22 Goals

In the series finale of 22 Goals, Brian looks back at one of soccer's most momentous beginnings: the childhood and early career of Pelé, the player who defined the modern game. From his origins as a barefoot boy playing soccer on the streets of Brazil to his breakout performance at the 1958 World Cup, when he was just 17, we'll explore Pelé's breathtaking rise to stardom—the story that, more than any other, made the World Cup what it is today. Host: Brian Phillips Producers: Devon Renaldo, Mike Wargon, Conor Nevins and Vikram Patel  Sound Design and Original Music: Devon Renaldo  Mixing and Mastering: Scott Somerville Match footage from FIFA Also available in Spanish and Portuguese Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How did soccer become "the beautiful game"? What does it mean for a game to be beautiful? Brian looks back at Brazil's 1970 World Cup team, a team that starred Pelé in his prime, and a goal that introduced millions to the ideal of o jogo bonito during the first World Cup ever broadcast on color TV.   Host: Brian Phillips Producers: Devon Renaldo, Mike Wargon, Conor Nevins and Vikram Patel  Sound Design and Original Music: Devon Renaldo  Mixing and Mastering: Scott Somerville Match footage from FIFA  Also available in Spanish and Portuguese Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After confessing a truly embarrassing secret—so embarrassing, oh my God—Brian looks back at the English Golden Generation, one of the most celebrated and reviled groups of athletes ever. It's a nonstop carnival of toxic tabloids, broken metatarsals, amazing hair (David Beckham), slightly less amazing hair (Wayne Rooney)—oh, and Michael Owen's sensational 1998 goal against Argentina, the moment when all the madness began.  Host: Brian Phillips Producers: Devon Renaldo, Mike Wargon, Conor Nevins and Vikram Patel  Sound Design and Original Music: Devon Renaldo  Mixing and Mastering: Scott Somerville Match footage from FIFA Also available in Spanish and Portuguese Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

With the two greatest players of their generation playing in what may be their final World Cup campaigns, Brian revisits their best moments in the tournament. We'll also talk about the most riveting athlete rivalries in sports. How did Messi and Ronaldo come to be as inextricably linked as Bird and Magic, Ali and Frazier, and Federer and Nadal? And does it really matter whether they ever win a World Cup?  Host: Brian Phillips Producers: Devon Renaldo, Mike Wargon, Conor Nevins and Vikram Patel  Sound Design and Original Music: Devon Renaldo  Mixing and Mastering: Scott Somerville Match footage from FIFA  Also available in Spanish and Portuguese  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As the U.S. men's national team gears up for its first game of the 2022 World Cup, Brian remembers Landon Donovan's last-gasp winner against Algeria in 2010. We'll talk about the elusiveness of joy, the magical consistency of the U.S. women's team, and the many wonderful ways in which Donovan's goal made American fans lose their minds.   Host: Brian Phillips Producers: Devon Renaldo, Mike Wargon, Conor Nevins and Vikram Patel  Sound Design and Original Music: Devon Renaldo  Mixing and Mastering: Scott Somerville Match footage from FIFA Also available in Spanish and Portuguese Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices