With Watke and Vince, irrational optimism, first goalscorer, first assist, best goal celebrations, Dest's bleach job, the Esquire photo shoot, who we sub on in the 30th minute to protect our lead, and much more.

#341: Final check-in; Wales looms

An in-depth show about the U.S. men's and women's national soccer teams, the players who could one day make it better, and American soccer in general.

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The former Ajax and USMNT midfielder, a key player in the 2002 World Cup quarterfinal run, joins Belz for a conversation that touches on, among other things, how the Dutch trained total football in the late 1990s, playing for Bruce Arena, the goal v Portugal, some of the innovative stuff John is working on in his psychology practice in Colorado, and the extent to which club academies have a responsibility to develop not just soccer players but whole people and functioning adults.

#485: John O'Brien joins the pod

Vince and Tara report on their visit to lovely Columbus for the She Believes final victory over Canada, a rundown of the best young talent in NWSL, and Olympics roster discussion.

#484: WoSo — Boots on ground in Columbus, Olympics roster, young guns in NWSL

Another She Believes trophy for the cabinet. Some good progress in this camp, a midfield setup that works, and we now look forward to the real beginning of the Emma Hayes era.

#483: USWNT v Canada recap

Hey! A giant leap forward from the soccer we watched at the W Gold Cup last month. Combinations, lots of chances, Mal Swanson back from with the NT and as dynamic as ever, very little created by Japan (a good team) outside the first 30 seconds. Full recap/celebration of a very good performance as the Olympics draw near.

#482 — USWNT v Japan recap

Lots of European and NWSL action to catch up on, Korbin Albert's TikTok reposts and her long-range strikes for PSG, Mallory Swanson scores, Sam Coffey scores, Claire Hutton shines, and potential XIs vs Japan on Saturday.

#341: Final check-in; Wales looms

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