The Messy, Beautiful World Cup with Roger Bennett and Tariq Panja

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See store online for details. Hey, everybody. Welcome to the weekly show podcast. My name is Jon Stewart. It is June 23rd. It's a Tuesday. This is probably coming out tomorrow. And you know what I'm doing today? I'm not talking about anything serious. I'm done. I'm done with these Iranian, Iranian negotiations and reflecting pool shenanigans. I want to talk what I've been feeling lately, what I've been feeling the excitement of lately. What's been running through my blood lately is this World Cup, this United States team that is making so far a really nice run, a fine attacking football, fun attacking football, showing themselves to be really a quality side. And that's what we're going to do. We're talking World Cup. We're talking, and I'm not talking, I'm not talking FIFA Peace Prize World Cup. I'm talking World Cup, World Cup, the teams, the stories, why it's so important to us, why we love it. And we couldn't have two better guests to do this. We've got Roger Bennett, founder of the Men in Blazers Media Network, and Tariq Panja, global sports correspondent, the New York Times. And they're going to carry us through this World Cup frenzy. Ladies and gentlemen, I am struck by World Cup fever. As many of you know, you are at home as well. And we couldn't have better guests today. We couldn't. I could tell you we could, but we couldn't because we couldn't get better guests. We could not get better guests is what I'm saying. You could, John. Zlatan and Alexi were available. It's really all about the emphasis. That's exactly right. Roger Bennett, founder of the fantastic Men in Blazers Media Network, and Tariq Panja, global sports correspondent, New York Times. Gentlemen, what the heck? First of all, Roger, it is such a delight to have you on the program and to see you by your iconic map. My weather map. And Tariq to have you in your iconic Fleabag Motel. That's about right. Wherever they're putting you up. I don't know what the New York Times budget is for sports reporting, but. I need your help. I don't know, man. You tell them. You tell them, John. It's good to see you both. John, it's good to be with you. It's not often both of us are with a footballing icon, 10 goals. 12 assists for the William & Mary Tribe. Oh, you got the stats. I've got, I mean, everybody, everyone's talking about it. When they think about you, they think about you as like the man you are, the conscience of America. But I think more people know you as just that hard hitting midfielder and the coach, Al Albert, an iconic legend. The man who really made football go in this country. No, that is special. Now, Roger, I do want to explain. Yes, obviously. You've got beautiful legs. Because I've seen the photos. You've got an incredible pair of legs. When you look at those legs, what do you think? I called them getaway sticks back in those days. Roger is quoting my college stats. 10 goals, 12 assists. The only thing that I do want to say in soccer's defense, that was over 20 years. That's as long as the World Cup is now. It took me a while to accumulate those stats is what I'm saying. I know, but you've got to know, back in the day when we all started doing this, talking about football. In America, and we'd think about guests, like it was you. It was like. Kyle Rote. It was me and Kyle Rote Jr. And that was it. Me and Ricky Davis. Yeah. And Moochie Myrnick. And that was about the end of it. And Primo Levy. And yeah, we could never get Rote. But you were. You were like an early, early, early, early lover of the game in all seriousness. I loved it. I was raised in a town where it was very much Italian immigrants, English immigrants. They brought soccer to central Jersey, imported it. You know, that was the thing we had, you know, there's a famous bridge where I grew up in Trenton called what the world, what Trenton makes, the world takes. Will take. Tariq, didn't you do your research on this? Guys, I've kind of. Look at Rodgers. Rodgers is running circles around us right now. Well, I'm just thinking Rodgers is making up American sounding names. No, he is. Can I tell you something? He is nailing. He has clearly gone. He has gone on some kind of William and Mary soccer Wikipedia page. What are you talking about? This is, this is like when you, when you meet Pele, when you meet Maradona, you don't have to research him, you know, cause you've lived it and watching you and the LL. But I want to know when you do look at those photos, cause the shorts were short, the thighs were popping. They were, they were. Roger. It was a different style back then. I know, but it was very, I mean, I don't know if you can pop it up on this podcast. Cause it might not be safe for work, but I look at them and I think, God, that is beautiful. That is incredibly American. They were solid. I also think man, death comes for us all. Like we're all going to die. Oh, my brother. Let me tell you something. When I look at those pictures and I look at myself now, I think, why did I, why do I sleep in a meat dehydrator? That's such a mistake. That was such a mistake on, on my part. Tariq, he's not even, it is true. He's not doing, uh, you know, research. He probably remembers our famous, famous match against Longwood. Don't get me started. 1982. And the coach, Al Albert. And, and, and coach. He knows the three names, Tariq. You're like bleeding from your mouth. You were like, coach, put me back in. How do you think when, when you think back to those matches, do you believe American football soccer has come a long way? Tariq, as you watch the American team play, do you see advances in our style of play? I find it fascinating. I remember the days when our best player was always the keeper, whether it Brad Friedel, whether it Tony Miola, uh, and now we're playing an attacking form of soccer. Tariq, is, is it hard to see this from the Americans? Do you fear us now? Are you, are you fearful of our squad? Do you fear us? Of the Germans will fear us. In a word, no, but it is exciting. It is exciting to see. It is great. How about, how about in two words? No. And not really. Um, look, I think, I think world cups are great when the hosts are doing well. And you've got here, you've got the U S Mexico and Canada, and they've all kind of shown up. And I've got an apology to make because on our podcast and the, on the daily before the tournament, I said, this is not a good football team. And there is a huge amount of egg on this base right now because they really showed up at the time it counted as well. We, you know, we were playing possum in all the qualifying. We, we weren't showing ourselves to be who we truly are. Well, um, and you've got, and, and potches into it, the coach who seemed to be trying to get another job many jobs all the time while he was the U S manager, he was trying to sort of get a European team. I felt like, what do we call it? A come and get me plea. That's right. And now I think after that second game against Australia, he showed a level of emotion. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. That I'd not seen with him and this U S team. He was really, really into it. He's talking about the coach for those of us, you know, our podcast is generally dealing with nuclear negotiations through Iran. So I just want to explain to both of you, he's referring to the famed coach of the American squad, an Argentine legend, Pochettino who on local news across America, they call him his name is Mauricio Pochettino. They call him coach poach. That's right. Coach poach. Coach poach. He's going through many emotions, he didn't want to lose. leave look like recently he wanted to join the irving police department when he saw they have they have tesla cyber trucks but um oh we can drive one of these he has to go inside but um he's having an extreme makeover himself he's started to dress in like 1980s game poacher cool he's growing his hair out like like russell crowe and he's having the time of his life we're all having the time of our life which i think is what football is about look this u.s team has not been very good our women's team kicks ass takes names is a dream team our men's team has been and new listeners who are like why is that english guy saying wait like i love america like kenny powers loves america yes and this story and we embrace you by the way i'm not sure i'm not sure that's really true john stewart but i won't won't have you say nice things about me on this show the the um the men's team have been like a dream on team and we've always wanted them to be great they've won one knockout game in our the um the men's team have been like a dream on team and we've always wanted them to be great going back to george washington and if you've not followed suddenly in this world cup they're playing a bullion swaggering buccaneering football albeit about not the greatest opponent so far it's like watching matthew mcconaughey i was trying to work out what is it like this shot this surprise this wonder it's like watching mcconaughey just rom-com it phone it in maybe he'll do texas chainsaw massacre maybe and then suddenly be like sod that you know what an inner greatness the lies are then dallas buyers club yeah this is our this is our dallas buyers club john stewart can i tell you something i looked at that when i saw the americans play i thought to myself the same thing this is a team this is all dallas buyers club uh uh losing weight to portray an aids patient and aren't they doing it supremely well we are the kings of own goals right now i mean the one thing i will say this look you know american football is always and i'm hearing people all over say oh my god they they took paraguay and australia can we win this whole thing and i would like to say right now for the record no we cannot but why would you say that john that's rational and sports or fandom is purely ridiculous and emotional i will tell you i was in seattle where that game was we did a live show before the thing with marshawn lynchton oh i love marshawn lynch and there were 5 000 people there they were out of their mind they come from all over america they brought their kids they were making memories we then marched to the match it was like if you've watched a movie called ferris bueller you'll remember like the german day parade it felt like just a crazy ebullient cacophony it felt like mardi gras but like football themed and all that matters ultimately i think about all of this in this very dark world of ours like people are having release sense of connection sense of memory making sense of hilarity and yeah i think the i mean tariq will know this better than i did what is the what is the odds the the percentage chance of america winning it's like 2.94 percent letting yourself believe it's 100 is the whole point that's exactly the percentage i know roger by the way it's the same percentage iran had with us in the war and they won so like maybe maybe we're going in the wrong direction here maybe we can pull this off hope springs eternal but the thing about thank you tariq these these tournaments it's the journey is fantastic this is my favorite part to be honest of the world cup right at the start when when everyone arrives particularly these fans from god knows where all over the place and it's an expanded field let's also be fair it is now 48 teams so it is a messier tournament than we've ever seen and you're finding those teams that have you know a cape verde or something like that where hope springs eternal but it is a it is a larger field than we're accustomed to watching yeah this is this is to give you a sense of the scale of this there were 64 matches for the entire tournament in qatar four years ago or three and a half years ago because it was in winter you need 72 matches just to get through this first group stage so more than qatar just to get into the knockout so we're kind of drowning in in in these world cup matches it's an old ultra marathon and we're all getting runner's nipple roger do you enjoy the expanded format do you enjoy the messiness of it you know and let's be fair also are you asking me how much chafing is john i've got chafing how is your chafing it's 48 teams there's only uh i believe 60 teams in the entire world so we're getting close to just everybody being in the world yeah william and mary william and mary is 61 you will be getting i promise you the crazy part of this is that everyone coming in was like you know cape verde this tiny team like you know curacao this tiny team of 125 they're going to get absolutely obliterated it's going to be an embarrassment they've been bloody good they've been what you could say part of the story of this world cup cape verde this tiny archipelago of islands off the west coast of africa 600 miles west of senegal i know all this now i didn't know it six days ago until they took the field against spain the world cup favorites and held them at arm's length a goalkeeper um who was stunning a 40 year old journeyman nobody um held them at bay made save after save uh cried at the end because his mother was not able to enter because she couldn't get a visa he came on our show that afternoon and told this story beautifully powerfully nobly humbly um he immediately but but at the beginning of the day had 29 000 this is a like a double a baseball player america if you're listening he by the end the beginning of day had like 29 000 instagram followers by the end of the day he had 10 million he now has 15.7 he has more followers on instagram now than wemby and mahomes combined he has more followers than the pope this is what the world cup can do people have always entered the world cup to become influencers yeah and probably john stewart your mind is already like what does he do next it's already now i'm thinking to myself i've got to go back and play again mint mobile i don't know what you want out of a phone company what i want out of a phone company is deliver me a good product for less and don't bother me don't bother me with the like oh have you heard about our new program you can upgrade to it it'll just cost you a lot more and then they're like call you a bunch of people and they're like oh i don't know what you want to do on their own phone think about that think about the diabolical mind games that phone companies are playing by like locking you into an expensive phone program and then using the very item that they sold you to contact you about paying more for some ridiculous upgrade that's not even 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off installed carpet projects installation starting at just 49 cents per square foot select from a wide assortment of carpet to fit your room lifestyle and budget during the buy more save more event at the home depot offer valid august 27th through september 13th 2026 base price for standard installations only excludes traffic master and stock carpet for licenses see home depot.com slash license numbers terry what's been your favorite underdog story of this has it been uh cape verd has it been curacao who's what's been your favorite underdog story of this world cup so far i think it's it's hard to look beyond the the story roger told about virginia but um curacao as well getting a point off ecuador stunning and like you know you say these names ecuador curacao like ecuador is a a big footballing nation they were very good in in qualifying in south america and again one of my predictions which haven't come true just yet there's still time that ecuador will go deep in this tournament they they are going to be a big footballing nation they are going to be a big footballing nation they are stacked with great players who play at top european teams and you have this team from curacao but the other the other kind of story for me i think is the the story of us of people and and these teams are populated by um the diaspora as well as a member of a diaspora myself you know my family's from india i'm i'm english you you're you're see kids are seeing representations of all of these countries and my my love for the world cup goes and all of us probably Rog, your first one, mine, you know, when I was a boy. The World Cup, every four years, the scarcity of this thing. These are moments of your life. You can date yourself. You can place yourself in all of these moments. Now, there's going to be children somewhere who are learning about Curacao, who are learning, Roger, a man-child, is learning about Cape Verde. And, you know, I got a call from a friend of mine in Mexico, an Argentine friend. His son is all over the Democratic Republic of Congo. That is the project he's decided to do at school. That's amazing. And he said, call him. Please call him, and he'll tell you all about them. And I don't think there's anything like it. I genuinely don't think. There's nothing like the Football World Cup, not the Olympics, not anything that we've been able to do up until now that can match the picture of this. And I'm just seeing these pictures, like, you know, obviously the Scots in Boston. Drinking us dry. The Koreans in Mexico City. Like, all of it is just. The Japanese cleaning up the stadiums. Everybody's learning. It's beautiful for Americans because, and it's hard for Americans to understand the importance of the World Cup around the world because it just hasn't really, it's not our national sport, although it's rising, certainly in popularity. But we generally, for Americans, we learn geography by whoever we're bombing. You know, now we know where Kabul is and Tehran. You know, war is God's way of teaching Americans geography. But the world embraces a different form of community in World Cup. It's about that competition, but also interaction. And Roger, isn't that what makes this the most magical of times? Because the countries travel with them. I mean, I think that it's been very profound in our context. I mean, to see the world love America in the most joyous way, in the most profound way. But what Tariq said is true, that it's once every four years. It does make, my life, I feel, I wrote a book about it, We Are the World Cup, about I can tell my life alternately by World Cup to World Cup. It is the spine of my life, the most profound memory making. That's for me and millions and millions of human beings around the world. What we're experiencing in the here and there is when we feel most alive because the world's coming together, human beings under conditions of great pressure are defining themselves, revealing themselves in like as epic Greek heroes with a script acted out live. But this World Cup does have that added dimension that I think is incredibly profound, which is, well, two things for me. The story of my life, John, is America falling in love with global football. 1994, the last Men's World Cup was here. It was meant to turn. It's overnight for my Captain Kirk and space, the final frontier to a proper football loving nation. It wasn't overnight. It's taken time, but it was profound that that 94 World Cup in America was profound in how it changed the way and the fact that we went and went into the knockout round was, was a big deal for us in stonewashed denim. It was beautiful. But before that, before, before that, before that World Cup, I wrote my book that there was a study taken, um, about favoritism. I wrote about the fact that soccer was the third favorite sports in America and soccer was 67th tractor pulling was 66. The economist has just done a study that found out that soccer is now America's third favorite sport. I was just on a rod show and he kept being like, when's this soccer thing going to take off? I was like, Hey rod, it's third. Now he'd be like, well, what's where's baseball. I'd be like, oh, I've got some bad news for you, man. Um, it's number four now, but you know, the, the other side of that is the football world falling in love with America. And two things are very important. They're very profound. I watching Lawrence, Kansas open its heart to the Algerian team. There's just levels to that of openness and revealing the, uh, yourself, your heart, your soul to the world and the world embracing us back. And I will say in this context, it feels so good, feels so good and needed and, and the world falling in love with things we take for granted. But I I've always looked at as an outsider, who's been embraced by Buc-ee's when you do go to a. Buc-ee's it is a, it is a life-changing, uh, the waffle house smothered and covered lemon pepper wet or to watch the. We take these things, we take getting in a fist fight at 3:00 AM over poached eggs for granted. Yeah. What do we fight for freedom for? If not that man smothered and covered every time, but that the other point is very true. And I want to be clear, the embrace of football fans, Scottish fans. I watched that with an equal Marvel, John, when, when we were growing up and I, um, you know, 1978, woke up 1990, even, you know, the English fans were put on an island off Italy so that the police could contain them because football fandom was far more about a zero sum game based on hate. Um, I mean, you know, when people went to the games, the hooligan era, yeah, to watch the Scottish fans, to watch the Norwegian, to watch the fans embrace each other, you know, it's beautiful. It's a, it's needed. It's an open, it's a world where the boundaries are porous. The love is the world cup of love. It's fleeting. I won't be clear. I'm under no illusion, but it's deeply profound. I w we had Diego Luna, the actor on our show the other day, and he was talking with a Marvel about watching the Mexican fans just fall in love. This fusion of Mexican and, and, uh, and South Korean fans. And he's like, he's like, what, what's happened to us. We used to, you know, proper fans used to just fire rockets at the, at the. Opposing teams hotel at 3:00 AM in the morning. Now we're just embracing them, holding them, hugging them. I like the old way, but the new way is we need, we need the new way. But you know why that is too. And I think it's this and, and Tariq, maybe you can speak to this. I think there is a thirst in the world. The governments are so at odds with each other, uh, the rise of this kind of autocratic nationalism, there is an air of, of tension and sort of imminent. Catastrophe. And it's a reminder that people are not their governments, that the people are actually, they connect on levels of humanity and empathy. And this game, if it does anything is bring that to the four. Yeah. Uh, I was just, I was just gonna say that as my, my sort of, uh, trip around the U S and up, I've been in Tijuana as well with, with the Iranian team, because they've been kind of exiled in, in, in. Tijuana and just on that first, the way the Mexicans and the Tijuana have taken to the Iranian national football team, it's, it's just magical to see because it wouldn't have happened, but for the awful circumstances, but then people take over every day in the morning and at 4 PM, when these, when the team's going to go and train these people line up at the gates, these Mexican guys appear to celebrate this, this. This Iranian team. And then some of the Iranian diaspora come across from, from Southern California to, to meet these guys and it makes everybody feel warm and special in this, in this, in this moment. And then looking at the U S itself, I was worried. I'll be honest with you. I was worried about this world cup. I was also worried about myself, like from I'm based in England. I look like this, I was going to come over and I thought, Oh yeah, this is going to be interesting. Um, what will immigration at the airport be like? Will I be in, in that room that I sometimes have to go in or will I get sent back? Like all of these things, because this is the, the, the kind of vibe it's, it's the moment in this country. Yeah. And from the outside as well, like I I've covered a lot of world cups and the, the, the thing with Qatar and Russia, these were countries that were desperately trying to tell you that whatever you're reading about us, we're not like that. Even if they might be like that, it was like, let's put the best possible. Facade on, if it is that, and make everyone feel more welcome than they could possibly have imagined. But the posture of the, I guess the U S government to the world has been very different to the past. I we're kind of closed. The world cup is happening in a country that kind of doesn't like the world right now. So this is going to be. Or the reverse. The world doesn't particularly like us right now. Like, yeah. Like we, do you want these? We want to be in the world. about the emotionalism of this experience and the people taking over you could say that the same thing with the knicks john and you would wait don't hey what watch yourself you were there man you were there john stewart was there leaps from william and mary in the streets baby i was in the streets i mean you watch that you watch side talk you watch all of that and the human ecstasy and the memory making and the and the profound cross-generational wonder that that um that's galvanized you know no one's stopping in that moment and be like what do you think about the owners what do you think about the you know the family that are running it and what they're doing it's just like i mean you know what you feel i can't tell everyone's their story that you know that their dad's not here to in those moments you're like my dad is not here to see this i wish my dad was here you know my friend um you know i've great friends who died very young huge knicks fans um you know and their their friends wore jerseys that they'd given them back in the day when they were kids you know we're gonna um football is both deeply rational and hyper hyper hyper emotional um and this is the pattern look at tariq we were in brazil together in the run-up to that world cup and it was doom and gloom catastrophizing about the set we were there for the social unrest the year but you were held at knife point you know it felt like darkness was about to rain were you really tariq uh i did not not during the tournament but yeah i would i had my my brazil experience yeah yeah i was uh i was i was mugged in lagoa wish you young men well uh whatever you're doing i mean that's ultimately it football more than any sport its tremendous power is that it holds a mirror up to the world that surrounds it that's honestly the thing i've always loved and the world cup more than anything john when two teams take the field their nation's histories their nation's cultures their nation's politics take the field a lot it's not like this when the san diego padres play the you know the chicago it's a great game of baseball but like there's levels to this and as a kid the levels were always profound and remarkable magical even when they weren't england argentina in the shadow of the falkland wars germany against france you know when france was still recovering from its post-war identity um all kinds of uh stories and narratives that had heft the world's just gotten so much darker uh and and so the stories have gotten dark i mean it's still a mirror we may not like the image that uh of ourselves that we're seeing of the you know the complexity of the name i mean the iran how the iranian football is and the teams reflect it yeah how much france doesn't exist as a world power right now without their story of colonialism because those french players and and there is always that tension of who is actually the player who is actually the player who is actually the french or who is actually uh of that country and the players not necessarily feeling the love from the people that you know it's it really is deep and it will happen again and again and that's the sad truth of this i remember messer ozil the german player won the world cup great great attacking midfield player and he had this quote he's from a turkish background and he said um i'm german when we win but i'm turkish when we lose right and i think he nailed it and and to to your point about how can you how can you separate these things about fifa and the world cup and all of this thing i have a lot of people asking me given what i write about is is often the kind of dark crevices and the naughty corners of of the game and said well how do you how do you still enjoy the world cup and i don't just enjoy it i absolutely love this thing i do um and my it's a really simple answer it's ours it's not theirs like the world cup is is everybody's it's just got this fifa logo on on the thing but it is this moment in time where we all own this thing and we all have the right to enjoy it whether you can afford a ticket or not you just have to go out in the streets though those people in lawrence kansas they will have the best world cup experience imaginable they might not ever set foot in a football stadium right and this will be happening all over the place also in homes all around the world there'll be kids staying up allowed to stay up very late in the middle of the night and they'll be talking about it bleary-eyed at school the next day this is our thing yes there is a fifa stamp on on this and and fifa is many many things but the tournament is are happening now at the home depot with select appliances starting at 399 plus save up to an extra thousand dollars and get free delivery on appliance purchases of 998 or more get a whirlpool laundry tower featuring industry-first uv clean technology designed to reduce bacteria in the wash without fading fabrics plus with great prices at the home depot you can save on select appliances designed to make laundry day easier shop labor day savings at the home depot today offer valid august 27th through september 16th us only see store online for details have you heard about that mcdonald's spicy chicken mcnuggets made with spicy tempura and a blend of aged cayenne are back remember to grab a few extra napkins for a limited time at participating mcdonald's i want to ask you guys because it is how did you know roger was talking about the nicks and and i can remember how the nicks imprinted on me when i was six years old seven years old how were you imprinted where where did your first sort of memories of joy and love and family and community and and soccer come come together tarik i'll start with you and then roger for me um it was everything so you wake up you have a ball in your hand you're at school and you wait you're just trying to get out of that class and then play and then i was about five five or so i still remember it's a grainy grainy memory and i remember it was a grainy grainy memory and i remember it was a right of that world cup um in 86 which was in uh in mexico and um i remember being taken to an uncle's house when you're asian an uncle's house means a lot of people and it was near aware where who's got the biggest tv and there's only one t like these days that's the other thing like this this second screening a multi-screening it's it's kind of taken away something and headphones and all of these things and i remember being taken to an uncle's house where people aren't as kind of you're almost forced to watch together whether you like it or not you might not right this is pre-cable with the little antennas that stick up and move around and the tv is wider than it is tall and you know deeper than it is wide and you've got this guy who is both a hero and a villain in diego maradona yes this is this this complete one-off and what he did to england in 86 i just don't think there'll be um two moments like this you can't script this stuff where he where he has jumped into the air and hand of godded the opener yes they called it the hand of god it was really just the hand it's brilliant though no it's pretty it was brilliant though by the way they not only did it to reach he then in the post-match interview they said did you handle the ball and he said it was a little bit the head of diego a little bit the hand of god that's genius he he who was a genius because the next thing he did just leaves you slack jord are you talking about the goal where he he basically takes it he he ran from the halfway line that was crazy we're in this in this beautiful sunlight in this stadium and it's just magical so the next day guess who we're all calling ourselves we're all maradona in the playground either we're trying to do a hand of god or or you're going through everybody we're trying to do a hand of god we're trying to do a hand of god we're trying to do a hand of god trying to do this yeah i absolutely fell in love with this tournament with these people with this game or all of this and and it endures despite everything to be honest and it has it has levels where it connects you know maradona and now we watch argentina today and messy beautiful is touched by the hand of god here's a man who's 39 years old who's played is uh obviously one of the most prolific scorers that the game has ever seen he's can't be more than five five like maradona has this incredible sense of the goal and has put away five goals in two games he scored every goal for argentina in the run of play without ever running the penalty kick that he was given he misses without ever breaking into a run out of right it's just my it's like the closest we will ever get to watching someone with jedi powers just mind meld it's really remarkable he's the figure more than any that america he's bigger in america than the game of football itself though the maradona thing was amazing because the falklands war came before so this was a he didn't just do it he did it in the context of geopolitical chaos and i think a lot about it like he cheated he punched the ball in listeners you're not allowed to use your hands and then minutes later while we're all howling in agony he cheated he cheated he essentially the the equivalent of a kickoff return through the whole team our whole heroes eviscerated all of them afterwards one was interviewed said why didn't you try and kick him he said we did he was just that fast he looked like he was moving at double speed i mean if you get a chance to to go on on youtube or whatever to find the goal it's remarkable and the commentator the argentinian commentator find his translation he was he was cosmic kite he screams as he does it it's beautiful i went outside as a kid i just seen my heroes emasculated and i just got i was so angry by the way maradona could have done the second goal whenever he wanted he wanted to cheat us he wanted to show us i can f you this way and now i'm gonna f you that way and i can do both because you are my whatever insert word there and i went outside 15 year old me in agony my heroes have been eviscerated and i took my football soccer ball and just drove it i wrote about this in my book drove it right through the front window of my house in agony and my dad who was you know quick to anger himself just looked at me as the glass tinkled down and he goes i understand roach i understand and now now i have on my wall in my office i have that framed handball signed by maradona because i'm grateful that i saw it it i felt and this is the point john ultimately i'm dead inside man the world has killed me i am confused and lost and unmoored but when i feel these things when i see messy do what he did yesterday i know i'm feeling things that most people feel in real life but i'm dead too and i'm feeling it with millions of other people we are paying witness this is your conduit back to the living in many respects i don't know if it is i'm like matthew mcconaughey behind the bookshelves man i'm just there what's going on with the book you're going through the whole mcconaughey oeuvre here well isn't he not it really is but is he not i mean some people some people have the bible and i think mcconaughey's hit every single human emotion i'd love like the rom-coms man how did you come to it though roger how did you're 15 in the 86 world cup but when did you first like with tariq when did it first imprint itself upon you that this was something special that was going to be in your life oh my god i'm from liverpool i'm from liverpool liverpool football is like indiana high school basketball texas high school football it's like oliver has made me a liverpool fan by the way oh john that's what he did listen i made him a mets fan he made me a liverpool fan is this true this is man if you're a mets fan john you should be an avatar i don't want to tell anyone how to live their life but you like pain you like hope you like doomed hope you're like oh my god doom is the operative word there yeah so come on man come with me on this journey to misery come with me my friend come on take my hand um i've got to talk to you after about this john this is not this is not the way but we'll pick them look um so it was in liverpool football music are like air water fire man so they're just there my dad chose everton when he was a kid um he often we often used to say would we be different if we were liverpool fans and we won things he'd be like we'd be unbearable we wouldn't appreciate things we wouldn't appreciate we you have to not win and he wouldn't call it losing he'd be sometimes not winning is important and he'd say when you do eke out something joyous you just have to dance like you're at your own kid's wedding i think the truth of life is in is in football or sports fandom you've just lived it as an ex-fan man but 1970 first world cup 1978 it's where i start my book like football is a sport it's a sport it's a sport it's a sport football in england when i grew up was muddy pitches violent men are backwater you'd go the games i go with my dad who was a decent man you know we'd routinely step over broken bloody bodies on the way to the game you know men just holding their hand out asking for help their teeth smashed out by a brick right because they wore the wrong scarf yeah and you wouldn't even like look at them you would be like oh yeah there's just your brain would just be like oh there's another broken body yes you'd step out excuse me on the way to the game just just carnage everywhere like you're just see police horses charging people with iron bars i've seen men punch police horses craziness seen it seen it all that's is that because the horses were rooting for liverpool i don't i never asked the horses for the wrong scarf on yeah the wrong yeah well you're gonna get it that's what happened so that's that's my culture and then 1978 um the world cup was in argentina um we didn't have much live football on in england either it kicked off and the first game we tuned in huge stadium um thousands and thousands from the bleachers as the argentinians took the field the fans threw toilet roll thousands and thousands of toilet rolls cascaded down confetti joyous and i my mother very practical turned around to us and goes take a toilet roll to a football game love but but i turned to my dad and i was like i was like oh my god dad football can be joyous it can be fun who knew and the dark side of this john because i know you're a dark man and you want darkness um and and so what i give to you is that 1978 world cup yeah um was run by the the military hunter to try and they hired an american pr company what was it burst and burst of marstella oh that's right they did a paper called what is true for products is also true for countries and henry kissinger was like hired to publicly proclaim now the world will see the true face of argentina oh right and even then watching this that's the dissonance that you want man that you're talking even then 1978 there was a human that people were being thrown out of planes at the same time as we were watching you know argentina win the world cup no that's a remarkable uh juxtaposition there because i i think you're absolutely right and so in that same moment of the darkness and i think this is kind of what we're talking about is you feel the hope if we can just break through those hierarchies and structures that are holding everything back and we get to suddenly touch each other's hearts during these things and i know that sounds ridiculously uh overwrought and maudlin but it really is true and i and i tell you this watching the knicks in the street game five and thinking back to the first time i was at the knicks and the celtics going to those games with my son being in the street with my son with my wife with my friends feeling the streets i'm telling you it was it was i am not a religious man this was spiritual so funny man it's wild john stewart i'm a horrible man i moved to america um in 1993 september two days i landed in chicago second night breaking news michael jordan's retiring i felt terrible like i'd done it like guilty um and then i watched the ball season the michael jordanless ball season before he came back and tony kukoc scotty pippen the one year we thought we could win the championship yes yes you were like yes and by the way i didn't know i'd never watched basketball before but i i became mesmerized this balls team they had a center loot longley who was from australia he and i arrived in chicago at the same time neither of us really seemed to know what the hell we were doing there and i loved him and i watched him and then we played the knicks in that epic battle between it felt like to me good and evil like i still have nightmares of john stark's puby mustache wait who was who for me i'm gonna be honest with you i was proper balls yeah and i watched john stark's destroyer of his puby mustache and i have three nights a year i will wake up in a cold sweat like just john stark's like a cheshire cat just the mustache is left and i'm like oh my god that was anthony mason what an athlete he was oakley turned you know the benedict arnold of basketball that was in the days of the brute they were bruisers yes and so they they beat the crap it was we were valiant but you beat the crap out of us and i hated that like really really really hated the knicks i'll get to my point here i'm a horrible person i carry that hate in my heart the older i get you know my kids i'm a new york person now despite my accent the older i get um the more i'm just like you know what whatever i'm going to do i'm going to do it whatever gives you my kids are all huge knicks fans it's like my worst parents and i can't stand it it's really it's really upset me it's really upset me it's like really dark and my wife can't understand it but it really upsets me but even i john this is my point watching them you know feel that joy feel that connection feel that memory making feel that sense that everything is possible it's not kids listening to this and it's not everything isn't possible but i even me with my dark heart i'm so happy for you but once every 53 years yes something like that is possible i'm happy for you john tarik have you ever had that in in your rooting life have you ever had that feeling of deprivation and the deprivation suddenly going to the mountaintop and feeling that you know the distance between the two making it sweeter like that what's been your history as a fan is it heartbreak heartbreak i i might i i am i'm kind of a fan of the sport i'd say these days rather than what are you elmo you won't kick aside but i'm not i'm not okay but what i what i'd say i live um recently i just had this magical experience is what i want to talk about like new york and london have both had these moments a few weeks apart and i was watching uh what's happening in new york from a distance i'm not a basketball guy a new york guy or a knicks guy but it felt very familiar watching this um i live in in north london where Arsenal play. Go on, you gutter. And I must say, whichever neighbourhood it is, and it doesn't matter which country, I was in Argentina recently reporting as well, where you have a lot of neighbourhood teams. When the neighbourhood team is doing well or something is up, it's in the air, there's just a different little sparkle, different little magic. People are looking each other in the eye, smiling. I'm saying maybe even a little nod. Then Arsenal hadn't won the league in 22 years. And they're not an Everton, sorry, Rog. They are one of the bigger teams in world football. But still, 22 years, there's generations of people who haven't seen this team lift the Premier League title. And they did. And the parade in our little corner of. It was honestly one of the most magical afternoons of my life, to be honest. I'm not a fan of Arsenal as well. This is the point. Joy is infectious, man. Joy is infectious. It was amazing. More than ever, we need that joy, Tariq. We need it. We need this stuff. We do need this stuff. And the thing that I just marvelled at was I'm seeing, like, women in hijabs. Everyone, all sections of society. There's a guy with a pint, a woman with a hijab, and they're singing the same songs. The streets were packed. Every. Every type of person imaginable was there communing in this one spot, this one day. When the number 19 was stopped, going down Blackstock Road and people pouring on, the bus driver was infected with this joy. Yeah. Not like, guys, I'm trying to. I'm on my route here. What are you doing? Get on board and a party on the bus full of everyone. It's the best. But not just there, Tariq. It was across Africa, man. Across Asia. You saw massive, massive. But I think the point. And the next, we need the joy more than ever, man. This is why, though, the FIFA Peace Prize is so meaningful. You know, people look forward to that FIFA Peace Prize being given out every year because of what soccer, football brings to the world. 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These terrible regimes that are using our joy, our feeling, our empathy against us to ease their own guilt, burden, reputation, FIFA, Peace Prize, you know. How do we. I get angry at myself for not being able to separate them. I don't think we should be annoyed, but I think we should be able to carry both thoughts. Yeah. And it's really important to hold these guys to account. I mean. Well, that's what you do. I mean, Terry, you do better than anybody. I mean, that's so much of what you're reporting is. Well, it's because it's really important because we've just spent the last 48 minutes or I can see the countdown. So, about that time, talking about how great this sport is, this thing humanity has produced is. And the fact that these guys are able to. I don't want to use the word govern, but kind of take it hostage in a way is something that should not be allowed to pass. There are good people in football, but the lack of accountability over the most popular human pastime, this thing that stirs all these emotions, the things that bring all of these politicians or dictators and governments to want to cleave it towards themselves. Right. It's something that is super important. But is anyone. There's no. There's zero accountability over these people. Well, 2015 really was a moment of accountability. I mean, even for someone like Michel Platini, who is, you know, a legend, a player and a legend being held to account. Absolutely. But, you know, you talked about this. That was a huge moment. You're seeing the most powerful football executives being yanked out of beds at 6 a.m. in a luxury. Luxury Swiss hotel, obviously. And then being taken out, perp walked, taken to New York. And we have the biggest scandal in sports. And here we are 10 years later. And the film that I think of every time when I think of FIFA is Terminator 2. The kind of. That villain who couldn't be killed, the other Terminator. T-1000, I think he was called. T-1000. T-1000. T-1000. T-1000. where he would just reformulate into exactly the same. Roger doesn't know that if McConaughey's not in it. If McConaughey's not in it, he doesn't know what's happening. If it's not a McConaughey film, I'm not interested, man. You know, I'm trying to, by the way, John, I am sitting here trying to think which McConaughey film shows you how to have cognitive dissonance, but hold two truths to be evident at the same time. And I realize all of them, even the rom-coms do that. That's probably true. But Tariq, now, so like you say, 10 years later, they've dropped the investigations into FIFA. They've stopped in, you know, right now, the cozy relationship between FIFA and Trump. Our Department of Justice has dropped all investigations. Well, I was thinking about this and looking at when Trump came in. A couple of things happened. I remember being at a conference and seeing the news saying the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act isn't something the U.S. care about. So foreign corruption. Yeah, we're not, we're not, we're not into this anymore. Just to, just to read that headline was, was pretty stark. Well, he also made an announcement that it was okay if companies in America bribe foreign officials for business. I mean, explicitly saying, Hey man, that's just how things are done. So if you need to bribe people, knock yourself out. Yeah. It's like a level, the others are doing it. So we're going to be left behind if, if we don't do this. And then the other thing they said is like, kind of. This type of white collar crime is not a priority for, for the DOJ. And what is the point of these organizations? Or what is the point of the DOJ if you do not want to tackle? I think revenge. I think the point of the DOJ, if I'm, if I'm being clear, I think it's revenge. So, so, so great for, great for those guys. Yes, exactly. And, you know, and then you have, for me, I've kind of, it's been the backdrop of my career, basically. And, and you see all of these people have been arrested and taken away and a new group have come in and slowly and then very quickly, they realized, you know, and you're like, Oh, if I cross this line here, will anyone notice? No, no one has. Right. And then that line gets so far away from where you've started that it is a free reign. There were things bought in like term limits. They were like. Yeah, we're going to have to have good governance models, term limits. All of these guys are bashing through their term limits, term limits, schmerm limits. You know, this is, this is fantastic. We're, we're just honorable people. Why do we need term limits? You can trust us. And then the model isn't to cater to fans like Roger or yourself or the teams or the players. FIFA is beholden to 211 Gianni Infantinos, other football presidents. And what do you do? What do you give them? You give them gifts. Right. You give them. Peace prize. Peace prizes to Trump, but also to the football. Because you wonder who's going to change. Why is football not asking for change? Because I'll give you an example. Just now, the day after the opening game in Mexico City, where all of the football world were invited. So presidents and the senior hierarchies of each of these national federations come to Mexico City, stay in a lovely hotel and come to the opening game of the World Cup. And you think, OK, that's that's great. But that's not all you get. Then get on a plane. We're going to fly you to Miami. Five days at the Ritz Carlton in Miami. Enjoy, guys. And guess what? Gianni Infantino is going for re-election next year. Just remember that while you're here. Who supplied all of this? Wow. And it rolls on and it rolls on and on. We have more uncontested elections in football than think about your worst. We just don't have a conversation, a debate, all of it. these things like my my phone might have a bunch of whatsapps from upset football executives and i always say well why are you telling me this why don't you just say it because they're all enjoying themselves three hundred thousand dollars a year for three zoom meetings it's not bad is it i'm mad but i don't want to stop the gravy train correct there's so much gravy on that train the the tracks are so slick right now look i i hate to draw the analogy but it's it's not that different from the united states congress to be quite frank i mean it's it's a group of people who are no longer answerable to the constituents that they purportedly represent and they're sort of enjoying this separate world you know that they've created it's a kind of impenetrable bubble and i wonder roger do you ever you know as you're going around this world how do they view you because you're such an asset to especially or not just around the world but in america to the fan you're bringing this game and really evangelizing right and so i imagine they view you as an asset but i also think they probably know they can't control you so how do they view your platform and and what you bring who's the angel fifa the the the the the people that control the head of qatar putin i mean you'll have to i mean god putin is on our discord very active on the men in blazers discord what's what's his username at vlad 3237 vladdy daddy it's always vladdy daddy um you know ultimately i mean what what tariq's laid out is the cognitive dissonance um it is a it is how do you get a bed in the morning john stewart like how do you function in the morning how do you do anything um it's hard and the world is is complicated i think about and have from the very beginning we start off as one podcast we've grown this thing into a whole network that has women's a whole women's platform has a hispanic platform vamos three different communities so what i think about is nourishing them i think about what the game brings to them what watching together brings to people's life i think it's you know john john oliver comes on our show every year it's my favorite um moment in the year because he's i think about this a lot work on this a lot and he just kind of breezes in and just does it so much better than i ever could but without barely and by the way you don't pay him for that right i mean that's not a that's huge yes he's private planes we're not allowed to look at him in the eyes like that with us same thing spoiled yeah no he's spoiled he's difficult i mean he comes on because he just loves football man loves liverpool football club but do not go that way john stewart but every year every year you know at the end of the interview i ask him you know ultimately there's a there's a an old cliche in football uh which has been warmed up a lot by a lot of different people um football is the most important least important thing and i always do wonder whether there's a moment in time whether being a football fan because i do i think about fandom i think about experiences i think about memories i think about the shan that football for me has become more important the more challenging everything becomes because it is in all seriousness where even fleeting joy fleeting sense of deep profound connectivity a lot of the good stuff can occur and i do always ask him i'm like is there a point where it becomes a you know almost like uh like we're fiddling um well well room is burning uh by watching football and he and he and i and i will say he he's like well no one ever talks about whether nero was a really good fiddler he's very very good i don't think it's bread and circuses at always i don't think it's necessarily government's ways of distracting us while they do the dirty work of what they do i think it's actually a way of acting out community rather than distraction that it's reminding us that those people are fleeting you know jesse owens in the in the munich olympic you know uh when when he showed hitler what was what you know these are the kinds of things i've taken a very different view of it i agree with you roger like there's a certain party where you feel like oh this shit just doesn't matter it's just stupid but think about lawrence kansas think about how people are responding to learning about different cultures for the very first time it is unifying and grounding in a really important in a really important way and the more we the more we resist those evil forces co-opting that beauty that's that's part of the struggle i know this sounds ridiculous i know i am sounding ridiculous i couldn't agree i think it i want to be clear i think it's become more important i think it's more important than ever sustaining this community um not take i mean this is the motto of everything that we do do not take a second of watching football together for granted i mean it is it's become the most powerful thing this conversation with fans these sense of feelings these sense of active um memory making so that's kind of how i how i approach it and you know i don't send i don't spend a second john thinking what people think about me or like how am i said it's like there's no good energy that comes out of that man so i'm just trying to focus on i'm trying to uh you know do good things for really good people put some sense of positivity a sense of joy sense of activity there's so many great things that we're watching like the virginia story the goalkeeper it's tenacity i mean tenacity is probably the greatest human value i think resilience yes yes yes so there's a lot of these are the things that i spend a lot of time thinking about a lot of time trying to articulate a lot of time trying to story tell um and that's that's how i approach all of this you know i was at this game between jordan and algeria yesterday here in in the bay area where this prison cell is and yeah that looks like actually a motel three i don't even think that's a motel six to um these jordanian fans uh outside the the team's hotel there and they said you know we're all over america it's such a big country we are everywhere and they came from um dearborn from new jersey uh from from from other parts of california and they said you know we've never had a moment ever where we've all been able to come together this qualification for the world cup all of these disparate jordanians so this is just one example there'll be 47 other examples of this it's a focus for the diaspora to san jose outside the hilton hotel where they're chanting and and probably ruining some businessman's zoom meeting um while they're waiting for the team to come out and i just thought it it was it was just a very very interesting and important moment to realize what else can do that i'm not sure there are many other things that can do this no um and and and here we are and we got a few more weeks of this to enjoy so let's enjoy it labor day savings are happening now at the home depot with select appliances starting at 399 plus save up to an extra thousand dollars and get free delivery on appliance purchases of 998 or more get a whirlpool laundry tower featuring industry-first uv clean technology designed to protect bacteria in the wash without fading fabrics plus with great prices at the home depot you can save on select appliances designed to make laundry day easier shop labor day savings at the home depot today offer valid august 27th through september 16th us only see store online for details what is the final july 19th is that where we're talking that's right so how does this so let's we're going to move into the knockout round let's play out a little bit of uh who's going to wrap up with a little not necessarily speculation but a little predictive is this very much like the kind of march madness that americans are used to where you'll get a cinderella here or there but ultimately by the end it's the blue bloods it's going to be uh france it's going to be spain it's going to be maybe netherlands who's playing remarkably well uh don't know about germany right now uh argentina what what how do you guys see this where where's it going to go what might be some of the surprises the the honest truth is we don't know a lot every team's played twice it's an enormous it is an ultra marathon this thing it's a massive bloated tournament um doesn't the germans have a notion for a you don't want to peak too soon they always believe you want to be a tourney a man shaft at like a tournament team that finds their rhythm finds their way finds it wait what is the name they have a tourney they have a name for everything john they really do that that that i just found out they have a name a thing for uh internal monologue and anxiety called Kopfkino, which is the cinema that plays inside your head. Oh, wow. Which means you're lost in your own mind, which I love. Yeah. A lot of McConaughey in your head. They have a name for that, a McConaughey. That's me trying to get out of the Kopfkino, is to envision you're in a McConaughey. Understood. Ultimately, teams will reveal themselves and knock out their true self. First game, you don't really know. Second game, ultimately, they need to. It's like you played, and I'm going to lose you, younger viewers, there used to be a game called Punch Out, where you'd be Mike Tyson fighting better and better opponents. That's what the World Cup is. It's just a game of Punch Out. Until we get to the open water of the knockout rounds, we don't. Now, I'm rooting for a U.S. Cape Verde final. It is the joy of this tournament that these tiny nations, they're like the St. Peter's Peacocks, whoever they were in, when was it, 22? Bad news bears. Yeah, these teams, everyone, everyone now, they've all had access to not just training and coaching, but the other thing you were talking about, diasporas earlier. Tariq was talking about fan diasporas and diasporas coming together and colonialism. The reality is, in France, Paris itself has like 73 footballers represented. They're not just stocking the French team. They're stocking the Senegalese team, the Moroccan team. Right. Germany, the blurring of boundaries in. Balogun. Even in the United States. I mean, they're, you know. God bless. It's incredible that coming from Africa, coming from Europe, coming from Asia. I mean, it's amazing. And so these teams, even the tiny teams, have access to true talent pools of footballers that have done far more than if it was truly just a representation of like people who only grew up and play football in Cape Verde. So it is magnificent. I'm thrilled for the little teams. I will say to see Cape Verde's name on a scoreboard by Spain, to see Curacao's name. This must feel, I've never been to either place, but it must feel absolutely just like an epic national achievement, not just sporting, but in their nation's history to see themselves reflected here. And epic even in defeat. I can remember, it might have been, maybe it was 2002 when the US played Germany. We lost 2-1. Oh, yeah. We lost 2-1. Okay, so. 1-0, I think. 1-0, I think. Oh, it's your show. Keep going. It's yours. All right. Tell me your story. I thought we lost 2-1. John, what does it even matter? It's your memory that matters. We lost 8-4. Yeah, yeah. I remember that game. But what it was, we actually dominated play for a good portion of the match. And this was for an American team that had always been defined by its goalkeepers. We'd always been defined by, you know, we would form the turtle shell and we would have Brazil come at us. And take 25 shots. And if we got out of there with a 1-0 loss, this was the first time I remember watching the American team against what you were talking about, that top shelf, world quality, and have moments of actual dominance, possession-wise, everything. Yep. There was a German that handled the American shot when it was going in on the line. Torsten Frings, name him and shame him. He handled the ball. He handled the ball when the ball was going in and the referee did not see it. It's a human agony. And it's the closest we've come. We would have been in the semifinal. And, you know, ultimately, this is the one place. It is something to think about for your listeners. If the American men do become good at football, it will be the end of the game of football for many fans. It will be like when Deep Blue beat Gary Kasparov at chess. They'll be like, sod it, the machines have won. We have nothing to hold over them. Because right now, I want to say this. They know, like, they laugh at us calling it soccer. That's so funny. Because they know that we recoil. We're like, oh, my God, are we not meant to call it that? In England, the biggest shows on television are called Soccer AM, Soccer Saturday. They use the word. But they also know that we are so, like, slightly inferior. We're so superior in so many things or we act like it. But we're very inferior in men's football. And the world loves it. Everyone laughs at us. They love it. And they know that we know that they know that we know that we're bad at it. And they love every time. Yeah. American announcer uses the word pitch. They take a great they take a great pride in the fact that they are forcing an American into this foreign vernacular that sounds so contrived coming out of our mouths. And to the Lala Zlatan, the Lala Zlatan, I'm convinced it's a rom-com. Alexi Lalas and Zlatan is pro wrestling. It's a symbolic battle for the future of civilization. It's not just about two guys in the studio. Oh, God, I don't want either of them to win. No, Tyrion Reid from the sidelines. Yes, that's who we want. We want Tyrion. That's what we want on there. Well, but, John, I have a good feeling for the U.S. I think they're on they're on the good side of the draw if there is a good side. So there is a chance that pathway opens up here. And, you know, you mentioned 2002. Yeah. I think this tournament has a little bit the hallmarks of that one where Turkey were unfancied. The U.S. were relatively unfancied. There were teams Senegal. There were teams making runs. This tournament reminds me a lot of 2002. And there could be a journey or two for people or teams that we're not thinking about. However, I think the final on July the 19th will be two heavyweights. I think there's probably no question there. But here's what I will say that we haven't brought up yet. And this is not to flatter you both. I think it's a good thing. I'm loving both of your covers. Coverage of this tournament and just big fans. Roger Bennett, founder of Men in Blazers Media Network. Tariq Panja, global sports correspondent to New York Times. Guys, thank you so much for being here. Oh, thanks for having us. Thank you, John. And when you do buy West Ham, just. You have a spot in the owner's box, my friend. No problem. Tickets, half price. Tickets, half price. Big, big love. One drink, though. One drink ticket. That's all. Thank you. Thank you, guys. Guys, I want to thank you both for listening to my men's encounter group session. I loved it. It was great. I really. That's, out of all the podcasts I think we've done, that's the first one where I think almost all the guests cried or almost cried. And the producers cried. I cried. Yeah. Talking about the families and my father and the way that he worked in class. Because it really is how it all. It connects in such a. Deeper sports, music. They connect on these levels beneath the surface of language and everything else. Do you guys. Are you guys huge sports fans? I'm a really big sports fan. Yeah. You are. Yeah. I know you like the Giants, so you know pain. San Francisco Giants, by the way. San Francisco. To be specific. I totally am. I'm like a huge sports fan. Just kidding. Yeah, no, Brittany's not. She's not. She's not having it. Have you guys been watching at all any of the World Cup stuff? Or your fandom hasn't moved into. Soccer yet? I always get so into the World Cup. There we go. I'm that cliche of somebody that's like, all of a sudden, every team, too. I'm like, this is my team. Cape Verde. I love these guys. It's awesome. Yes, exactly. And it's also. It reminds you, coming off of our Knicks experience, and I know we all shared that in the city, but it is. There is a mini Knicks experience to be had in the city all the time when you go to these pubs that are showing Premier League. I'm not even talking about just World Cup. You can. It's. You visit these other countries. It's the funniest is when the pubs are on the city, too, with the Premier League. It's like 8 a.m. And these guys. They've had a couple. It's a great excuse. I'm convinced that's why they're watching. They blame it on the time difference, but it's really not. You go to England, it's 8 a.m. Very convenient. No, they were there. And I love how Roger is just like, you know, I'm a sad man. I'm an anxious man. I'm a nervous man. But I love football! You know, like, and then he just lights up. It makes him human, he says. Yeah. It makes the whole thing. And I love that they said, like, we need this. We really do. It's actually. I mean, that's why I keep getting so misty watching, is like, it's. We really need this. We do need it. Because it is, you know, when you think about just the decadence and corruption and inequality and the things spinning out of control, to have something like this that still belongs to the people, whoever owns it, whoever runs it, it still belongs. And it reminds you of those moments. And I hate to, again, like, throw them on there, but it reminds you of Hungary tossing out Orban. It reminds you of the power that still exists in the population. That's what I love. Yeah, it's the unity. Yes. There's an ad that's been running since, like, before the World Cup started. I think it's Airbnb. And I think it's Claire Danes that's doing the voice for it. But it's, like, when the world meets. And it's, like, you needed, you know, Jamaica to bring their sound systems to England to make punk music. And before the World Cup, I saw that ad, and I was like, this is so out of touch with, like, what's going on right now. And now the commercial comes on, and I'm like, that's exactly right, Claire Danes. That's all right. We do need that. Thank you, Claire Danes. Brittany, what do they want to know from us this week? What do we got? All righty. What do they want? What do they want from us? John, why are soccer players so overly dramatic when they are knocked down or kicked? It's an excellent question. You know, I was a soccer player for many years. There is a layer underneath when you play soccer, a layer of nerves that go through there. It's like, do you remember the game Operation? Yes. I'm awful at it. Where you put the thing in there, and it doesn't seem like much. You just have. It's a little. You have yourself a little. And you got a bone, and you're trying to put the funny bone into where the elbow is. And you think to yourself, well, I just touched that side. I didn't bang into it. I didn't hurt it. But what happens? They're not faking. We're just. We have overly sensitive electrical impulses that go. My favorite ones are the ones that are clearly on the replay, like not even touched. Yeah. I literally just decided, like, I didn't even touch the side, but it's time for me to do, I'm going to say three forward rolls and then go on my back as though my lungs have come out of my body. Yeah. It's funny, too, because sometimes they'll do it, and I'll be like, oh, my God. And then they'll show the replay, and I'm like, I would be out of commission for six months if this happened to me. Like, I get it. Yeah. It is, I mean, overly dramatic, yes. But there are, as Jillian, says, like, it's a very physical game. Yeah. Especially the way they play it in, like, Premier League and all that. Like, they're not playing the beautiful game of, like, Spain and tiki-taki and possession. Like, they're running through people. Which version was William and Mary? I played. I actually went to the hospital one night after a game at William and Mary. We played Old Dominion down at ODU, down in Norfolk, Virginia. And it was on their field night game, and both teams, both teams were very. There was a heated rivalry there. There was a fight on the field in the middle of it. And I was a forward, and one of their backs, I can't remember if it was a wingback or a centerback, basically went through me on a contested ball from the goalie, and I didn't think anything of it. And then after the game, I started pissing blood. Oh, my God. And, like, was in the hospital for a week, where, like, I couldn't move, like. Did you even get a free kick? Like. Oh! We certainly got a free kick off the play. And I finished out the game without even realizing it. But, like, you know, they'll mash your organs. They will mash your organs is the point. That's insane. My back could never. Oh, mine couldn't either. I didn't. Trust me. Yeah, we're not built for the pitch. No. It was a bad scene. But, boy, do I miss it. Boy, do I miss it. Old man. Old man glory days, for sure. What else they want? What else they want? All right. John, what advice would you give pro golfers now that heckling is showing up more on the course? It's a great question. You have clubs. If you're in. And let's be honest. Let's be fair about this. When you talk about heckling showing up on the course, in Long Island. I know. It doesn't. Golf is played all over the world. The only place it shows up is somewhere outside of Syasset. Syasset. Yeah. You know, it's only Massapequa that shows up. It's so embarrassing, guys. Hey, get it in the fucking hole, you jackass. But there's nothing that I think. You know, and depending on the size of the heckler's head, that an iron or a wood. I mean, that's really what you have to do. You have to talk to the caddy and just say, is this the type of dude I could take with a putter? Or do I need to go full wood? Yeah. Easy to take care of. Not a problem. Very nice. Is that it? Is there any other. That's it. Beautiful. I can't tell you how much I enjoyed talking about sports this time and that I didn't have to read any fucking books to do this. Normally, I have to read the books. We're off on the next week, but how can they get in touch with us, these people? Twitter, we are Weekly Show Pod. Instagram, Threads, TikTok, Blue Sky, we are Weekly Show Podcast, and you can like, subscribe, and comment on our YouTube channel, The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart. Very nice, guys. Thanks, as always, to producer Brittany Mimetevic, producer Jillian Spear, video editor, and engineer Rob Vitola, audio editor and engineer Nicole Boyce, and our executive producers Chris McShane and Katie Gray. We'll see you. Have a great week off. I'll talk to you guys soon. Bye. The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart is a Comedy Central podcast. It's produced by Paramount Audio and Busboy Productions. Advertising on Spotify with audio and display ads helps brands turn attention into results. 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