From the highest of highs to the lowest of lows. The Starostin brothers and Spartak Moscow achieve unprecedented success on the pitch. They earn recognition from the public as well as the State for their accomplishments, receiving the highest honors in front of Joseph Stalin himself. As one Lavrentyi Beria ascends to the top of the NKVD and rivals Dynamo, off the pitch they will face their darkest days yet when the iron fist of the Secret Police comes swinging at full force against them.

What we cover in this episode:

* Spartak vs Basque Select* Physical Culture day parade* Face to face with Stalin* Family and friends disappearing* Lavrentyi Beria gets involved* No more help from Alexander Kosarev* World War II starts* Spartak and the Golden Double* The end of the line?

Books/Sources:

Spartak Moscow: A History of the People’s Team in the Workers’ State by Robert Edelman

The Starostin Brothers by Boris Dukhon and George Morozov

Soviet Sport and Transnational Mass Culture in the 1930’s by Barbara Keys

A Tale of Football by Andrey Starostin

Spring of the Patriarch by Nikolai Starostin