Explore every episode of the podcast The Soccernomics Podcast

As an extension from our Thursday episode, we discuss the MLS experiment and where it is today. How did it survive after its lowest ebbs in the late 90s and early 2000s? What's behind high present day MLS club valuations? And why hasn't it taken off and actually become a major league?

From the Boston Beaneaters of the ALFP, to the New York Cosmos of the NASL, we dig into the long history of professional soccer in the US, dating back to the 1890s. It sets us up for Stefan's critiques of Major League Soccer, and why he believes the league should bring in promotion and relegation.

After a walking vacation in Ireland, Stefan has had a lot of time to think about football's financial regulations - and he's got a lot to say. Well let's be honest: both of those things are always the case, vacation or not.

But with the English Premier and Football Leagues new Squad Cost Ratio (SCR) regulations in place for this season, we thought it was a good opportunity to talk about what they are, and why Stefan fundamentally has a problem with financial regulation in football.

As Stefan recently pointed out, Lionel Messi has missed three penalties in a row. That, along with Ashish's never ending debate with his friend Rishi over David De Gea, made today feel as good a time as any to republish our penalties episode. In it, we go beyond the pub talk, where Stefan and Simon explain the game theory that underlines the economics and psychology behind penalty kicks.

This episode was first published on May 28.

After Stefan recently fired back at people who didn't like his analysis about the origins of the word 'soccer', we thought we'd play you the entire conversation that led to the backlash in the first place - thanks to our friends at NO SUCH THING.

Manny Fidel, Devan Joseph and Noah Friedman had us on their award-winning show last month to talk about the transfer system, US soccer, promotion/relegation, authoritarian regimes that host World Cups...and yes, the football v soccer debate.

This conversation first aired as part of NO SUCH THING's July 1 episode. Check out their feed here.

From Liverpool to the Lakers: its been a big week in the world of sports team ownership.

Mark Walter's sale of his controlling stake of the Lakers, just 14 months after he bought it raised eyebrows in the NBA - as did the 25% profit he pocketed. Just days later Jeff Bezos bought 30% of Liverpool FC.

The sales are just the latest examples of a recent trend of sports teams going for whopping prices - particularly in the US. So what's behind it?

We also preview the upcoming English Premier League season, including debating whether Leicester City's longshot title was luck, or something more.

Stefan fights off the haters when it comes to his position on Soccer v Football. Seriously, if you haven't read his book, "It's Football, Not Soccer (And Vice Versa), co-authored with Silke-Maria Weineck. We also discuss the WAFCON, the effects of colonialism, pay to play, and compare the times FIFA has gotten into bed with dictators around the world.

In our first listener questions episode, we get into a variety of topics - from penalties, to the European Super League and those weird "Match Momentum" graphs FOX kept showing during World Cup matches in the US.

If you've written to us and didn't get your question answered, don't worry - we will be doing another one of these episodes very soon!

A momentous day for The Soccernomics Podcast: Our first guest. Kieran Maguire, one of the world's leading football finance experts, and the author of "The Price is Football" joins Stefan and Ashish for a wide-ranging chat. Topics range from Infantino, to private equity, and the turmoil at Ebbsfleet United.

Since we last recorded, the pressure has been mounting on Gianni Infantino. Though he retreated from his botched World Cup sell-off plan, many want more - his resignation.

From the internal dissent within FIFA, to the opposition to Infantino's leadership from various national football associations and continental confederations - we discuss it all, and consider the fundamental question of whether he will survive the biggest test he's ever faced.

Trigger warning: This episode contains discussion of suicide. Though we promise, this is ultimately an uplifting and hopeful story.

As the fallout from Gianni Infantino's botched attempt to sell a share of the World Cup continues, we'll be coming to you with a new episode about it on Thursday. In the meantime, we thought it was a perfect opportunity to republish an episode we first put out in May - as a reminder of why the World Cup is so important to people. It literally saves lives.

This episode was fist published on May 26.

Need help?

If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, call or text 988 in the U.S. and Canada to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. Call 116 123 or NHS 111 in the UK.

In a shock move on Tuesday, FIFA announced plans to create FIFA Forward Enterprises (FFE), a new subsidiary which would sell all of FIFA’s commercial rights and run its major events, such as the World Cup. But the most significant part of the plan is that FIFA would then sell off up to 21% of the company to private investors.

The idea has been met with sharp criticism, especially from the governing body of football in Europe - UEFA - who said: “The soul and governance of football are not assets to trade — especially with zero transparency as to who gains financially. None of us are the owners of football. It is not FIFA’s to sell.”

We're taking a little breather this week, catching our breath from the World Cup. But we'll be back with new episodes very soon. Until then, we thought we'd republish an episode we did before the tournament began. It's one that seems very relevant again after Spain won the World Cup - Why Western Europe dominates global soccer.

This episode first aired on June 9th. None of the time references from that time have been changed.

We had to talk about that England collapse, and the fallout that's followed. Thomas Tuchel has received most of the blame. But is that fair? Was it more on the players, or was it a combination of various factors?

After a 1-0 win over Argentina, Spain added to their Women's World Cup title in 2023, and now hold the Men's title as well. What is it about Spanish football that's bringing it so much success? We also discuss how Argentina became this World Cup's villains...

Our first live show at the House of GOAL Festival in Industry City, New York. We previewed the England-Argentina match, which took place right after we got off stage, and also talked about the World Cup so far through the lens of Soccernomics.

Simon Kuper rejoins the pod amid his World Cup travels to share his takeaways from the tournament so far. The gang discuss the impact of Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane on the tournament, and whether they've ever seen anything like it from English superstars.

We discuss the most controversial match of the tournament so far - Egypt v Argentina. Is there a bias towards Argentina? We also discuss the fallout from the US Men's National Team crashing out of the tournament. Where does US Men's Soccer go from here?

Does it get much better than that England-Mexico match? Somehow the most hyped match of the tournament exceeded expectations. Stefan and Ashish break it down, discuss whether Western Europe is slowly taking over the tournament, and get into Donald Trump's controversial call to Gianni Infantino to allow Flo Balogun to paly against Belgium.

Moments after the final whistle, we break down the classic England-Democratic Republic of Congo R32 match, and look ahead to England's blockbuster meeting with Mexico at the Estadio Azteca. We also reassess whether this has been a tournament of upsets, and discuss the concept of 'inevitability' in sports.

After an eventful Brazil-Japan match, Stefan and Ashish talk about the success of African teams at this World Cup so far, and the unfair treatment the Iranian team faced at the hands of FIFA and the tournament's main hosts, the United States.

Note: As a reminder, this episode was recorded before the Germany-Paraguay and Morocco-Netherlands matches.

After Ashish makes Stefan listen to his experience watching Ghana hold England to a draw, they talk about how much managers really matter, with particular focus on England and Brazil at this World Cup.

After Stefan takes us back to the 1974 Poland-West Germany World Cup match, we talk about the fairytale story of Cape Verde so far, and discuss how far they can go in this year's tournament. We also talk more broadly about smaller countries like Portugal, Croatia and Palestine, whose teams have long overachieved based on their populations, GDP and global football experience.

Email us with your thoughts and questions at thesoccernomicspodcast@gmail.com

We discuss the latest games, the geopolitics around the Iraqi and Iranian teams, and the debate over who is gaining most from dual national players.

In our first episode since the World Cup we discuss some of the surprise results so far, and highlight the great start for the Socceroos and their young star, Nestory Irankunda - who like two of his teammates - was born in a refugee camp in Africa before he and his family were granted asylum in Australia. We debate whether the success of multicultural teams like the Socceroos and the US can change attitudes around immigration in their countries.

The World Cup is here, and we're here to preview it all. Stefan has done a mind-boggling 20,000 simulations of the tournament, and yet somehow there is still no scenario where Haiti wins it all. We also talk into the political backdrop, with Ashish and Stefan talking about their recent piece for The Economist, about how this could be the last World Cup. Link below:

https://www.economist.com/by-invitation/2026/06/08/this-may-just-be-the-last-world-cup

When Simon and Stefan first wrote Soccernomics, they predicted that the US, Japan, Australia, Turkey and Iraq were destiened to become the kings of the sport. That turned out to be wrong...well, so far at least. Instead, ove the last five World Cups, Argentina is the only non-European team to have finished in the top three. So what's behind Europe's (specifically Western Europe's) domination of the game?

Part two of our discussion from Tuesday, we discuss antitrust, player unions the differences between player unions in Europe and the US, and compare the transfer system to the NIL in American college sports.

Today we're talking football's transfer market - a topic Stefan is so passionate about, we've had to split it into two parts. In this one, he makes the case for why world football's transfer market is a form of human trafficking. Hear him out before you dismiss it as hyperbole...

Every World Cup has at least one memorable penalty shootout. And this weekend's Champions League Final in Budapest between PSG and Arsenal might as well. Is there a science behind the drama? We unpack it all in today's episode, where we also learn about Ashish's childhood goalkeeping exploits, and how Simon almost helped the Netherlands to World Cup glory in 2010.

Trigger warning: This episode contains discussion of suicide.

It's an eternal story told about soccer - that when Brazil gets knocked out of World Cups, Brazilians jump off apartment buildings. But is it really true? And could football actually be saving lives rather than leading to an increase in suicides?

Need help?

If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, call or text 988 in the U.S. and Canada to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. Call 116 123 or NHS 111 in the UK.

We all know the story. Incredible hype around England at a World Cup or European Championship, and then inevitable letdown. 60 years of hurt. But since 2018, England has actually done a lot better. Is England finally going to get over the hump? Or were recent tournaments actually missed opportunities? We discuss the expectations around England, and whether they've been realistic given the economic and societal dynamics shaping the team. 

What is Soccernomics? In our first episode we discuss how Simon and Stefan first met, the debate over Football v Soccer, and how fans have the power to take back this summer's World Cup from Donald Trump.

Get ready for the World Cup through the lens of Soccernomics. It's a New York Times Bestseller, but it's also a way of looking at the game that uncovers its hidden truths. Featuring Simon Kuper, Stefan Szymanski and Ashish Malhotra.