Planet Fútbol With Grant Wahl

This week's podcast has a special episode: It's Episode 1 of Throwback, SI's new podcast series on the untold stories of legendary sports moments. This season is on the first FIFA women's World Cup in 1991 and the fascinating U.S. team that played in it. It's an origin story on how the USWNT got started in the mid-1980s and how FIFA finally got its act together and began staging a women's world championship. Interviewees include Michelle Akers, Mia Hamm, Julie Foudy, Carin Gabarra, Anson Dorrance, Kristine Lilly, April Heinrichs, Shannon Higgins-Cirovski, Caitlin Murray, Jean Williams, Linda Medalen, Ellen Wille and Sepp Blatter. SUBSCRIBE to Throwback to listen to the next four episodes, which drop every Thursday through June 6. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Grant has a fun discussion with John Strong, the lead play-by-play voice of Fox Soccer, about what it’s like to reach your professional life goals in your early 30s, why he took singing lessons for work, his thoughts on MLS and this summer’s Gold Cup, and what it’s like to share the same name with a prominent adult film actor. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Grant has a wide-ranging conversation with one of the biggest stars of U.S. soccer media, Adriana Monsalve of Univision Deportes. They talk about her recent donation of a kidney to her brother, Adrián; her thoughts on the big soccer events in 2019; her favorite career moments; the progress of that career from being the lead singer of a musical group to her current status as one of the most respected sports broadcasters in America; and her response to the ongoing turmoil in her native Venezuela.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Grant chats with longtime Seattle Sounders beat writer Matt Pentz of The Athletic about his new book, The Sound and the Glory: How the Seattle Sounders Showed Major League Soccer How to Win Over America. Pentz explains how the Sounders became the blueprint for MLS to feel truly "major league" in their city, which has been followed since then by others like Atlanta United and LAFC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In a special podcast, Grant moderates a panel discussion at the International Champions Cup launch in New York City with five members of the 1994 U.S. men's World Cup team: Alexi Lalas, Tony Meola, Claudio Reyna, Tab Ramos and Cobi Jones. They discuss not just the story and the influence of that '94 USMNT team, but also their thoughts on American soccer today.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Grant interviews the fascinating Gary O'Reilly, who had a 14-year pro career with Tottenham, Brighton and Crystal Palace and scored a goal for Palace in the 1990 FA Cup final against Manchester United. O'Reilly discusses his varied career and how he got into media, including as a co-host these days for the podcast "Playing With Science." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Grant has a wide-ranging conversation with Peter Vermes, the manager and sporting director of Sporting Kansas City, the only MLS team to reach the semifinals of this year's CONCACAF Champions League. They talk about the special preparations that Sporting made to get ready for CCL (including hyperbaric chambers and a special dispensation from the MLS Players Union), the advantages of controlling the entire soccer side for SKC and his thoughts on the U.S. men's national team under new coach Gregg Berhalter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Grant speaks with University of Michigan professor Andy Markovits about his new book “Women In American Soccer and European Football: Different Roads To Shared Glory.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Grant speaks to JP Dellacamera of Fox Sports about his preparations for this summer’s women’s World Cup and to Ben Mackriell of OptaPro about what U.S. Soccer and MLS are doing these days in soccer data analytics. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Grant sits down for a fun conversation with Julie Stewart-Binks, whom American soccer fans got to know as a terrific host and sideline reporter for Fox Sports and ESPN. She fills me in on what she’s doing now, including New York City standup comedy, and why returning to regular soccer work may be in her future as well. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

MLS's 24th season starts on March 2, and Grant sits down to talk about all things MLS with commissioner Don Garber, who just extended his contract with the league through the end of 2023. They discuss MLS owner ambition, continued expansion and how the league has used data research to make big strategic decisions, among other topics. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Grant sits down with Minnesota United's Collin Martin, a creative midfielder who's entering his seventh MLS season. Last year Martin came out as gay on Pride Day and received an outpouring of support from people around the world. He and Grant have a wide-ranging conversation about a number of topics. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Grant goes one-on-one with three of the biggest names in MLS: Zlatan Ibrahimovic of the LA Galaxy, Wayne Rooney of D.C. United and Bastian Schweinsteiger of the Chicago Fire. All three bring their unique personalities to the forefront, shedding light on their MLS experience, their shared past at Manchester United and some moments that will make you laugh ahead of the start of the MLS season on March 2.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jonathan Liew, the chief sportswriter for the UK-based independent, is one of the finest journalists and commentators working in English today. He joins Grant for a wide-ranging conversation on the craft of writing, the similarities and differences between American and British journalism, his columns on racism in sports, his love of cricket and his recent trip to Los Angeles to cover the baseball World Series. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Grant sits down for a candid interview with Jozy Altidore about his recent visit to Haiti, his future with Toronto FC and the USMNT and any suggestions he might have for Christian Pulisic about joining a team in the English Premier League. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's one of the most remarkable stories in sports of the past year: Against all odds, a fan-driven push to keep the Columbus Crew in Ohio—instead of moving to Austin, Texas—worked. Diehard Crew fan Mark Titus of The Ringer and One Shining Podcast joins Grant to talk about the success story of #SaveTheCrew. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As we enter a women's World Cup year, Grant interviews World Cup champion Julie Ertz of the U.S. women's national team and the Chicago Red Stars. A fun discussion ensues about her thoughts on the World Cup, her uncanny ability to score on set-piece headers and her power couple status with her Super Bowl-winning husband Zack Ertz of the Philadelphia Eagles. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Grant starts 2019 right by interviewing two intriguing figures: 18-year-old American forward Josh Sargent, who scored on his debuts for Werder Bremen and the USMNT in 2018 and looks forward to a bright year ahead; and Jordan Gardner, an American soccer investor who discusses his strategy to buy a club in Denmark and use it to develop young American players.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For years, Khalida Popal has been the face of the Afghanistan women's national team, which has been a success story bringing the sport of soccer to more women in her home country. Popal helped raise her team's profile and even got sponsorships from Soccer Without Borders and Hummel, which produced uniforms with headscarves for the team. But recently Popal did her own investigation and found evidence that Afghan soccer federation officials, including president Keramuddin Karim, had physically and sexually abused women's players (which he denies). FIFA has suspended Karim, and the Afghan government has started an investigation into the federation. Popal, who fled to live in Denmark a few years ago, shares her story, and she is followed by Hailai Arghandiwal, an Afghan-American member of the team who recently graduated from Santa Clara University and just signed with the Italian Serie A club Florentia. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Grant visits 19-year-old USMNT midfielder Tyler Adams at his New Jersey home and speaks to him about his impending move to RB Leipzig in the German Bundesliga, what he's been doing to prepare for the move, what he has been told by Leipzig officials about his chance to win playing time and his thoughts on new USMNT coach Gregg Berhalter, his desire to become US captain and the year ahead for the national team. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices