After Kevin Keegan resigned in the men's loos at Wembley in 2000, the FA decided to hire their first foreign England manager - Sven Goran-Eriksson. He paved the way for Thomas Tuchel, who leads England at the World Cup qualifiers this international break. 

With Sven, the FA got much more than they bargained for. A man with a love for the game, life and women - Eriksson often graced the front and back pages of the newspapers. 

He led the golden generation of Beckham and Rooney, but despite that talent Sven fell short at the quarter-finals. 

So why did the FA decide to open up to foreign managers? Did Eriksson's off-field lifestyle hamper England or was it simply a combination of bad luck, broken metatarsals and the penalty shoot out hoodoo?  

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Executive Producer: Adonis Pratsides

Producer: Sophie Penney

Head of Podcasts: Factual: Al Riddell

Director of Podcasts: Vicky Etchells

How do you judge greatness?

The 2003–2004 Premier League season stands alone in football history. Arsenal didn’t just win the title - they went the entire campaign unbeaten, becoming The Invincibles.

With footballing legends like Patrick Vieira, Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp, and Sol Campbell leading the charge, this Arsenal side achieved something no other Premier League team has matched.

But does that incredible feat make them the greatest team in Arsenal’s history?

In this episode of How It All Played Out, Mark Pougatch and Paul Hayward look back at that unforgettable season, comparing the Invincibles to other great teams of the era - including Manchester United and the infamous rivalry with Arsenal, Real Madrid’s Galácticos, and Barcelona under Guardiola.

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Executive Producer: Adem Waterman

Head of Podcasts: Factual: Al Riddell

Director of Podcasts: Vicky Etchells

"Neville Neville, their in defence. Neville Neville, their futures immense. Neville Neville, they ain't half bad. Neville Neville the name of their dad"

The Brits are a nation of music lovers. From The Beatles to The Smiths, David Bowie to Kate Bush, just about every iconic artist has had one of their hits transformed into a football chant.

In this episode of How It All Played Out, Mark Pougatch and Paul Hayward explore some of the greatest terrace anthems - beloved by fans of Liverpool, West Ham, Exeter, Manchester United, and beyond.

From the rude, crude and damn right funny, sometimes football is just a pure joy.

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Executive Producer: Adem Waterman

Head of Podcasts: Factual: Al Riddell

Director of Podcasts: Vicky Etchells

It doesn't really make sense, does it? Football in the rain, hail, and snow. Why not in the lovely summer months? Surely the Premier League would look glorious in the sun.

But there are reasons why the Brits play in December & January, and we can blame the private school system.

Join Mark and Paul in this bonus episode of How It All Played Out as they find out the why we play football in the winter, and how it came about.

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Executive Producer: Adem Waterman

Head of Podcasts, Factual: Al Riddell

Vicky Etchells is the Commissioning Editor for Global

"Is he in?"

For this episode of How It All Played Out, Mark and Paul travel to the home of Head Groom Jim Fitzgerald on a stormy night in County Kildare in the Republic of Ireland and investigate one of the most shocking stories from the 1980s - The kidnapping of racehorse Shergar. 

This story involves the IRA, a ransom of 2 million pounds and a mystery that is still to be solved.

From masked gunmen with submachine guns, fraud, rumours, Irish country policemen and three leading journalists being flown to Belfast to negotiate Shergar's safe return, travel back in time to explore a bizarre sporting story like no other.

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Executive Producer: Adem Waterman

Head of Podcasts, Factual: Al Riddell

Vicky Etchells is the Commissioning Editor for Global

In 1966 England won the World Cup with a 4-2 win against West Germany...they even won it on home soil.

With players such as Gascoigne, Steven Gerrard, Wayne Rooney and Harry Kane it remains a mystery as to how they haven't won it again...but they haven't even hosted the tournament again.

It may seem strange, but there are reasons as to why. Join Mark and Paul as they chart the history of the World Cup, from its inception to modern day, exploring the politics behind why the England men's team have failed ever again to be the host nation of the most coveted prize in football, and why the FA are now more focussed on winning the competition than staging it.

From doomed bids, bribes, conspiracy theories and hatred from other nations, this episode of How It All Played Out peels back the curtain to answer: Why does England never stage the men's World Cup?

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Join broadcaster Mark Pougatch and journalist Paul Hayward as they look back at sports greatest stories in this fascinating weekly podcast - attempting to dissect the biggest moments from the courts, fields and stadiums from around the world.

They'll look at sporting icons of football, rugby, cricket, boxing and more. From era defining matches, ferocious rivalries and jaw dropping moments, they'll peel back the layers of the greatest and, often, most bizarre stories in sports history.

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This Is How It All Played Out.

In this week's question and answers edition of the Football Authorities, Clive Tyldesley breaks down the essentials to being a commentator, Martin takes us back in time and tells us about the players he was terrified of and the pair go through their favourite football films.

All that and more, on The Football Authorities.

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You can follow Clive @clivetyldesley and Martin @martinoneill31

Editor and Senior Producer: Adem Waterman

Clive Tyldesley and Martin O'Neill are joined by Peter Reid to discuss all the weekend's action - as well as the mood on Goodison Park.

How did Manchester United and Rangers lose so hard to their most fierce rivals? And the team dissect Everton Vs Bournemouth as well as the ins and outs on transfer deadline day. all that and more of this weeks edition of The Football Authorities.

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You can follow Clive @clivetyldesley and Martin @martinoneill31

Editor and Senior Producer: Adem Waterman

On this episode of the Questions and Answers edition of The Football Authorities, Martin O'Neill opens up about getting sacked by Nottingham Forest, Clive reminisces about the 1994 World Cup Final and the pair discuss what make a manager know a player is going to cut it at the top level.

All that and more in a jam packed episode.

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You can follow Clive @clivetyldesley and Martin @martinoneill31

Editor and Senior Producer: Adem Waterman