Day 17 Podcast: Ronaldo & Messi Exit; M’Bappe a Rising Hit
July 1, 2018
Fittingly, the game’s two transcendent superstars of the past decade, Lionel Messi & Cristiano Ronaldo, bow out on the same day. France & Uruguay advance; and we celebrate the spectacular two goal performance of 19 year-old Kylian Mbappe with Hanson’s teen-smash M’Bop. http://archive.kpfk.org/mp3/2kpfk_180630_165500peoplegame.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed
Day 16 Podcast: A Day for Reflection – Politics & Previews of 8 Delicious Pairings
June 30, 2018It’s the first day off during the 2018 World Cup and time to reflect on the tournament so far and the games ahead. First off, Brazilian DJ Sergio Mielniczenko stops by to reflect on this year’s national team the role soccer plays on the politics and collective psyche of Brazil. Then Bob Edelman returns to…
Day 15 Podcast: A Glorious Global Carnival in Putin’s Cleansed Kleptocracy
June 29, 2018The Group Stage has ended: 16 teams remain, 16 are heading home. Sadly, Senegal goes out…for accumulating more yellow cards than Japan! …and with their exit, the dreams of Africa are deferred once again. We question the justice of this system, and also feature two guests who traveled to Moscow for the opening of the…
Day 14 Podcast: Solidarity & ‘Hermanos Coreanos’ Win The Day!
June 28, 2018There’s a battle outside waging with both horrible news (from the Supreme Court) and a glorious result (from NYC). Meanwhile, the world’s greatest spectacle rolls on with El Tri surviving, in spite of a wretched performance against Sweden, thanks to their Los Angeles neighbors, the Koreans, who won the day, eliminating the defending champions Germany.…
Day 13 Podcast: Global Futbol Reflects the World, Not the Fantasy of Right-Wing Extremists
June 27, 2018Alan Minsky talks with author Laurent Dubois and Philosopher Achille Mbembe about today’s action, in particular the dramatic match between Nigeria and Argentina; but also about the tournament in general and how global futbol speaks to, and reflects, some of the most important social and political issues of our time. http://archive.kpfk.org/mp3/2kpfk_180626_165500peoplegame.mp3Podcast: Play in new window…
Day 12 Podcast: The Triumph of Uruguay, and VAR
June 26, 2018A dramatic day of 21st century Futbol, as Spain and Portugal had their fates decided in the final moments by the new VAR technology. But one team continued to glide through the tournament undefeated and (somehow) below the radar screen, Uruguay. Alan checks in with Lazar Treschan, The People’s Game Uruguay correspondent from 2010 and…
Day 10 Podcast: Two Days, Six Teams, and an Open Field
June 24, 2018It’s Day 10, and the competition is heating up! In this podcast, Alan and Meleiza recap the last two days of group play, including: Brazil’s journey back on its feet against Costa Rica’s Ticos; Nigeria’s fairytale upset of Iceland; the political drama of Kosovar Muslim refugees scoring the winning goals for Switzerland against Serbia; Belgium…
Day 9 Podcast: The Political Significance of El Tri
June 23, 2018Gustavo and Alan hail the glory of El Tri, the Mexican National Team, in advance of their showdown with South Korea (which Alan dubs the LA Derby). They reflect on how supporting El Tri makes a powerful political statement in the Age of Trump; and why this might be further accented by Andres Manuel Lopez…
Day 8 Podcast: Cry for Me, Argentina
June 22, 2018Man, what a day for Argentina – as the much-anticipated team of Lionel Messi flames out against Croatia in a 3-0 rout that stunned the world. Alan and Meleiza discuss what the hell happened in that match, plus: France & Peru’s beautiful game; the misadventures of VAR in Denmark vs. Australia; and the potential for…