The Athletic FC Podcast

The Athletic FC Podcast

The Athletic's flagship football podcast, hosted by Ayo Akinwolere and featuring the likes of David Ornstein, Phil Hay, Adam Crafton and Matt Slater will take you inside the biggest stories in football told by the best reporters in the business. We cut through the noise to tell you what’s really happening - and why it matters. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episodes

August 8, 2025 41 mins

Manchester United have spent over £200m and counting. 


But after continuous false dawns, will they deliver this season?


Host: Ayo Akinwolere

With: Andy Mitten & Mark Critchley

Executive Producer: Abi Paterson

Producer: Jay Beale


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark as Played

We’re focusing on strikers today. 


In the latest twist to the transfer story of the summer - Benjamin Sesko looks to be on his way to Manchester United 


So what does this mean for Newcastle and their wantaway striker Alexander Isak? 


Host: Ayo Akinwolere

With: David Ornstein and Jacob Whitehead

Executive Producer: Abi Paterson

Producer: Mike Stavrou and Jay Beale


Hos...

Mark as Played

15-year-old Max Dowman has been the talk of Arsenal’s pre-season and 16-year-old Rio Ngumoha has shone for Liverpool.


But can either break into the first team and when is too soon to get excited?


Host: Ayo Akinwolere

With: Stuart James and Jacob Tanswell

Executive Producer: Abi Paterson

Producer: Guy Clarke




Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark as Played
August 3, 2025 59 mins

Another chance to hear Anatomy of a Transfer, your one stop guide to how transfers happen.


Join Adam Leventhal as he goes behind the scenes at training grounds, stadiums and offices to explain the anatomy of a transfer and to breakdown the complex process of what a player goes through when they move from club to club.


Host: Adam Leventhal

Exec Prod: Abi Paterson


Hosted on Acast. Se...

Mark as Played

Welcome to Transfers that shook the world, a summer series for The Athletic FC looking back on the moves that sparked fury and saw heroes become villains.


Today we’re heading back to July 2001, when Sol Campbell completed perhaps the most controversial move in Premier League history.


More than 20 years on, why are feelings still so strong? And was Campbell vindicated in swapping Spurs for their bitter rivals Arsenal?


Host:...

Mark as Played
July 30, 2025 35 mins

Viktor Gyokeres is Arsenal’s new No.14.


Lamine Yamal, Kylian Mbappe and Cole Palmer have all switched to take the No.10 for their clubs.


So, how significant is a squad number?


Host: Ayo Akinwolere

With: Jack Lang, Stuart James, Pol Ballus

Executive Producers: Adey Moorhead & Abi Paterson

Producers: Jay Beale & Guy Clarke


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more infor...

Mark as Played

Alexander Isak has refused to go on tour with Newcastle United and wants to leave.


So who could afford him and do Newcastle have any chance of keeping him?


Host: Ayo Akinwolere

With: Chris Waugh and Carl Anka

Executive Producer: Adey Moorhead

Producer: Guy Clarke




Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark as Played

Welcome to Transfers that shook the world, a summer series for The Athletic FC looking back on the moves that sparked fury and saw heroes become villains.


Today we’re heading back to July 2000 - when Luís Figo did the unthinkable and made the move from Barcelona to Real Madrid…


It was a transfer that sent shockwaves through La Liga and went down in footballing folklore - but a quarter of a century later, how is it viewed now?...

Mark as Played

The Thomas Frank era has officially begun at Spurs and they are busy.


After landing Mohammed Kudus, Morgan Gibbs-White is next on the list. 


But will their recruitment strategy get results?


Host: Ayo Akinwolere

With: Jay Harris, Seb Stafford-Bloor

Executive Producer: Adey Moorhead

Producer: Jay Beale


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark as Played
July 21, 2025 42 mins

Marcus Rashford is set to sign for Barcelona in a loan deal, with an option to make it permanent, leaving his boyhood club Manchester United.


So, is it a deal that suits everyone?


Host: Ayo Akinwolere

With: David Ornstein, Carl Anka and Pol Ballus

Executive Producer: Adey Moorhead

Producer: Guy Clarke


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark as Played
July 20, 2025 45 mins

Welcome to Football Architects - a summer series from our friends over at the Athletic FC Tactics podcast, telling the the unsung tales behind modern football success stories.


Episode one is focused on Ajax’s rebirth and how the club was rebuilt in the image of legendary figure Johan Cruyff.


On this episode, we hear from Ruben Jongkind, former head of talent development at Ajax, and the club’s former head of talent recru...

Mark as Played

Welcome to Transfers that shook the world, a summer series for The Athletic FC looking back on the moves that sparked fury and saw heroes become villains.


Today we’re heading back to the summer of 2006, and a saga that saw rival lines crossed from the North to West of London as Ashley Cole traded boyhood club Arsenal for rising force Chelsea.


So why was the acrimonious move considered such a betrayal? And how did the deal sig...

Mark as Played

On Tuesday Liverpool made an approach to sign Alexander Isak.


And now they have also made a move for Eintracht Frankfurt forward Hugo Ekitike, who is also being targeted by Newcastle United.


So could Liverpool get both?


Host: Ayo Akinwolere

With: David Ornstein and James Pearce

Executive Producer: Adey Moorhead

Producer: Jay Beale


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for mor...

Mark as Played
July 14, 2025 43 mins

Chelsea are the new Club World Cup champions beating Paris Saint-Germain 3-0 in the final at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.


Gianni Infantino says the competition has marked a new era for club football.


But has the Club World Cup really been a success?


Host: Ayo Akinwolere

With: Adam Crafton and Phil Hay

Executive Producer: Adey Moorhead

Producer: Guy Clarke


Hosted on Acast. See...

Mark as Played

Welcome to Transfers that shook the world, a summer series for The Athletic FC looking back on the moves that sparked fury and saw heroes become villains.


Today we’re heading back to July 2009 when Carlos Tevez swapped the red half of Manchester for blue.


So why was the move quite so controversial - and how symbolic was it in shifting the balance of power in the hunt for Premier League dominance?


Host: Ayo Akinwolere

With:...

Mark as Played

On Friday July 4th, news broke that former Arsenal midfielder, Thomas Partey had been charged with five counts of rape and one count of sexual assault. The allegations relate to three different women who reported the incidents which took place between 2021 and 2022.


Police began investigations in February 2022 but Partey carried on playing for Arsenal until his contract expired on June 30.

He denies all the allegations, and will ...

Mark as Played

Marcus Rashford is one of five players Manchester United told didn’t need to report for the start of pre-season but showed up anyway.


So where does his future lie - and how difficult will it be for United to move on their unwanted stars?


Host: Ayo Akinwolere

With: Mark Critchley and Phil Hay

Executive Producer: Adey Moorhead

Producer: Guy Clarke


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy ...

Mark as Played

Arsenal are in advanced talks to sign Sporting striker Viktor Gyökeres.


So what could the Swede offer Mikel Arteta’s side?


And is he the missing piece in the title puzzle for the Gunners?


Host: Ayo Akinwolere

With: David Ornstein, Carl Anka

Executive Producer: Adey Moorhead

Producers: Mike Stavrou


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark as Played

There's been two football tournaments in the United States this summer, the Club World Cup and the Gold Cup. Both with an ostensible Saudi feel, all part of grand plan to invest heavily in sport backed by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.


Adam Leventhal has travelled to Miami, Austin, and Las Vegas to witness this soft power at play. Hear from Saudi players and fans who celebrate the exposure afforded by these tournaments,...

Mark as Played
July 4, 2025 35 mins

Tony Evans, James Pearce and Simon Hughes reflect on the tragically sad news Liverpool forward Diogo Jota has died at the age of 28 along with his brother Andre Silva.


The brothers were travelling by car in Spain when their vehicle left the carriageway and burst into flames in the early hours of Thursday morning.


In this episode, we pay tribute to Diogo Jota sharing memories of the person and the player. The Athletic's Tim Sp...

Mark as Played

Popular Podcasts

    If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.

    Dateline NBC

    Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Special Summer Offer: Exclusively on Apple Podcasts, try our Dateline Premium subscription completely free for one month! With Dateline Premium, you get every episode ad-free plus exclusive bonus content.

    On Purpose with Jay Shetty

    I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!

    24/7 News: The Latest

    The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.

    The Bobby Bones Show

    Listen to 'The Bobby Bones Show' by downloading the daily full replay.

Advertise With Us
Music, radio and podcasts, all free. Listen online or download the iHeart App.

Connect

© 2025 iHeartMedia, Inc.