America 2026: A World Cup podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

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This is a new podcast from The Irish Times covering the 2026 World Cup in Mexico, Canada and the United States. Join former Irish international Kevin Kilbane and journalist and author Paul Howard for Ireland's playoff games in March and the tournament in June.

America 2026 drops just in time for Ireland’s first (hopefully not last) playoff game against Czechia. To listen to the podcast, follow America 2026 on your podcast app - and look out for us on YouTube.

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Relive the glory and the heartbreak of Ireland's previous attempts to reach a major tournament with someone who was there to experience the joy, fight some losing battles and witness that handball. Kevin Kilbane and Paul Howard look back at playoff games past:

• Belgium, World Cup 1998
• Turkey, Euro 2000
• Iran, World Cup 2002
• France, World Cup 2010

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Paul Howard and Kevin Kilbane preview Ireland v Czech Republic:

• Ireland’s squad
• Handling the pressure of a playoff 
• How Ireland won back to back games against Portugal and Hungary 
• Match fitness and the impact of players not getting regular football 
• The Troy Parrott factor 
• The Czech team 
• Should we practice penalties? 
• Kelleher’s penalty-saving prowess

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With World Cup 2026 one week away, Paul Howard, Kevin Kilbane and Malachy Clerkin kick off our podcast coverage of the tournament.

The Irish Times will publish episodes of America 2026 several times per week between now and the final on July 19th. Listen for analysis of all the football, digressions into World Cup history and coverage of the big stories happening inside and outside the stadiums.

On today’s episode Paul, Kevin and Mal preview the tournament. Who are favourites to win? Who are the players to watch? Is there any merit to the expanded number of teams competing? And are we allowed to enjoy this World Cup with all the political and ethical baggage attached to it?

Plus, Paul shamelessly name-drops while recounting his last World Cup final experience and Mal recalls his dressing-down by US president Donald Trump. 

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Malachy Clerkin, Kevin Kilbane and Gavin Cummiskey are here to talk about the final round of games World Cup qualification matches.

In part one we look at last night in the Aviva and Ireland's campaign as a whole. are we in a better place now? And what is Seamus Coleman's future in the Ireland setup?

In part two we look at the playoff deciders, where there were plenty of surprising results including Bosnia and Herzegovina beating Italy on penalties.

Finally we look ahead to some of the tantalising and not-so-tantalising matchups in the World Cup.

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Maybe the worst thing about the Republic of Ireland losing their World Cup place to Czechia is missing out on the chance to play tournament co-hosts Mexico in their home stadium - the Estadio Azteca - almost 40 years to the day since Diego Maradona's 'Hand of God' moment cemented its status as one of the truly iconic stadiums in world football.

Paul, Kevin and Malachy discuss the state of play for both Mexico and Canada, as teams and as co-hosts of the 2026 World Cup. Can Mexico top their group to keep home advantage? Can Canada claim their first ever World Cup point?

We also chat to Andrew Downie, a foreign correspondent for Reuters based in Brazil and the author of a number of acclaimed sports books, including a personal favourite of Paul’s, "Doctor Socrates".

Andrew tells us how the 1986 earthquakes in Mexico City jeopardised the country's chances of hosting the World Cup last time round, how they managed to avoid losing the tournament, and the social and political ripple effects the disaster had on Mexican society.

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Not even a bowl of Mauricio Pochettino's lemons could soak up the negativity hanging over the host nation of World Cup 2026.

From reports of FIFA referees being turned around at the border to the Iranian national team being permitted nothing more than day trips into the country, it's the events off the pitch that have been dominating global headlines.

Irish Times Washington Correspondent Keith Duggan joins us from LA to pick through the situation on the ground, while Kevin runs the rule over what to expect from tomorrow's opening games and how the USMNT are shaping up with the weight of a divided US on their shoulders.

Plus, with so many Canadians having long preferred to back the countries of their family heritage over their own, is this finally the year Les Rouges truly become "Canada's team"?

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A highly sleep-deprived Paul Howard and Gavin Cooney are in studio today to pick apart the amorphous blob that was the weekend's group-stage action. A sprawling, shapeless mass of goals, the occasional flash of genuine quality and only modest amounts of drama. 

The Scots are making a name for themselves in Boston, Curaçao caught a fleeting glimpse of greatness before being yanked firmly back down to earth, and tired national stereotypes are turned on their head by Japan's late equaliser against the Dutch.

Plus, we look ahead to today's action, which features our very own Pico Lopez lining out for his ancestral home of Cape Verde against tournament favourites Spain. A baptism of fire if ever there was one.

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