The Athletic
500 episodes listed below
Dry wit, sharp football, no tactical autopilot.
The Totally Football Show turns Champions League weeks, Premier League swings, and continental form lines into sharp, fast-moving discussion. It mixes tactical detail with studio banter, so Arsenal pressure, Paris Saint-Germain off-ball work, Barca’s high line, and Bayern’s attacking threat all get treated seriously without becoming solemn.
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The Totally Football Show is a fast, panel-driven football programme that treats European football as both serious analysis and reliable comic material. It does not flatten the game into takeaways. It circles the odd detail, asks another question, then lands on the tactical point. Recent episodes range across Champions League quarter-finals, Premier League title pressure, Liverpool’s exit to PSG, Bayern against Real, Barcelona against Atletico, and the week-by-week strain of Arsenal trying to hold their nerve. The conversation is brisk. It assumes listeners know the clubs, managers, competitions, and grudges already. That frees the panel to talk about the stuff that actually decides matches: pressing intensity, off-ball work, fullback positioning, high lines, late substitutions, tired bodies, and the small tactical compromise that opens a large hole. Liverpool’s recruitment and attacking shape are treated as connected problems, with PSG’s renewed off-ball work used as a sharp comparison. Arsenal’s title wobble becomes a discussion about style, confidence, squad depth, and the difficulty of changing course once a system has worked for months. Barcelona’s high line is not simply mocked. It is tested against the runs that beat it, the red cards that warped the tie, and the attacking rewards that make Hansi Flick persist with it. The show also has room for football memory. Gigi Buffon’s visit brings a vivid account of entering a snowbound game for Italy, sleeves cut and nerves turned into theatre. Elsewhere, Lamin Yamal’s form, Atletico’s repeated meetings with Barcelona, Betis injury worries, Braga, Celta, Freiburg, and Ligue 1 all pass through the frame without the show losing its rhythm. It is knowledgeable but not airless. The jokes are dry, the references come quickly, and the arguments usually return to the match before the tangent gets too comfortable.
Made for: For football listeners who follow European competitions closely and want analysis that can move from Arsenal’s pressure to PSG’s off-ball work without slowing down. It best suits fans who already know the landscape and enjoy informed panel debate.
What sets it apart: The show pairs quick studio chemistry with specific match-reading: formations, transitions, recruitment logic, injuries, and player roles all matter. It is less a recap machine than a roaming football argument with good timing.
James Richardson and Team Totally are here four times a week throughout the season with all the football news and chat you need - and plenty that you don’t. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Based on 6 episodes we listened to · September 2026
Fast, informed roundtables connect European football results to the tactical choices, player form and competitive pressure behind them.
The Totally Football Show turns major European matches into lively roundtable arguments about tactics, form and pressure. The host moves briskly among contributors, using direct questions to test assumptions rather than simply recap results.
One red card becomes a tactical argument before you've finished blaming the high line.
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Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
Buffon, snow, and a goalkeeper's reset, with subtitles doing some of the work.
Gigi Buffon stops by The Totally Studios for a conversation with James Horncastle about an extraordinary career, and the sharpest stretch comes when the focus tightens to one brutal match in the snow.
A Champions League debate with tactical bite and a few useful detours.
The piece treats Bayern and Real Madrid as a familiar Champions League argument, moving between Bayern's attack, Real Madrid's usual complaints, Vinicius Junior's petulance, and the risk that comes with a high line.
A sharp post-mortem that links Liverpool's exit to Slot's recruitment and tactical choices.
It uses Liverpool's Champions League exit to ask where Slot's side are headed, and the best moments are the ones that stay on recruitment and structure rather than the scoreline itself.
Champions League quarter-final second legs and league news, delivered with pace and a steady focus on the football.
The episode moves quickly through Champions League quarter-final second legs, with Barca, Atleti, and Bayern in the frame before the discussion widens into league news.
A sharp title-race debate that keeps Arsenal's wobble and City's pressure in view.
The discussion keeps coming back to Arsenal's wobble, City's pressure, and a lead that starts to feel less like cover and more like a dare. It works because the panel does more than repeat the headline tension; it shows how the title race is being shaped by tactics and by the…
Sharp football talk built around Atletico's Camp Nou win and a lively tactical debate.
This episode opens with Atletico's win at Camp Nou and keeps Barcelona in view as classy even in defeat, with Kubasi part of that picture. It then moves into Premier League talk about Chelsea, Man City, and Spurs, and the question of whether teams can win with De Zerbi even…
Dry, sharp Champions League chat built around Arsenal's late win and a lively read on Martinelli and Havertz.
The episode follows Arsenal's scruffy 1-0 win away from home and the wider drama in Madrid, using both as fuel for a conversation that stays alert without feeling pinned down.
A brisk quarterfinal roundup that keeps circling back to Lamine Yamal and the Barca-Atletico tension.
The episode moves quickly across the Champions League quarterfinal picture and the weekend's sharper moments. It takes in Balogun's chip, PSG's work against Liverpool, Martinez's return in Italy, Barcelona against Atletico, and Real Madrid facing Bayern Munich.
Daily Jets roster logic, pick by pick.
Daily Buccaneers roster talk with teeth.
49ers draft talk with real roster stakes.
Buffon begins in the cold.
Bayern-Real gets the proper treatment.
Liverpool's off-ball work has slipped.
Ads crowd the doorway.
The show opens on a Sunday of Premier League action and settles quickly into the main question of the day: Arsenal's lead at the top, which now feels a bit shaky.
Thursday, 9th of April.
First, the studio checks the guest list.
Champions League quarterfinals are the whole point.
James Richardson and panel discuss the FA Cup thriller between West Ham and Leeds, plus other football news.
This episode revisits the iconic 1996 Premier League match between Liverpool and Newcastle, analyzing its significance and impact.
A panel of football experts discuss the latest football news, including World Cup qualifying results and analysis.
A football talk show discussing Tottenham's managerial change, World Cup playoffs, and other football news.
A football podcast discussing the historic Leicester City Premier League title win a decade later.
A football news show covering World Cup qualifying matches and the latest on Mo Salah.
A football news and analysis show covering European leagues, including the Madrid Derby, Como's rise, and Dortmund's performance.
James Richardson and guests discuss the latest football news, including Man City's Carabao Cup win and Premier League drama.
A football news and chat show covering the latest in soccer, with analysis and discussion from James Richardson and the Team Totally panel.
A roundtable discussion of recent football matches, including Brentford vs Wolves and Champions League experiences.
The Totally Football Show European Edition opens with Tom Williams in the studio and a run of European football topics, including Real Madrid, Bayern, and Italy.
This episode discusses recent Premier League football matches, focusing on Richarlison's performance for Tottenham Hotspur at Anfield and Dowman's contributions to Arsenal.
This episode discusses recent football matches including PSG vs Chelsea and Real Madrid vs Manchester City, while previewing Pep Guardiola's team's upcoming game at West Ham.
The Totally Football Show episode on Wednesday, 11 March, covers Champions League last-16 first legs, with Liverpool’s loss, Tottenham’s “disastrous decision,” and Newcastle’s near-miss against Barcelona all named in the opening rundown.
The Totally Football Show European Edition opens with a Champions League last-16 rundown that names Newcastle, Paris Saint-Domingue, Chelsea, Arsenal, Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Man City, Milan, and Derby.
FA Cup fifth round, Chelsea, Sunday surprises, and Spurs.
A bonus Saturday helping lands in Milan.
Relegation math gets strange quickly.
The panel discusses the possibility of Wolves avoiding relegation by winning their remaining fixtures.
James Richardson and team discuss the latest European football news, including key matches in Italy, Spain, Germany, and France.
A roundtable discussion of the weekend's Premier League and European football action, focusing on set-piece tactics and key matches.
A roundup of Champions League matches and Premier League previews with expert analysis.
Bodø/Glimt, somehow, are the story.
Madrid's week starts to wobble.
Sunday evening, then football.
Thursday, the 19th of February, arrives overloaded.
Victory and venom share the stage.
This episode covers European football news including Real Madrid's sacking of Xabi Alonso, Scott McTominay's performance, and Bayern Munich's struggles.
A football news and analysis podcast covering FA Cup drama and match results.
James Richardson and team discuss the Arsenal-Liverpool match and other football news.
The episode consists of multiple sponsor advertisements for Magnum Bonbons, Wayfair, and Shopify, with no actual football discussion.
A panel of football journalists and analysts discuss the weekend's Premier League matches, including Man City vs Chelsea and other results.