Beyond the Headline

Former Crystal Palace, Wolves and England midfielder Geoff Thomas was diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukemia in 2003 and was given just three months to live - this is the story of how he overcame that diagnosis and dedicated his life to raising vital money to raise awareness of and help find a cure for the disease. This conversation with Kelly Cates details Geoff's amazing story, from how that moment changed his life forever, how a crucial stem cell transplant saved him, and how he now rides the entire Tour de France every year in aid of raising funds and awareness. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Luke Chadwick broke into the Manchester United first team in 1999 aged just 19, he was the latest fledging talent from the United academy production line, but despite his promising impact on the pitch he quickly found himself the butt of a series of cruel jokes about his appearance In this episode Luke talks to Kelly Cates and Geoff Thomas about why it took him twenty years to speak openly about how this affected him and how important it is to speak up and be open about your mental health. --- In 2003, former Crystal Palace and England midfielder Geoff Thomas was diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukaemia and given three months to live. After a stem cell transplant he overcame the disease and has spent the last twenty years raising money for vital research and funding. In this series Kelly Cates and Geoff Thomas talk to footballers who have also overcome life-changing moments of adversity. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Troy Townsend, head of development at Kick It Out, sits down with Kelly Cates and Geoff Thomas to discuss the death of his son Kurtis in a car accident in 2001 and how he and his family coped with the tragedy. Troy is father to six children, including Kurtis and current Everton midfielder Andros, and in this conversation he speaks honestly and emotionally about his relationships with them, and how over twenty years later he is still learning to deal with grief. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As a 17-year-old Sean Highdale had signed professional terms with Liverpool and looked set to follow in the footsteps of Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher into the first team, but in 2008 a car crash changed everything, sending him into a coma and killing two of his friends. This is the story of his journey back from life threatening injuries including a broken neck, a shattered knee and a kidney removal, to once again playing football as a professional and how in 2016 he unexpectedly found himself representing Paralympics GB at the 2016 games in Rio. --- In 2003, former Crystal Palace and England midfielder Geoff Thomas was diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukaemia and given three months to live. After a stem cell transplant he overcame the disease and has spent the last twenty years raising money for vital research and funding. In this series Kelly Cates and Geoff Thomas talk to footballers who have also overcome life-changing moments of adversity. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 2016 former Tottenham, Liverpool and England midfielder Paul Stewart made the decision to open up about the sexual abuse he suffered from a youth-team coach when he was a young footballer. For more than 40 years, Paul had done whatever he could to suppress or even erase the thoughts and images that haunted him. In this episode, Paul discusses how it has impacted his life and how he's trying to prevent it happening again. Before you begin this podcast we want to let you know that this episode contains detailed discussion of child sexual abuse and trauma. If you’re a victim of sexual abuse of or have been affected by it and would like to talk to someone confidentially you can call 0808 800 5000, Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Former Cardiff and current Middlesbrough defender Sol Bamba was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin Lymphoma in January 2021 Still at Cardiff at the time, he quickly underwent gruelling chemotherapy but managed to come through it and make his return to the pitch in the final minutes of the 2020/21 season - this conversation is the story of that journey and how it has changed his outlook on life for the better. --- In 2003, former Crystal Palace and England midfielder Geoff Thomas was diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukaemia and given three months to live. After a stem cell transplant he overcame the disease and has spent the last twenty years raising money for vital research and funding. In this series Kelly Cates and Geoff Thomas talk to footballers who have also overcome life-changing moments of adversity. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the first of a new series Kelly Cates and Geoff Thomas are joined by Gary Lineker who opens up about his son George's battle with leukaemia as a very young baby, and reflects upon those days spent with George in hospital in 1992 and the lasting impact they made... ... In 2003, former Crystal Palace and England midfielder Geoff Thomas was diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukaemia and given three months to live. After a stem cell transplant he overcame the disease and has spent the last twenty years raising money for vital research and funding. In this series Kelly Cates and Geoff Thomas talk to footballers who have also overcome life-changing moments of adversity. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 2003, former Crystal Palace and England midfielder Geoff Thomas was diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukaemia and given three months to live. After a stem cell transplant he overcame the disease and has spent the last twenty years raising money for vital research and funding. In this series Kelly Cates and Geoff Thomas talk to footballers who have also overcome life-changing moments of adversity. We'll hear inspiring stories from the likes of Gary Lineker, Sol Bamba, Paul Stewart, Luke Chadwick, Troy Townsend and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the eve of England's first ever Euro final, we look back at their darkest day in the tournament when Roy Hodgson's side crashed out to Iceland at France 2016. Oh, how we laughed at the time. Elsewhere, Wales made history, Italy and Germany participated in the worst penalty shoot out of all time, and Portugal and Ronaldo had a shot at redemption. It's Euro 2016, it's brought to you by those who were there from across the continent, and it's right here. Your experts in this episode: Stefan Augustsson for Iceland, Rafa Honigstein for Germany, Lynsey Hooper for England, James Horncastle for Italy, Tom Kundert for Portugal, Julien Laurens for France, Kristof Terreur for Belgium, and Tom Williams for Wales Your charming host is Iain Macintosh and your ace producer is Abi Paterson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's the year the world was supposedly destined to end, but thankfully the Mayan calendar wasn't synced with ours and 2012 carried on meaning we could enjoy Euro 2012! Four years after tiki taka graced our pitches, it's back and ready for more - but are we? This is the tournament that brought two groups of death, Andy Carroll, and a lot of spying. It's Euro 2012, it's brought to you by those who were there from across the continent, and it's right here. Teams: Group A: Czech Republic, Greece, Poland Russia Group B: Denmark, Germany, The Netherlands, Portugal Group C: Croatia, Ireland, Italy, Spain Group D: England, France, Sweden, Ukraine Voices: Host: Iain Macintosh Guests: Elko Born, Sasha Guryunov Rafael Honigstein, Lynsey Hooper, James Horncastle, Themis Kesaris, Tom Kundert, Julien Laurens, Alvaro Romeo Notes Get yourself an Athletic subscription here for just £1 a month for six months! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's 2008 and the world is obsessed with Barack Obama and Beyonce, over here we're more interested in events at Austria and Switzerland because it's Euro 2008 and it's great. Yes, there's no England, they failed in the rain at Wembley against Croatia. But there's Spain's tiki taka, Turkey's late late goal scoring, and one hell of a thunderstorm. Oh, and there's the French doing, well, nothing really. It's Euro 2008 and it's here. Voices: Host: Iain Macintosh Guests: Elko Born, Sasha Goryunov, Rafael Honigstein, James Horncastle, Julien Laurens, Alvaro Romeo, Juraj Vrdoljak, and Yordi Yamali Notes Get yourself an Athletic subscription here for just £1 a month for six months! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We arrive at 2004, the year of Frankee and Eamonn's musical back and forth, the blackberry, and one of the most unexpected tournaments in Euros history. We're in Portugal where there are teams on the up, like England, and teams on the down, like Germany. And this time there's a dark horse that no one expects will actually do anything apart from enjoy being there. How we never learn. This is Euro 2004 brought to you by the voices that lived and breathed it from across the continent. Teams: Group A: Greece, Portugal, Russia, Spain Group B: Croatia, England, France, Switzerland Group C: Bulgaria, Denmark, Italy, Sweden Group D: Czech Republic, Germany, Latvia, Netherlands Voices: Host: Iain Macintosh Guests: Elko Born, David Cermak, Rafael Honigstein, Lynsey Hooper, James Horncastle, Themis Kessaris, Tom Kundert, and Julien Laurens Notes Get yourself an Athletic subscription here for just £1 a month for six months! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ladies and gentlemen, it's the year 2000 and whilst we might all have enjoyed some Roman Gladiator gore at the cinema, sending pictures via text, and donning our Juicy Couture tracksuits (oo, get you) there's some serious football to be played. Specifically in the regions of Belgium and The Netherlands as 16 of the best teams in Europe gathered to do battle. This tournament brought us the madness that was FR Yugoslavia 3-4 Spain, a big England win followed by a bigger England loss, and a team that really solidified its status as the best. This is Euro 2000 brought to you by the voices that lived and breathed it from across the continent. Teams Group A: England, Germany, Romania, Portugal Group B: Belgium, Italy, Sweden, Turkey Group C: FR Yugoslavia, Norway, Slovenia, Spain Group D: Czech Republic, Denmark, France, The Netherlands Voices Host: Iain Macintosh Guests: Elko Born, Rafael Honigstein, Lynsey Hooper, James Horncastle, Sasa Ibrulj, Tom Kundert, Julien Laurens, Alvaro Romeo, and Kristof Terreur Notes Get yourself an Athletic subscription here Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Football's coming home to England in this Euro 96 episode - if you can bear to relive it! We've got twice the amount of teams as before, a lot of optimism, and, of course, twists and turns as one team really ruffles some feathers. It's Euro 96 brought to you by the voices that lived and breathed it from across the continent. Teams Group A: England, Netherlands, Scotland and Switzerland Group B: Bulgaria, France, Romania and Spain Group C: Czech Republic, Germany, Italy and Russia Group D: Croatia, Denmark, Portugal and Turkey Voices Host: Iain Macintosh Guests: David Cermak, Niels Harild, Rafael Honigstein, James Horncastle, Sasa Ibrulj, Oliver Kay, Julien Laurens, Alvaro Romeo, Stewart Weir Notes Get yourself an Athletic subscription here Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's 1992 and we are in Sweden for a tournament full of twists and turns, and a surprise addition who no one expects much off. Join journalists from across the continent as they relive this contest and its unexpected results. Teams Group 1: Denmark, England, France and Sweden Group 2: CIS, Germany, The Netherlands and Scotland Voices Host: Iain Macintosh Guests: Elko Born, Niels Harild, James Horncastle, Rafael Honigstein, Sasa Ibrulj, Oliver Kay, Julien Laurens, Olof Lundh, and Stewart Weir. Notes Get yourself an Athletic subscription here Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is the story of Euro 88 told by experts from across the continent bringing their memories and stories as well as the facts and the iconic moments from the tournament. Without a single goalless draw or a sending off it is a tournament filled with drama and unexpected moments. Teams Group 1: Denmark, Italy, Spain, and West Germany Group 2: England, Ireland, Netherlands, and the Soviet Union Voices Host: Iain Macintosh Guests: Elko Born, Dion Fanning, Sasha Goryunov, James Horncastle, Rafael Honigstein, Oliver Kay. Notes Get yourself an Athletic subscription here Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In our final episode we tell the Steven Gerrard story, from those who played with him at Liverpool, to those who worked with him as a pundit, to the man who hired him for the Rangers job, and we hear from Gerrard himself. As for Rangers we answer questions about how they did it, and how they overtook Celtic's nine years of dominance, and whether this is the start of a new era where Rangers will be dominating Scottish football. Show Notes Become a subscriber to The Athletic here and hear this podcast, and others, without ads. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode we get the inside story on Mark Warburton's time at Rangers ask how he created a side that eased to the Championship title, but then quickly capitulated in the Premiership. And we ask whether there was anything good to come from the abysmal reign of Pedro Caixinha. Show Notes Become a subscriber to The Athletic here and hear this podcast, and others, without ads. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode we head down to the fourth division and ask: why did Rangers make such hard work of an apparently easy task? What’s Ally McCoist’s lasting legacy? And importantly, was any of it fun? Hear the story of Rangers' first game against Brechin City, through their promotions up to the Championship where the Rangers machine stuttered in the play off final to Motherwell. Show Notes Become a subscriber to The Athletic here and hear this podcast, and others, without ads. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rangers didn’t just win the Scottish Premiership this year, they absolutely obliterated the field, unbeaten at the time of writing and with the added bonus of stopping Celtic win their tenth title in a row. It’s been quite a journey back to the top, a journey they started from the very bottom. Over the course of the next four episodes you will hear the full story about why Rangers fell in the first place, how they climbed back to the summit of Scottish Football, and a rookie manager with no experience of the Scottish game, whatsoever, secured their first league title in 10 years. Hear from the players, the managers, and the chairmen as well as the fans, the journalists, and the reporters who watched this story unfurl from beginning to end. Show Notes Become a subscriber to The Athletic here and hear this podcast, and others, without ads. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Justin Fashanu would have been 60 this year. Everyone knows how he died, but what about how he lived? This 'Beyond The Headline' special explores Fashanu's experiences as a result of becoming the first British male footballer to come out as gay, the struggles and contradictions of his life, a complicated legacy and its impact on the sport today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There are many questions around the ability and character of Big Sam: Why do clubs keep hiring Sam Allardyce? And why do clubs then often get rid of him? Is he best at clubs that really need him, rather than clubs that he needs? Of course the biggest one right now is has he bitten off more than even he can chew at West Brom? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Sam Allardyce arrived at Bolton they were in the bottom half of the second tier. Eight years later, he left the club as Premier League stalwarts with a couple of trips to Europe and a string of bloodied noses in their wake. After an ill-fated spell at Newcastle his career since then has been a patchwork of clubs who’ve hired Allardyce because they have to, not necessarily because they want to, and it hasn’t ended well at most of them. Including, of course, his one-game spell as England manager.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sam Allardyce was, unsurprisingly, a no-nonsense centre-back in his playing days, but a brief spell in America opened his eyes to a more advanced way of approaching football, which informed his work as a manager. We look at those early days, what he did then and how they shaped the Sam Allardyce that became Big Sam Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Manchester City gathered a staggering 198 points in Pep Guardiola’s second and third seasons at the club. But since then, things haven’t gone so well, so in Episode Two of this two-part special on Guardiola, we wonder whether it actually is good for the club that he’s signed a new contract, whether he can fix their problems and whether he will actually see out that new deal… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Pep Guardiola tends to burn brightly, but relatively briefly. He spent four years at Barcelona before the pressures of managing them became too much, and three years at Bayern which were glorious domestically, but he fell short in Europe. In Episode One of our two-part special, we look at what his time in Spain and Germany could tell us about his future in England, with Manchester City. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The €222million fee that PSG paid for Neymar is so big that it may never be topped, but its significance extends far beyond that. We explain how it changed football in France, how it contributed to Leo Messi almost leaving Barcelona, and how it allowed Liverpool to build their current great team… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the summer of 2017, PSG had absolutely no plans to sign Neymar or any superstar, intending instead to build sensibly. Then they got a call that changed not only their plans, but the football world. This is how and why the most significant transfer of all time happened… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Neymar was a household name before he even made his debut for Santos. We explore how he quickly became the most important player for not only his club but country, his controversial move to Barcelona and what should have been his greatest night at the Nou Camp… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Part 3. The takeover fell through. All hopes of a renewed attempt have been dashed. Mike Ashley will continue to hold the reins through the 2020/21 season. What next? Are Newcastle United good enough to stay up? And will the fans come back if the stadium reopens? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Part 2. What went wrong with the proposed takeover of Newcastle United in 2020? Who were the buyers? Why did Mike Ashley want to sell? And why did it all go so horribly wrong? Journalists and supporters recall the epic story that gripped the North-East this summer. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Part 1. Mike Ashley bought Newcastle United in 2007. Ten managers, two relegations and two promotions later, his era seemed to be drawing to a close in the summer of 2020. What happened along the way? Journalists and supporters recount the highs and lows. Warning: Episode contains explicit recordings of the Joe Kinnear press conference... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices