Podcast
Founding Futbol
Hosted by Blue Wire · EN
Founding Futbol is a weekly podcast that explores soccer’s journey in America, analyzing how key moments in the sport’s history have contributed to its rising level of popularity. The show features research and expert guests as it breaks down 52 key events that have influenced growth of soccer in the United States.
Host Kent Malmros combines narrated research with long-form interviews in each episode. Founding Futbol will provide in-depth analysis on topics such as Title IX, Pelé’s time in New York, the USWNT’s dominance and Paul Caligiuri’s iconic 1989 goal.
127episodes
Episodes
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Extra Time: David Copeland-Smith's Beast Mode Soccer
Mar 27, 202500:56:49Tap to summarizeDavid Copeland-Smith founded Beast Mode Soccer in in 2010 as a training system to help guide soccer players’ technical development. His methodologies quickly caught on among college, international and pro players, leading him to work with the likes of Alex Morgan, Rachel Daly, Landon Donovan, Allie Long and Kristie Mewis. In fact, 13 of the 24 members of the 2019 World Cup winning World Cup squad have trained with Copeland-Smith. While his ability as a trainer earned him the attention of those players, working with those players and then using platforms like Instagram to document those session to the broader soccer public, earned him national recognition as an elite level trainer. Beast Mode has become synonymous with the soccer trainer culture on Instagram, something that has connected the fans with a different side of the soccer world. Copeland-Smith joined Founding Futbol to share the story of how he landed in LA, began his journey along the path of personal training and the importance of Instagram in his journey. He shares stories of staying with pop star Robbie Williams, having Kelley O'Hara bring "friends" to pickup games (that turned out to be global soccer icons) and so much more. Founding Futbol is a year-long exploration of the critical moments that have led to soccer's emerging popularity in America.Visit our website for more information: FoundingFutbol.com. Email us at kent@foundingfutbol.comSubscribe to Founding Futbol on your platform of choice.Host: Kent MalmrosGuest: David Copeland-Smith (Founder and Owner, Beast Mode Soccer) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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Chapter Forty-Nine: Soccer Takes Over Instagram (with Kelley O'Hara)
Mar 24, 202501:14:39Tap to summarizeThe exploration of key moments in US Soccer history has revealed the importance of media and then social media in amplifying the beauty of the game and connecting fans to it in a variety of ways. Cable sports helped expose the American public to highlights. YouTube let fans see world class goals at the same time Messi emerged on the global stage. Twitter gave American soccer fans the ability to connect, cheer and celebrate Abby Wambach's miracle goal against Brazil in the 2011 Women's World Cup. Instagram continued and then magnified the value of social media in the growth of soccer in the United States. The visual nature of the content lent itself to the beautiful game. Importantly, images and videos also gave players another way to use their voice. That let fans into their world and, in particular with the women's players, forged a bond that made more people fans. Soccer players have become the most followed personalities on the entire platform and their posts the most liked as well. Soccer Instagram has given rise to a player culture, a highlight culture, a trainer culture and a creator culture. Kelley O'Hara played at a time when social media and, in particular, Instagram were changing the way fans found soccer and soccer players. She was part of two World Cup winning teams in 2015 and 2019 that used the platform to build an even bigger following and fan base. The ability to visually curate their lives to connect with various communities and bring even more people into the game of soccer. O'Hara joined the show to talk about how social media enabled the team's activism. She shares how she approached balancing Instagram's importance, with contnued piortization and focus on the game. O'Hara also discusses how social media has given rise to her second career. Founding Futbol is a year-long exploration of the critical moments that have led to soccer's emerging popularity in America.Visit our website for more information: FoundingFutbol.com. Email us at kent@foundingfutbol.com.Subscribe to Founding Futbol on your platform of choice.Host: Kent MalmrosGuest: Kelley O'Hara (Former USWNT and NWSL Player)Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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Extra Time: Welcome to Wrexham's Josh Drisko
Mar 22, 202500:48:10Tap to summarizeWhen actors Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds bought Wrexham AFC, it generated significant interest in the United States. Two Hollwood stars attaching themselves to a team in Wales, par of the English football system, gave Americans another way in which they could connect with the beautiful game, globally. But, when they turned it into a sports documentary, it opened the door to soccer for casual fans in the same way Ted Lasso and other cinematic content did as well. Josh Drisko joined Founding Futbol to talk about his journey with Welcome to Wrexham. He built a successful career in television, intersecting with McElhenney in multiple cities, and ultimately working with him on the hit television show "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia." Drisko and others remained together working on more McElhenney projects over the years. When the actors bought Wrexham, a series of events led Drisko to become part of the project. He talks about the differences between fiction and documentaries. The connection he built with the content, and more. Founding Futbol is a year-long exploration of the critical moments that have led to soccer's emerging popularity in America.Visit our website for more information: FoundingFutbol.com. Email us at kent@foundingfutbol.comSubscribe to Founding Futbol on your platform of choice.Host: Kent MalmrosGuest: Josh Drisko (Showrunner and Editor, Welcome to Wrexham) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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Extra Time: Angel City's Julie Uhrman
Mar 20, 202500:46:04Tap to summarizeAngel City FC brought top flight professional women's soccer back to Los Angeles.. Announced in 2020, the team began playing in 2022. But the process of making that initiative a reality started in 2019 during a conversation between the club's co-founder and CEO, Julie Uhrman, and others. An idea quickly turned into action and within months, Uhrman and team of co-founders were putting together a unique syndicate of owners that represented Hollywood, soccer history and the business world. Uhrman joined Founding Futbol to share her journey with Angel City FC. During the conversation, Uhrman talks about how and when the idea to bring an NWSL club to LA was born. She delves into the steps required to make it a reality -- from raising money and putting and ownership group together, to building.a staff, to assembling a team. Uhrman shares how she translated her business experience to the soccer world, how she learned about running a club and what makes the Angel City formula unique. Founding Futbol is a year-long exploration of the critical moments that have led to soccer's emerging popularity in America.Visit our website for more information: FoundingFutbol.com. Email us at kent@foundingfutbol.comSubscribe to Founding Futbol on your platform of choice.Host: Kent MalmrosGuest: Julie Uhrman (Co-Founder and CEO, Angel City FC) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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Chapter Forty-Eight: The Hollywoodization of Soccer (with Saskia Webber)
Mar 17, 202501:16:46Tap to summarizeWith the success of Ted Lasso, as well as the growing popularity of soccer documentaries and broader program on streaming services, Hollywood began to seen an opportunity to connect with soccer. In 2020, two different initiatives marked the Hollywoodization of soccer in different ways. Angel CIty FC, a Los Angeles expansion team in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) was announced with a star-studded, celebrity-laden ownership group. And two world famous actors -- Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds -- bought Wrexham AFC with the intent to create a documentary about the club geared towards an American audience. The two evens happened within just a few months of each others. And while they were very different in effect, they shared a deep connection to LA and Hollywood based on actor and actress based ownership. Both Angel City and Wrexham generated significant publicity as a result. Which allowed both teams to draw new and different fans into the game.Angel City also added a slew of former USWNT players to its ownership group -- in addition to entrepreneurs and actress..Saskia Webber was one of the players in that group and she returned to the show to talk about owning an NWSL team in LA. She shares how the opportunity came about. What it was like helping get it off the ground. How the former player contribute to the club's success, and more. Founding Futbol is a year-long exploration of the critical moments that have led to soccer's emerging popularity in America.Visit our website for more information: FoundingFutbol.com. Email us at kent@foundingfutbol.com.Subscribe to Founding Futbol on your platform of choice.Host: Kent MalmrosGuest: Saskia Webber (Former USWNT Player, Angel City FC Owner)Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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Extra Time: Charles Curtis, For The Win
Mar 13, 202500:54:36Tap to summarizeTed Lasso was successful because it was a great television show. One that developed lovable characters and compelling storylines. Its award-winning run, alone, made it story worthy for so many media outlets, including For The Win, a USA Today website that covers sports and pop culture. But, it's deep connection to sports put it even more into the zeitgeist, drawing on the deep connection between actors and athletes. Charles Curtis joined Founding Futbol to talk about what made Ted Lasso a hit but also why sites like For The Win found it compelling to cover. He dives into how the show touched on the intersection of sports and entertainment, creating crossover of fan bases that may not have otherwise connected. During the discuss, Curtis shares his opinion on how Ted Lasso pulled casual fans into soccer, helping it become more popular in America. Founding Futbol is a year-long exploration of the critical moments that have led to soccer's emerging popularity in America.Visit our website for more information: FoundingFutbol.com. Email us at kent@foundingfutbol.comSubscribe to Founding Futbol on your platform of choice.Host: Kent MalmrosGuest: Charles Curtis (Managing Editor, For The Win) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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Chapter Forty-Seven: Ted Lasso (with Andrés Martinez)
Mar 10, 202501:14:25Tap to summarizeIn August of 2020, when the world was quarantined inside consuming streaming content like never before, Apple TV+ launched Ted Lasso. In search of a hit to match the growing success of Netflix and make themselves a force in the subscription-based streaming wars, Apple took a chance on the creative powers of Jason Sudeikis, Bill Lawrence and others. As well as faith that a promotional skit created to help NBC launch its coverage of the Premier League, that had twice gone viral, could evolve to become a sustainable and successful comedy. Ted Lasso became a runaway hit, launching Sudeikis even further into Hollywood superstardom. The show also brought an entirely new fan base into the world of soccer, while building a sophisticated commentary around the idea that Americans could integrate with a traditional English soccer culture, and be accepted, maybe even succesful. Andrés Martinez wrote an article in the LA Times detailing how the show was a match made in globalizer heaven. He joined Foundign Futbol to talk about how the show connected so many in America to the game in ways the country had never experience. Martinez also discusses how the momentum the show gave Apple TV may have carried it deeper into the soccer market. And, he outlines how Ted Lasso is a good example of the growing sportification of media. Founding Futbol is a year-long exploration of the critical moments that have led to soccer's emerging popularity in America.Visit our website for more information: FoundingFutbol.com. Email us at kent@foundingfutbol.com.Subscribe to Founding Futbol on your platform of choice.Host: Kent MalmrosGuest: Andrés Martinez (Former Journalist, professor of practice at the Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, Arizona State University) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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Extra Time: The Analytical Mind of Ravi Ramineni
Mar 6, 202501:00:35Tap to summarizeThe rapid evolution of soccer analytics was both influenced and driven by a group of Americans. From the emergence of sabermetrics in baseball, and it's popularization in the book "Moneyball," to the growth of the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference, the application of mathematical models to various sports has been a passion of many in the United States. Soccer falls into that category as well. While the discipline started in England, many of the most influential minds in the space have been based in the US. Ravi Ramineni is one such individual. The one-time Microsoft employee was both a computer engineer and soccer fan, who hoped to turn his passion into a profession.He started by created a fan blog. But, a series of events directed him to soccer analytics and helped him turn it into a career. Ramineni spent nine years with the Seattle Sounders of Major League Soccer building best practices for the team and league's approach to harvesting data and using it for player analysis -- first focusing on development and then later recruiting.Ramineni joined Founding Futbol to share his path to working in soccer. From meeting his wide, fellow soccer analytics pioneer Sarah Rudd, to attending Sloan, to connecting with the Sounder, he walks through key moments in his career.Founding Futbol is a year-long exploration of the critical moments that have led to soccer's emerging popularity in America.Visit our website for more information: FoundingFutbol.com. Email us at kent@foundingfutbol.comSubscribe to Founding Futbol on your platform of choice.Host: Kent MalmrosGuest: Ravi Ramineni (Former VP of Soccer Analytics and Research, Seattle Sounders) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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Chapter Forty-Six: Soccer Joins the Analytics Revolution (with Lucy Rushton)
Mar 3, 202501:19:44Tap to summarizeIn 2020, the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference featured a panel entitled, "Soccer Analytics: The Beautiful Game Meets the Analytics Edge." While the broader sporting public was acknowledging that soccer analytics had finally hit the mainstream, it had been evolving for decades. Starting with the work of Charles Reep, who is largely credited as being the first person to capture soccer match data en masse then analyze it, soccer analytics truly accelerated in the 2000s.A combination of American influence co-mingled with application globally pushed the practice forward. Thanks to the "Moneyball" phenomenon, conferences like Sloan, enterprising data scientists and opportunistic entrepreneurs, soccer analytics began to forge an influential path with English clubs like Arsenal and LiverpoolLucy Rushton broke into the soccer world in that environment. After working for her hometown club, Reading FC and then later Watford FC, Rushton moved to the US to take on a lead analytics role for Atlanta United in Major League Soccer. She was later hired as the General Manager of DC United and then also of Bay FC in the National Women's Soccer League. Rushton joined the show to talk about her journey and the evolution of soccer analytics over the last few decades.Founding Futbol is a year-long exploration of the critical moments that have led to soccer's emerging popularity in America.Visit our website for more information: FoundingFutbol.com. Email us at kent@foundingfutbol.com.Subscribe to Founding Futbol on your platform of choice.Host: Kent MalmrosGuest: Lucy Rushton (Former GM, Bay FC and DC United) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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Extra Time: The Secret Weapon, Dawn Scott
Feb 27, 202501:04:00Tap to summarizeDuring the 2015 Women's World Cup and then even more so in the 2019 Women's World Cup, fans of the US Women's National Team came to know the name: Dawn Scott. The long time performance coach and sports scientist joined US Soccer in 2010. She remained with the program through multiple coaching changes and then, when the team made history as repeat World Cup Champions, players consistently referenced Scott as a key contributing factor. Many referred to her as the team's "secret weapon."Scott joined Founding Futbol to recount her journey through the soccer world -- from breaking into the business through her current work as one of the world's leading soccer sports scientists. She recalls moments from her start with US Soccer, the 2015 and 2019 World Cup runs, and so much more.Founding Futbol is a year-long exploration of the critical moments that have led to soccer's emerging popularity in America.Visit our website for more information: FoundingFutbol.com. Email us at kent@foundingfutbol.comSubscribe to Founding Futbol on your platform of choice.Host: Kent MalmrosGuest: Dawn Scott (Sports Scientist, Former USWNT Assistant Coach)Correction: Some content in the show previously suggested the 2019 USWNT as the first women's team from any country to win back-to-back World Cups. That was inaccurate. Germany won both the 2003 and 2007 World Cups. The language in the show has been corrected. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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