The Sporting Almanac Podcast

The UEFA European Finals

The UEFA European Finals With one extraordinarily happy host in Ben, who has worn nothing but Arsenal shirts since the final whistle blew in Bournemouth last week, we preview the three European finals (even the one that already happened) as he hopes to go from obnoxiously delighted to utterly unbearable with a Gunners win in Budapest. But it's not just about Arsenal, far from it. We talk Europa and Conference League's too, about whether the former has been watered down by the ever growing number of Champions League qualifiers, and whether the latter is a tin pot or a magnificent opportunity for fans of traditionally smaller teams to experience a European run (ok, definitely option 2 on that one). Finally, we go back to our favourite topic - has the Champions League become a closed shop for the giants of the European game, can a Crystal Palace or even arguably an Aston Villa really hope to be able to compete for it year after year, or does state investment, financial "fair play" regulations and unbalanced leagues outside of England make this an unachievable goal, even with sustained success?

The EFL Playoffs

The EFL Playoffs The playoffs. The best, and the worst way to get promoted. A season coming down to one winner takes all match-up. The Championship final, the richest game in football, this year between Southampton and Hull City. Or so we all thought... The unexpected development of a football governing body growing a spine means that it will, pending appeal, be Middlesbrough playing Hull at Wembley. Couple this drama with the 40th anniversary of the playoffs, and these being the final edition played under current format... we picked a pretty good year to talk about this. Alongside this year's drama we talk playoffs of yesteryear, including the best final, the greatest comeback and Troy Deeney's unbeatable moment in 2013. The playoffs deliver drama like no other, though to be fair, it usually just on the pitch.

Oil, Oligarchs and the FA Cup Final

Oil, Oligarchs and the FA Cup Final Football has changed a lot since the glory days of the FA Cup. Some things are better left in the past - muddy Wembley pitches, heavy footballs and serious injuries every other final. Other things are still sorely missed - breakfast time coverage on Cup Final morning, joyous pitch invasions, and the genuine belief that almost anyone could win it. That unpredictability fading away has perhaps done more than anything else to fuel claims that the magic of the Cup is disappearing. In the last thirty years, just five clubs have won all but four FA Cup finals: Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal, and this season’s finalists, Manchester City and Chelsea. This episode stands in stark contrast to last year’s celebration of the competition’s glorious history. Instead, this is something of a rant - and at times, a genuinely concerned one - about modern football and the financial imbalance that increasingly defines it. No clubs embody that shift more clearly than City and Chelsea, both transformed from outsiders into serial winners by vast wealth in remarkably short periods of time. Now, with accusations of financial impropriety hanging over one club and proven rule breaches with relatively limited punishment attached to the other, both stand at the forefront of a modern football economy dominated by a handful of superclubs. Clubs whose spending power - despite regulations supposedly designed to create financial fairness - continues to dwarf that of almost everyone else, while those same rules seem to be making it even harder for challengers to catch up. Because ultimately, how can the FA Cup ever truly regain its old magic when the highest reaches of the game feel less accessible than ever before?

The Cheerleading Worlds with Special Guest Kelly Loughlin

The Cheerleading Worlds with Special Guest Kelly Loughlin The sport of cheerleading is probably a lot bigger than you think it is. In fact, for our British listeners, there is no sport growing faster amongst girls in our country, nor has there been for years. The number of competitors is now fast approaching six figures, across schools, universities and All-Star teams. Today, we are extraordinarily lucky to have as a guest Kelly Loughlin, Program Director and Boss Lady of White Rose Cheer in Gildersome, Leeds. Kelly has been competing and coaching for nearly 20 years in competitive Cheerleading, and brings a level of experience and expertise to this episode that is generally absent on the Almanac. As an Olympic pathway sport growing at an exponential rate - with the Cheerleading Worlds attracting 9000 competitors from over 40 countries and following hot on the heels of the ICU Junior World & World Cheerleading Championships - they may be taking over Orlando this week, but the future can only mean going for Gold on the biggest stage of all. Thanks to coaches and competitors across the globe, surely it's now a matter of when, not if.

Boston and London Marathons

Boston and London Marathons 490 BC. Ancient Greece. A messenger with a funny name and patriotism surging through his veins spots a Persian ship alter its course towards Athens. He is in Marathon, 26 miles and 385-ish yards away from his nations capital, but decides to do the unthinkable. He sheds his armour, his sword, and (being Ancient Greek) the rest of his clothes too. He runs, he makes it, he passes on a message of victory, and then he promptly expires on the spot. 2385 years later, a French academic looking to link Ancient and Modern Olympics creates the modern marathon, a battle of stamina and will against one's own limitations and common sense. And today, people dressed as rhinos, fridges and deep sea divers repeat the ancient feat for fun, and generally without it being terminal too. The marathons of Boston and London present different histories, challenges and cultures, but both are undoubtedly incredible sporting events full of stories and people worth talking about. The former has some weird and wonderful tales of female participation against the usual strange male sensitivities. The latter, a charitable culture that has so far raised well over a billion pounds for others, as well as participants with astonishing tales of their own. Both bring people together, no matter what others may do to divide them. This is where sport and wholesome, generous community spirit join hands, and all participants are heroes - from record breakers to ordinary people attempting to do the extraordinary alike.