and Spanish football should deal with any future incidents of this nature, and he expresses his disappointment with the lack of progress being made on racism in football. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Athletic's David Ornstein is joined by our German football writer Raphael Honigstein, our Chelsea correspondent Simon Johnson and our analytics writer Tom Worville to look at the latest on the increasingly public saga that is the future of Dortmund's Erling Haaland.We get the inside track on his, and agent Mino Raiola's, current state of mind from Rapha, Worville runs the numbers to try and work out which of Europe's big clubs would suit him best, and Simon has insight on why there might be some at Chelsea who haven't given up on luring Haaland to Stamford Bridge this summer.There's also a look at the fallout from Chelsea's 5-2 defeat against West Brom at the weekend, with reports of an understandably heated dressing room that turned into training ground scuffles on Sunday.Plus we're joined by our Aston Villa correspondent Gregg Evans for our weekly look at the England picture ahead of the Euros, this week focusing on Jack Grealish's race to regain fitness ahead of the tournament. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic's football news reporter Matt Slater to bring you the latest developments in the battle between UEFA and Europe’s top clubs over UEFA Champions League reform as proposals are thrown into doubt over a commercial rights disagreement.Ronan Evain, Executive Director of Football Supporters Europe joins the podcast to bring a fans point of view on the reforms and his fears for football as a spectacle .And we hear Matt’s interview with Damian Willoughby, Chief Executive Officer of City Football Group India about their plans to grow their brand in the region following success on the field with Mumbai City - winners of the Indian Super League. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic’s David Ornstein and Adam Crafton to discuss David's exclusive on Liverpool finalising a deal to sign RB Leipzig’s centre half Ibrahima Konata.Then, The Athletic's James Horncastle will tell us all about his big interview with both Mino Raiola & Jonathan Barnett - agents to some of the biggest names in world football.And we’ll continue our look at how The England squad is shaping up ahead of the Euros by looking at Chelsea’s Mason Mount with The Athletic’s Liam Twomey. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman and The Athletic's Matt Slater discuss the landmark multi-million pound deal between the English Football Association and UK broadcasters to screen matches in the Women’s Super League.Special guests for the roundtable discussion are Kelly Simmons, Director of The Women’s Professional Game at the English Football Association & Bex Smith, Strategic Consultant at Copa 90 & CEO of Crux Sports a company that supports players through their careers. She is a former New Zealand international, who has captained her country at two World Cups and two Olympics. She later worked for Fifa, managing the Women's World Cups and hosts of The Players podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic’s David Ornstein, Adam Crafton & Jack Pitt-Brooke to discuss José Mourinho’s efforts to lift the gloom around Spurs and the continued misery at Newcastle United.Also as England players gather for international duty for the last time before Euro 2020 - what is the significance of Trent Alexander Arnold’s omission from the squad? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman and The Athletic's football news reporter Matt Slater look into reports that clubs in Belgium have voted in favour of merging with the Dutch Eredivisie. We speak to Alex Muzio chairman of Belgian sleeping giant Royale Union Saint-Gilloise who last week sealed a return to the top flight.And this week sees the return of The Cheltenham Festival, the highlight of the British jump racing calendar, behind closed and under pressure to deliver for an industry hit by lost revenues due and negative publicity - former Jockey Club CEO Simon Bazalgette joins us. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic’s Adam Crafton & our Sheffield United writer Richard Sutcliffe to tell us how Chris Wilder's dream job turned sour and shares his thoughts on what the future holds for the club & Wilder.Also on the pod, Arsenal writer James McNicholas drops in to explain the reasons why Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was dropped by Mikel Arteta yesterday.Right now you can subscribe to The Athletic for a special price of £3.99 a month for 6 months. That’s 40% off the full price of a subscriptionYou’ll enjoy great analysis and in-depth features from the very best football writers around, as well as ad free versions of all our podcasts.So go to theathletic.com/ornsteinandchapman to take advantage of this special 40% discount. That's www.theathletic.com/ornsteinandchapman Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman and The Athletic's football news reporter Matt Slater speak to Joey D’Urso Investigations Writer covering football for The Athletic about the collapse of The Football Index the so called “football stock market” that has seen users portfolios crash to almost nothing..And it’s football accounts season - Kieran Maguire from the Price of Football podcast joins us to run the numbers and pick out the talking points from the books of clubs including Manchester United.You can subscribe to The Athletic for a special price of £3.99 a month for 6 months. That’s 40% off the full price of a subscriptionYou’ll enjoy great analysis and in-depth features from the very best football writers around, as well as ad free versions of all our podcasts.So go to theathletic.com/ornsteinandchapman to take advantage of this special 40% discount. That's theathletic.com/ornsteinandchapman Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic’s David Ornstein, Adam Crafton & Jordan Campbell.David outlines the reasons that Manchester City will not be making a move for PSG striker Kylian Mbappe but Erling Haaland remains an option.Jordan shares the inside story of how how Steven Gerrard delivered the Premiership title for Rangers and what how he might look to cement his legacy at the club and beyond.Plus, in his weekly column for The Athletic Alan Shearer thinks the next round of international matches should be called off - is he right?Right now you can subscribe to The Athletic for a special price of £3.99 a month for 6 months. That’s 40% off the full price of a subscriptionYou’ll enjoy great analysis and in-depth features from the very best football writers around, as well as ad free versions of all our podcasts.So go to www.theathletic.com/ornsteinandchapman to take advantage of this special 40% discount. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman and The Athletic's football news reporter Matt Slater speak to Simon Hallett, owner of English League One side Plymouth Argyle football club and Chief Investment Officer at Harding Loevner, an investment boutique that manages more than $70 billion for individuals and institutions about how he finds the balances between running a football club like a business and a labour of love - as a life-long Plymouth fan. We hear about the business processes implemented in leading a football club at the intersection of economics, finance and psychology and data. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic’s David Ornstein, Adam Crafton & Tim Spiers.Hear the inside story of super agent Jorge Mendes' influence at Wolves, how he operates and how he took full advantage of uncertainty during the most recent transfer windows - much to the admiration of many within football.Plus, we look at the paradox of Brighton and Graham Potter and hear why his admired by decision makers at the FA.And after another weekend of tough weekend for match officials is it time they were given more chance to share the mechanics of the decision making as it happens at post-match to viewers at home? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman and The Athletic's football news reporter Matt Slater speak to Jacco Swart & Alberto Colombo, executives from European Super Leagues, the organisation that is working with the Premier League, Bundesliga and La Liga to lobby against the more radical proposals for European club competition reform.We hear about the conversations that are taking place to broker the ongoing power struggle between UEFA, European football's richest clubs and their domestic leagues. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic’s David Ornstein, Adam Crafton & Patrick Boyland.Coming up today David shares his latest information on Manchester United's purist of Jadon Sancho.Patrick gives the inside story of how Carlo Ancelotti masterminded Everton's historic win at Anfield and reveals Marcel Brands plans as Director of Football at the club.Plus, hear how Fantasy Premier League is becoming a growing issue for clubs after Aston Villa players removed Jack Grealish from their teams - accidentally leaking team news before facing Leicester in the process.Don’t forget until February 25th, new subscribers can get half price annual subscription to The Athletic ; that’s less than £1/week for an entire year.Just go to www.theathletic.com/ornsteinandchapman Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman and The Athletic is Football news reporter Matt Slater speak to Jonathan Walters, the former Premier League player who has applied to become the new CEO of the professional footballers union in England.They also speak to Andreas Krannich, from Sportradar, a company that works with sporting federations and leagues to fight the rise in match-fixing across a range of sports.The Champions League returns this week and there’s no better time to sign up for all our unrivalled coverage at The Athletic. Until February 25th, we’re offering new subscribers a half price annual subscription; that’s less than £1/week for an entire year.Just go to www.theathletic.com/ornsteinandchapman to sign up Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic’s David Ornstein, Adam Crafton & Simon Hughes. Coming up today David’s will share exclusive detail on Jose Mourinho’s contract at Spurs.We also discuss Simon's recent column that asked fans to try and relate to what Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has been going through as a person following the loss of his mother.We also reflect on Adam's incredible piece on Justin Fashanu, that details serious allegations about the former Norwich striker’s treatment in football, by the church & the media. The Champions League returns this week and there’s no better time to sign up for all our unrivalled coverage at The Athletic. Until February 25th, we’re offering new subscribers a half price annual subscription; that’s less than £1/week for an entire year.Just go to www,theathletic.com/ornsteinandchapman Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman and The Athletic is Football news reporter Matt Slater lead on the story that salary caps in League One and League Two have been scrapped following and appeal by the players' union.We speak to Nick De Marco the QC who successfully argued the case for the PFA and we also get reaction from Accrington Stanley chairman Andy Holt.And as free-to-air Test cricket returns to UK screens, we’ll discuss how successful the coverage will be in reaching a wider audience with TV Analyst Julian Aquilina. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic's David Ornstein, Adam Crafton & Sam Lee to focus on Manchester City and detail the shortlist of strikers they have drawn up for the summer.And they'll also discuss the increased levels of online abuse towards players and officials following Premier League referee Mike Dean informing police that his family has received death threats on social media platformsThroughout February you can subscribe to The Athletic for a special price.Enjoy great analysis and in-depth features from the very best football writers around, as well as ad-free versions of all our podcasts for less than £1 a week.Just go to www.theathletic.com/ornsteinandchapman Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Chapman & Matt Slater are joined by Paraag Marathe Vice Chairman of Premiers League side Leeds United & Executive Vice President of Football Operations at San Francisco 49ers.In a wide ranging interview, Paarag details plans for Elland Road, discussions with other American owners of Premier League clubs and how Leeds & the 49ers could work together in areas such as player contracts, recruitment, analytics and commercial dealings. We also hear Paraag's exciting vision for cricket in the States in his role as chairman of USA Cricket. Don’t forget right now you can subscribe to The Athletic for just £3.99 a monthEnjoy great analysis and in-depth features from the very best football writers around, as well as ad-free versions of all of our podcasts.Just head to www.theathletic.com/ornsteinandchapman to sign up Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic's David Ornstein, Adam Crafton & Dominic Fifield to look back on the January 2021 transfer window:Why was it so quiet? Who stands to benefit from it being so quiet? And we’ll look ahead to what we can expect this summer and beyond..They'll also pick the bones out of the main stories of transfer deadline day including the mechanics behind the players Arsenal got out of the door, why Daniel Levy may have blocked Dele Alli's path out of Spurs and the challenges faced in moving elite players in the current climate.Throughout February you can subscribe to The Athletic for a special price.Enjoy great analysis and in-depth features from the very best football writers around, as well as ad-free versions of all our podcasts for less than £1 a week.Just go to www.theathletic.com/ornsteinandchapman Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Chapman and The Athletic's Matt Slater assess the current state of football's financial landscape as the effects of the pandemic start to take a greater hold on the game.We speak to Deloitte's Tim Bridge after the firm published their annual money league this week with Barcelona sitting at the top on revenues of £627 million, but in the very same week we've seen headlines in Spain suggesting Barca are on the bring of bankruptcy.So how can a club that makes so much money be in so much debt? How badly have clubs like Manchester United, Liverpool and Spurs felt the pinch as we approach a year without fans in stadiums?We're also joined by Roger Bell and John Purcell from football finance analysts Vysble to look at the bigger picture for football's uncertain financial future. What do the creeping levels of American investment in English football mean for the future of our game? Does it all just lead us back to the eternally looming prospect of a European super league? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic's David Ornstein and Liam Twomey to bring us the inside story of Chelsea's decision to sack Frank Lampard.We'll detail the events that lead to the final decision being made, the problems Lampard had with some sections of a crowded dressing room, the role his relationships with the Chelsea hierarchy played, how his struggles to get Werner and Havertz playing well were viewed and how there were reservations as far back as August from not just the club but Lampard himself too.We're also joined by our German football writer Raphael Honigstein with insight on what Lampard's replacement Thomas Tuchel will bring to Chelsea. What is he like as a coach and a personality? Is there more to it than just the fact he's a German coach? How long has he been on the club's radar?There's also some transfer talk as we head into the last week of the window with detail on Martin Odegaard's imminent arrival at Arsenal and news of behind-the-scenes talks between Donny Van de Beek and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as the Dutchman's start to life at Old Trafford continues to be overshadowed by the timely resurgence of Paul Pogba. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Chapman and The Athletic's Matt Slater are joined by two of football’s leading economic and legal minds - Daniel Geey and Stefan Szymanski - to help us ponder the question ‘should football scrap transfer fees?’The current transfer window is moving quite slow, clubs are facing tougher financial challenges, so what if we just got rid of transfer fees and allowed players to move freely between employers like most people do in 'normal' jobs?Is the current system technically illegal, what would be the alternative system if we chose to replace transfer fees, and can we learn anything from looking at the closed model of trades and free agency in North American sports? All this and more considered as we try to get to the bottom of an issue that is fundamental to the game as we know it. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic's David Ornstein, Adam Crafton and Laurie Whitwell with insight and opinion on the biggest stories in footballDavid takes us inside the deal that has finally seen Mesut Ozil's time at Arsenal come to an end, as he heads to Turkey to sign for Fenerbahce.We also bring you news of Chelsea's plans to step up their interest in Dortmund's Erling Haaland this summer, with the club hoping to steal a march on the likes of Man City, Man Utd and Real Madrid who were laying in wait for the Norwegian's release clause to become active in 2022.Plus we look at the fascinating Premier League title race following the 0-0 draw between Liverpool and Manchester United on Sunday - do United consider themselves genuine title contenders for the first time in years? Have Man City got their act together at just the right time? And what's up with Liverpool at the moment? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic's Matt Slater to look at our exclusive story on the recent Burnley takeover. Their new owners have only put in £15 million up front and the rest is leveraged debt. What does this mean and should Burnley fans be concerned?Swansea City investor Jordan Gardener joins us to give us his considered view on the Burnley deal and context on the wider picture relating to increasing amounts of American capital investment in football.We also speak to Spencer Owen of Hashtag United (22:40) about the increasingly difficult situation in non-league football as it appears a second consecutive season is going to be cancelled and expunged from the record books.Spencer also gives us a fascinating insight into what it's like to have created a fully-fledged football club from scratch off the back of being a YouTube sensation and the club's ambitious vision for the future.Subscribe to The AthleticRight now you can enjoy the Athletic for just £3.99 per month as part of our January sale.Enjoy great analysis and in-depth features from the very best football writers around, as well as ad-free versions of all of our podcasts. Just go to theathletic.com/ornsteinandchapman to sign up. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic's David Ornstein and Adam Crafton with news of the latest covid-induced fixture headache as Spurs v Fulham is rearranged at the last minute to replace the game Spurs were due to have against Aston Villa, and we consider the overall picture for the Premier League moving forward as cases continue to rise across the country.There's also news of Arsenal's Rob Holding signing a new contract just months after he was heading for the exit door at the Emirates, we have detail on Tottenham's interest in Stuttgart's Nicolas Gonzalez, plus there's fallout from the Edinson Cavani disciplinary case as the Uruguayan players association continue to defend Cavani's reputation.We also hear from The Athletic's West Brom correspondent Steve Madeley with the inside track on Matheus Pereira's situation at the Hawthorns as tension grows over his desire to sign a new and improved contract.Subscribe to The AthleticRight now you can enjoy the Athletic for just £3.99 per month as part of our January sale.Enjoy great analysis and in-depth features from the very best football writers around, as well as ad-free versions of all of our podcasts. Just go to theathletic.com/ornsteinandchapman to sign up. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Chapman and The Athletic's Matt Slater bring you an FA Cup special as they're joined by the CEO of Marine AFC, James Leary, ahead of their huge 3rd round tie against Tottenham on Sunday.It's a game that will see their players furloughed if they don't stay in the competition, it's a game that has changed the future of this 8th-tier club forever, and we speak to James to find out exactly what it is like to be running a non-league club part-time in the midst of a global pandemic and deal with the challenge of facing a Premier League team.Newport County are a club who know a thing or two about causing an FA Cup shock in recent seasons and ahead of their game against Brighton we are joined by chairman Gavin Foxall, a man who has a lot to say about the difficulties of the last year, his hope for the future and the importance of clubs to their communities. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic's David Ornstein & Adam Crafton to discuss the uncertainty surrounding Frank Lampard's future at Chelsea after their poor run of form continued with a heavy defeat to Manchester City on SundayThe Athletic's Chelsea correspondent Liam Twomey has all the detail on Lampard's status, the mood in the dressing room and the news that the club have begun looking at replacements.We also get the latest from David on how the January transfer window is shaping up with news of Arsenal's interest in Julian Brandt, plus insight on Dele Alli's situation at Spurs and the links with PSG, and much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this week's Business of Sport podcast The Athletic's Matt Slater speaks to one of the men hoping to be the next president of FC Barcelona, Victor Font.Victor sells us his vision for the club and explains why he should be the man to lead Barca back to the summit of European and world football. He also gives us his views on the importance of keeping Messi, whether he wants to bring Xavi back to the club and his thoughts on a European super league.We're also joined by The Athletic's Dermot Corrigan to unpick Victor's interview and give us the lowdown on the wider picture around the race for the Barcelona presidency. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Athletic's David Ornstein joins Mark Chapman with an update on Arsenal's January transfer plans and has more detail on the mood within the club after another chastening Premier League defeat.We're also joined by our Liverpool writer Simon Hughes with information on Mohammed Salah's future at Anfield after the normally tight-lipped Egyptian gave an interview to the Spanish press last week, is this a public fluttering of eyes at Barcelona and Real Madrid or an attempt to nudge Liverpool into giving him a new contract?And there's been another head coach sacked at Watford so we speak to Adam Leventhal for the inside story on Vladimir Ivic's departure and the arrival of Xisco Munoz.Get one, Gift one with The AthleticSearching for a last-minute Christmas present? Subscribe to The Athletic and you'll get another subscription completely free that you can give to anyone as a gift.Head to theathletic.com/ornsteinandchapman to take advantage of this special offer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this week's Business of Sport podcast: Mark Chapman ad The Athletic's Matt Slater discuss examine the state of sports TV rights following the termination of French football’s £3bn TV deal with rights expert and media content Pierre Maes.Matt also speaks to Charlton Athletic owner Thomas Sandgaard on his aim to get the club back to the Premier League.Plus Jonas Baer-Hoffman, General Secretary of the global players' union FIFPRO joins us to mark the 25th anniversary of the Bosman rule that changed the way football transfers were done forever. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Coming up today, host Mark Chapman & David Ornstein discuss issues surrounding Mikel Arteta's first year at Arsenal after a terrible start to the Premier League season.The Athletic’s Laurie Whitwell will join us to detail the inside on Paul Pogba’s time at Manchester United and what might happen next..And our German writer Rafa Honigstein will be with us to discuss the future of Leipzig’s Dayot Upamecano & his exclusive interview with Bayern Munich’s Leon Goretzka. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Chapman is alongside Matt Slater, football news reporter at The Athletic and today we are going to discuss the City Football Group.The Athletic have this week published an in-depth piece looking at the entire City Football Group, that is the group that controls Manchester City, New York City FC, Melbourne City FC among others, it’s so in-depth actually that it’s in two parts!We’ll explore some of the themes in that piece on today’s pod with Professor Simon Chadwick, the Barnsley co-chairman Paul Conway... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

You’ll have noticed a lot of rainbows at football grounds in the past week or so. They are there as part of the Rainbow Laces movement, which aims to celebrate LGBT+ people working in the game, LGBT+ fans and create a discussion around what more needs to be done to make the game a more welcoming place for all.The Athletic's Adam Crafton, Alex Kay-Jelski and Nancy Frostick are all members of the LGBT+ community and in this special podcast they answer your questions on the challenges facing LGBT+ people in football and how we can make sure that the Rainbow Laces campaign makes a genuine difference. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week host Mark Chapman and The Athletic’s David Ornstein are joined by Leeds United’s in-form striker Patrick Bamford joins us for a chat straight from the training pitch.David will share details from his weekly column including an exclusive on one of European football’s rising stars, Dominik Szoboszlai.And The Athletic's Dominic Fifield will be with us to discuss what the future holds for Patrick Vieira following his dismissal as manager of French club Nice. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Chapman and The Athletic's Matt Slate speak to Paul Barber CEO of Premier League side Brighton & Hove Albion.Plus, The Athletic's Oli Kay joins us we’ll also look back on England’s failed attempt to host the 2018 World Cup and a chain of events that led to the collapse of Sepp Blatter’s FIFA empire.. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Chapman brings you exclusive insight and stories from David Ornstein and other writers at The Athletic.This week, hear part of David's interview with Arsenal invincible Freddie Ljungberg about the importance of having players with a winning mentality.Also, ahead of a crucial few weeks for Liverpool’s scouting department, Simon Hughes joins us to tell us how the club find players. And Chris Waugh will tell us how Newcastle may have finally found a way to get the most out of £40 million striker Joelinton and to discuss the continued uncertainty surrounding the ownership of Mike Ashley. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In April 2019 The Athletic's Andy Mitten was tasked by Four Four Two magazine to fly unannounced to the heart of Sinaloa, Mexico, home to the most powerful drug cartel on the planet, and track down the coach of Mexican second division side Dorados, none other than Diego Maradona.This is the story of meeting Maradona in Mexico, as Andy recounts the extraordinary tale to The Athletic's Adam Hurrey.Subscribe to The Athletic and take advantage of our special Black Friday offer of £1-a-month for 12 months by heading to theathletic.com/ornsteinandchapman Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Chapman and The Athletic's Matt Slater discuss footballers' image rights after as top players including Gareth Bale & Zlatan Ibrahimović are planning to object to use of their likenesses on the hugely popular and lucrative EA Sports game, FIFA 21.We are a joined by Tom Horton a barrister who runs the twitter account TheFootballLaw and has written an excellent thread on the issue of footballers and their image rights in reaction to this story.And as English football prepares to welcome fans back into stadiums, we are joined by Mark Catlin, CEO of Portsmouth in League One, who tells us how his club are preparing and how they will choose which fans attend matches. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman is joined by David Ornstein to bring exclusive insight and stories from David and The Athletic's team of writers.Coming up today we’ll have the best lines from David’s column that includes Arsenal news - as they open talks to tie down a young striker and tensions boil over in training. Plus we also have an update on Olivier Giroud’s future at Chelsea. And we are joined by The Athletic’s Adam Crafton who has been speaking exclusively to Shaun Wright-Phillips about some of the secrets of Jose Mourinho’s success. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.