Why We Love This Club

FC Barcelona Femení, Liga F, the UEFA Women’s Champions League and the rise of women’s football in Spain are the focus of this episode of Why We Love This Club, tracing how a team once denied Barça’s shirt became one of football’s dominant institutions.

The story begins in 1970, when Immaculada Cabecerán recruited players through a magazine advertisement and a women’s side played at Camp Nou without permission to use the club’s name or colors. Chris follows the long road from those white shirts to formal incorporation into FC Barcelona in 2002 and full professionalization in 2015.

The episode explores defining figures including Alexia Putellas, Aitana Bonmatí, Caroline Graham Hansen, Patri Guijarro, Salma Paralluelo and Ewa Pajor, along with Barcelona’s transformation after the painful 2019 Champions League final against Lyon.

Chris also revisits the club’s European titles, domestic dominance, record crowds of more than 91,000 at Camp Nou, and the importance of Estadi Johan Cruyff.

It’s a story about access, identity and a women’s team that stopped waiting for permission and eventually helped redefine what FC Barcelona itself could be.
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If you enjoyed this show, you may like these other soccer podcasts by Chris.

The Beautiful Game: Unfiltered
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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Atlético Nacional, the Copa Libertadores, Medellín football, and the 2016 Chapecoense tragedy are the focus of this episode of Why We Love This Club, exploring how Colombia’s most decorated club showed that greatness can mean more than winning trophies.

Founded in 1947, Atlético Nacional grew from a regional project into the Rey de Copas, winning 18 Colombian league titles and two Copa Libertadores championships. Chris traces the club’s rise through figures including Francisco Maturana, René Higuita, Andrés Escobar, Leonel Álvarez, Miguel Ángel Borja and Reinaldo Rueda, while also confronting the violence and cartel influence surrounding Colombian football in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

The episode explores Nacional’s home at Estadio Atanasio Girardot, the Clásico Paisa rivalry with Independiente Medellín, and the historic 1989 and 2016 Libertadores triumphs.

At the heart of the story is November 2016, when Chapecoense’s plane crashed en route to the Copa Sudamericana final. Atlético Nacional asked CONMEBOL to award the trophy to Chapecoense, while more than 40,000 supporters filled the stadium in white to mourn the victims.

It’s a story of success, tragedy, solidarity and one of football’s most powerful acts of sportsmanship.
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If you enjoyed this show, you may like these other soccer podcasts by Chris.

The Beautiful Game: Unfiltered
The Underdog Football Show

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

Deportivo Saprissa, Costa Rican football, Liga Promerica and the Clásico Nacional with Alajuelense are the focus of this episode of Why We Love This Club, exploring how the Purple Monster became the most decorated club in Costa Rica.

Founded in 1935 as a youth project by Roberto Fernández with support from Ricardo Saprissa Aymá, Saprissa built its identity around player development long before becoming a national powerhouse. Chris traces the club’s remarkable 1959 round-the-world tour, its famous home at Estadio Ricardo Saprissa — La Cueva, and the historic run of six consecutive league titles from 1972 through 1977.

The episode explores legends including Evaristo Coronado, Christian Bolaños, Álvaro Saborío and Rónald Gómez, alongside Saprissa’s deep connection to the Costa Rica national team.

Chris also revisits the club’s three CONCACAF Champions Cup titles, the unforgettable 2005 victory over Pumas UNAM, and Saprissa’s third-place finish at the FIFA Club World Championship.

With 40 national championships, a renowned academy, and one of Central America’s fiercest atmospheres, Saprissa’s story is about development, ambition and generations of Costa Rican players inheriting an extraordinary standard.
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If you enjoyed this show, you may like these other soccer podcasts by Chris.

The Beautiful Game: Unfiltered
The Underdog Football Show

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

The Strongest, Bolivian football, La Paz, and the 1969 Viloco air disaster are the focus of this episode of Why We Love This Club, exploring how one of Bolivia’s oldest institutions repeatedly turned survival into identity.

Founded in 1908, Club The Strongest became a defining force in La Paz football, winning early championships, helping establish the Estadio Hernando Siles and later becoming a major presence in the Copa Libertadores. Chris traces the club’s connection to the Chaco War, its rivalry with Bolívar in the Clásico Paceño and generations of important figures including Rafael Mendoza Castellón, Pablo Escobar, and Alejandro Chumacero.

At the heart of the episode is the September 1969 plane crash near Viloco, which killed 17 players along with the club’s coach, staff and delegate. Chris follows the extraordinary rebuilding effort that came afterward, including support from rival clubs and Boca Juniors, the creation of the “Strongest Símbolo” team, and a rapid return to championship football.

It’s a story about altitude, rivalry, memory, and a club whose name became less a boast than a responsibility: strength meant continuing after the worst day imaginable.
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If you enjoyed this show, you may like these other soccer podcasts by Chris.

The Beautiful Game: Unfiltered
The Underdog Football Show

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

Brunei DPMM FC, the Malaysia Super League, Singapore football and Brunei’s cross-border football story are the focus of this episode of Why We Love This Club, exploring a club that has needed three countries to find the right competition.

Founded in 1994 and closely connected to Brunei’s royal family, DPMM quickly outgrew the domestic game. Chris traces the club’s moves from the Brunei Premier League into Malaysia and then Singapore, where administrative chaos, FIFA sanctions and even a global pandemic repeatedly disrupted their place in the football pyramid.

The episode explores DPMM’s 2009 Singapore League Cup win, the bizarre season in which their league results were erased, and championship teams led by figures including Steve Kean, Wardun Yussof, Azwan Ali Rahman, Rafael Ramazotti, Adrian Pennock and Andrei Varankou.

Chris also examines DPMM’s rivalry with Tampines Rovers and Albirex Niigata Singapore, life at Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium, and the unusual financial and travel arrangements required for their current return to Malaysia.

It’s a story about geography, identity, and a Bruneian club determined to find meaningful competition beyond its own borders.
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If you enjoyed this show, you may like these other soccer podcasts by Chris.

The Beautiful Game: Unfiltered
The Underdog Football Show

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