The Sweeper - A World Football Podcast - Maccabi Netanya end Israeli trophy drought, a Maltese club president wants to play & the meteoric rise of Cosmos in San Marino

Maccabi Netanya end Israeli trophy drought, a Maltese club president wants to play & the meteoric rise of Cosmos in San Marino

02/01/23 • 40 min

1 Listener

After 18 months in the podcast wilderness, The Sweeper is back - with the new-look team of Lee Wingate and Paul Watson getting their teeth stuck straight into the quirkiest stories European football has to offer.

The first Solomon Islander to ever sign a professional contract in Europe pens a deal in Bosnia, while a club president in Malta contemplates resignation in order to register himself as a player.

Cosmos go from bottom last season to top of the pile this term in San Marino - but what's been their secret? Meanwhile, Swift Hesperange of Luxembourg are Europe's only unbeaten side, and there is news from the lower reaches of the French and Italian top flights too.

Across the domestic cups, Israel's Maccabi Netanya remarkably win a trophy without scoring a goal, second-tier Pas de la Casa make waves in the Andorran Cup and Barcelona's Copa del Rey opponents Ceuta get a new mascot: 'Caballati' the mackerel.

RUNNING ORDER:

PART 1 - Introduction to the new hosts and our first stories (00:50)

PART 2 - The leagues making headlines across UEFA (14:38)

PART 3 - Cup runs, triumphs & geopolitics (29:30)

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

The first Solomon Islander to ever sign a professional contract in Europe pens a deal in Bosnia, while a club president in Malta contemplates resignation in order to register himself as a player.

RUNNING ORDER:

PART 1 - Introduction to the new hosts and our first stories (00:50)

PART 2 - The leagues making headlines across UEFA (14:38)

PART 3 - Cup runs, triumphs & geopolitics (29:30)

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

Previous Episode

The Sweeper: Matt Walker's Europe United - October 2021

Lee talks to Matt Walker about five more of the countries on his spectacular continental football journey. This time Lithuania, Latvia, the Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland and Azerbaijan are up for discussion; including stories of a taxi ride with a former international, some Kim Jong-Un masks on show in Ireland, and a serious chat about whether the Baltic leagues might fold.

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

Next Episode

Kazu Miura playing in Portugal aged 55, prisoners attend game in Romania & a furniture supplier intervenes in Belgium

More of the European football stories you won't hear elsewhere from the first half of February - but this time there's a twist: The Sweeper goes global for the first time.

Hosts Lee and Paul Watson discuss their most memorable football experiences in Enfield and Győr respectively, before switching the focus to the tragic earthquake in Türkiye and its impact on the Süper Lig.

Japan legend Kazu Miura rocks up at second-tier Oliveirense in Portugal aged 55 - but is he the oldest professional player currently active in Europe? Meanwhile, prisoners are allowed out to catch a Romanian top-flight match and a sponsor steps in in Belgium to prevent a controversial coaching appointment.

Domestic cups are reaching crunch time across Europe - and there are updates from Northern Ireland, Austria, the Netherlands and England, including another story involving fish football mascots!

Last but not least, there is a first-ever venture to other continents with the net cast as far as Argentina in the south-west to Hong Kong in the north-east, with stops off in Liberia and the British Virgin Islands on the way.

RUNNING ORDER:

PART 1 - Memorable live football experiences (01:35); the impact of the earthquake in Türkiye on the Süper Lig (08:52)

PART 2 - Weird and wacky stories from across Europe (15:09)

PART 3 - Cup chaos across the continent (24:04)

PART 4 - The Sweeper goes global (35:09)

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