The Soccernomics Podcast

Was Egypt Robbed by VAR? And What's Wrong With US Men's Soccer?

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?

England-Mexico Recap + Trump's Balogun Call

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.

Harry Kane Saves England. But Can They Handle the Azteca?

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.

Brazil Survives, Africa Shines, Iran Suffers Injustice

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.

How Much Do Managers Really Matter?

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.