The French Football Show

Didier Deschamps’ team flexed their attacking muscle by swatting aside Brazil and Colombia in the US with two completely different starting elevens. Should the rest of the world be worried? Are Les Bleus ready to clinch their third star this summer? Matt Spiro welcomes Tom Williams and Andy Scott onto the pod to discuss. Part 2 focuses on the coach who is preparing for his final tournament – Deschamps makes way to Zinedine Zidane this summer. Does he need a big tournament (and maybe even some free-flowing attacking football!) to secure his legacy as France’s greatest ever coach? Finally, there’s a ‘World Cup Watch’ feature on Strasbourg’s brilliant Argentine midfielder Valentin Barco.Watch on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@thefrenchfootballshow

Champions for the last four seasons and current league leaders, Paris Saint-Germain have again requested that a league fixture be postponed in order to help them focus on a big European tie. The difference this time: the game in the middle of their Champions League quarter-final with Liverpool is a potential Ligue 1 title-decider against Lens.The Northern club, who sit one point behind PSG, have made it clear they want to play on April 11, as scheduled. The French League will have a meeting to decide this Thursday. This week, Matt, Tom and Andy ask if it is the right thing to do. Is helping PSG try to retain their Champions League crown even more important than ensuring the Ligue 1 title race is as competitive as possible?Our latest 'World Cup Watch' focuses on the Lille and Algeria midfielder Nabil Bentaleb, who - two years after suffering a heart attack - is playing the best football of his career.In Part 2, we delve into the battle for European qualification; it's tighter than ever now after Lille and Monaco secured big wins over Marseille and Lyon at the weekend.Watch and subscribe on Youtube:https://www.youtube.com/@TheFrenchFootballShow

This week on The French Football Show, we dive into one of the most fascinating players in French football: Rayan Cherki.After his recent interview with France Football, Cherki once again reminded everyone that he sees the game differently - creative, unpredictable, and proudly individual. But in a sport increasingly dominated by systems, pressing structures, and tactical discipline, that raises a bigger question.Is there still room for mavericks in modern football?Matt Spiro and guests, Andy Scott and Tom Williams, explore Cherki’s unique style, why players like him often divide opinion, and whether the modern game still has space for football’s great individualists. Is Cherki France’s next superstar - or a throwback to a type of player football is slowly leaving behind?There's also a World Cup focus on Folarin Balogun, the US striker who is in red hot form for Monaco and primed to shine for his country on home soil this summer.In Part 2, we wonder if Lens have blown their title chances after losing in Lorient and take a close look at the compelling battle for Champions League qualification in the upper reaches of the Ligue 1 table.Watch the French Football Show on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheFrenchFootballShow

PSG look to be flagging at the wrong moment! After suffering their first home defeat of the Ligue 1 season at the hands of Monaco, Matt Spiro speaks to the former PSG defender Didier Domi to find out if he is worried about the upcoming Champions League tie with Chelsea. Matt and Didier have a great chat in Part 1 of the episode, and any concerned PSG fans will probably be reassured by the former Newcastle and Leeds player's words. Matt then goes on a rant as we hear the first 'FFS Moment' of our angry but fun new series. Then in Part 2, George Boxall and Jonathan Johnson pop in to run the rule over the Matchday 25 action in Ligue 1. It's worth tuning in, if only to hear about George's manic month reporting on madcap club Olympique de Marseille. JJ congratulates Lens for keeping the title race alive and wonders what Corentin Tolisso needs to do exactly to get a France recall. To watch the episode on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheFrenchFootballShow

PSG's early elimination has lit a fire in the Coupe de France and this week's quarter-finals promise to be great. Matt, Tom and Andy ask if France's oldest competition - famed for its giant-killings - is in better health than ever. For Marseille and Lyon, neither of whom have won silverware since 2012, this year's edition is HUGE. Lens, who look likely to miss out on the title, have never won the Coupe de France. This week's 'le dossier' prepares you perfectly for the upcoming mouthwatering ties.There's a new 'World Cup Watch' feature this week as the panel pick out a Ligue 1 player to keep an eye on this summer; we begin with the Strasbourg and Argentina striker Joaquin Panichelli. And Part 2 brings us up to speed with the latest goings-on in Ligue 1 as we ask the major question: what is the French expression for 'new coach bounce'?Watch and subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheFrenchFootballShow

When Kylian Mbappé won the Ligue 1 title aged 18, then the World Cup at 19, it was assumed that this sensational footballer would go on to claim multiple Ballon d'Ors and Champions Leagues. But today - at 27 - he's still waiting. Host Matt Spiro and guests Andy Scott and Tom Williams ask the following questions: does Mbappé need to win a Ballon d'Or to be remembered as a true great? With Real Madrid fighting for honours and France well-equipped to flourish at the World Cup, is this the year he HAS to win it? There is more Ligue 1 chat in Part 2 as PSG move back to the top. It was a bad weekend for Lens who threw away a two-goal leads against Monaco, while Habib Beye and Franck Haise experience contrasting fortunes on their respective debuts in the dugouts for Marseille and Rennes. Finally, Lyon's winning run comes to a halt in Strasbourg. Subscribe to the FFS on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheFrenchFootballShowGet in touch: Ligue1Podcast@gmail.com

There are just 12 games to play in France and Paris Saint-Germain are NOT top of the league. Racing Club de Lens are enjoying an extraordinary campaign. Host Matt Spiro, alongside guests Andy Scott and Tom Williams, uncover the secrets the northerners success this week and ask the big question: can Pierre Sage’s team go the distance and pull off one of the biggest surprises in modern football?In Part Two, the lads look back at a thrilling weekend in Ligue 1 that included a shock win for managerless Rennes over PSG, a 13th consecutive triumph for Lyon, against Nice, and yet more chaos in Marseille. The FFS is available to watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheFrenchFootballShow

French football was plunged into a terrible financial crisis in 2020 when, in the midst of the Covid pandemic, its domestic television broadcaster pulled out of the contract. With revenues from TV rights subsequently collapsing, the professional game in France is still suffering. Matt Spiro explains exactly what happened, and with the aid of guests Andy Scott and Jonathan Johnson, examines the bold intiative seized by the French league to take matters into its own hands: Ligue 1 is now the first major European league to have its own in-house television channel, Ligue 1+, rather than selling its rights to a traditional broadcaster or streaming service. How is the project going? Is this a model that the other European leagues will soon adopt as well? And where does it leaves the French clubs financially?After trying their best to answer those HUGE questions, Matt, Andy and JJ cast their expert eyes over the Round 21 action in Ligue 1, as PSG humiliate Marseille, Lens make it ten straight home wins, and Lyon triumph for a 12th successive game, despite the sending off of Endrick.Available on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheFrenchFootballShow

The FFS takes a deep dive into the chaotic world of Olympique de Marseille this week. After crashing out of the Champions League in Bruges, the volatile Mediterranean giants are plunging towards yet another crisis. Host Matt Spiro investigates with the help of his guests Andy Scott and Tom Williams: is there a method behind Marseille's madness and is Roberto De Zerbi the man to end the club's 14-year search for silverware? Part 2 of the show dissects the latest Ligue 1 action as PSG and Lens pull clear of the chasing pack. There's a special mention for impressive Lorient and the guys run the rule over the major last-minute transfer deals. Watch on YouTube: www.youtube.com/@TheFrenchFootballShow

This time last year, PSG beat Manchester City in stunning fashion and turned what had been a faltering season into the most successful campaign of the club's history. Once again, Luis Enrique's charges have been below par (and injury-plagued) in the first half of this current season. This week's discussion, Le Dossier, sees host Matt Spiro ask guests Andy Scott and Tom Williams if it is all part of the grand plan. Are PSG keeping their powder dry again? Or are the physical travails of the past year - and the lack of transfer activity - starting to catch up with them. The Parisians are back on top of the Ligue 1 standings after Lens lost in Round 19. The guys delve into another exciting Ligue 1 weekend that included an Endrick hattrick for Lyon, an impressive Marseille debut for Ethan Nwaneri, and an emphatic win for Strasbourg and their new coach Gary O'Neil, who is quickly getting to grips with French football... and even French referees!

He's the top-scorer in Ligue 1, the first Marseille striker to score twenty plus goals in back-to-back seasons for more than a decade, and yet many people find it hard to talk about - let along enthuse about - Mason Greenwood. The accusations levelled against the Englishman in the past have left a lot of observers feeling uneasy to say the least. But rather than ignore the subject, we dive in head first.Matt Spiro and his guests, Tom Williams and Baptiste Reynaud, offer their perspectives as professionals who cover the French game and report on Greenwood on a weekly basis. We hear from the Marseille-based journalist Mourad Aerts to discover the local view too. Interestingly, Greenwood is covered very differently in his homeland - where he is basically ignored by the UK press - compared to France where he is treated like a normal player. The majority of Marseille fans have even taken him to their hearts and Greenwood shirts continue to sell like hotcakes on the Vieux Port. Have a listen and let us know what you think.As always, the second part of the podcast is dedicated to Ligue 1, where RC Lens continue to set the pace at the top despite Ousmane Dembélé's brilliance for PSG against Lille.

This week, Matt and Tom are joined by Brazilian football expert Jack Lang to discuss the arrival of wonderkid Endrick at Lyon. The teenager scored on his debut in the Coupe de France against Lille and excitement is growing in the Rhone Valley. Could he be the missing piece in Lyon's jigsaw and will the Real Madrid loanee force his way into Carlo Ancelotti's World Cup plans? There's also a nod to Paris FC who knocked their neighbours out of the Coupe de Frace. With PSG out, the likes of Marseille and Monaco are suddenly fancying their cup chances. Plus, we pay our respects to Rolland Courbis, a veritable French footballing icon, who sadly passed away this week aged 72.

We kick off the new year with a new name. The French Football Show replaces Across the Channel — but fear not: it’s the same team, the same voices, and the same weekly deep dive into French football. The format has evolved slightly, but the aim remains unchanged: to be informative, opinionated, and above all, good fun.Each episode now centres on “le dossier” - an in-depth discussion of a major talking point in the French game - before we move on to review the latest Ligue 1 action.This week, French football experts Matt Spiro, Tom Williams and Andy Scott dissect Liam Rosenior’s surprise move to Chelsea, a decision that has left Strasbourg supporters furious. Is Rosenior the right fit for the West London club? How successful was his spell in Alsace? And, more fundamentally, have BlueCo shown a lack of respect towards Strasbourg? With fans calling for the president to resign, the panel also examines the wider implications of the multi-club ownership model - and wonders whether new boss Gary O’Neil truly knows what he’s signing up for.In the second half, we look back on a thrilling weekend of Ligue 1 action, with Lens and PSG pulling clear at the top and an in-form Lyon closing in on Marseille and Lille in the race for Champions League qualification. With Endrick set to arrive, we ask: could 2026 be the year of Lyon?

In this special edition, Matt Spiro speaks to Sébastien Bassong about his journey from the Paris suburbs to the Premier League via the Clairefontaine academy and FC Metz. The former Cameroon defender experienced so many highs and lows during his colourful career; he speaks candidly about the heartbreak of getting released from Clairefontaine and tells wonderful stories from his time at Newcastle where he soaked up the Geordie passion, rubbing shoulders with the likes of Kevin Keegan, Alan Shearer and Michael Owen. At Spurs, Sébastien was charmed by Harry Redknapp, met a young Harry Kane and quickly learned that the best tactic was simply to 'give the ball to Luka Modric'. The latter years at Norwich were emotionally-charged too (and that's an understatement!). So sit back and enjoy this fascinating chat with friend of the podcast Monsieur Sébastien Bassong.

Host Matt Spiro is joined by French football journalists Jonathan Johnson and George Boxall to discuss a remarkable story in France as RC Lens finish the calendar year on top of Ligue 1. It's the first time PSG have failed to be top at Christmas in five years - and back in 2020/21, Lille finished as French champions. The guys look at Lens' 2-0 win over Nice, PSG's slightly nervous 3-2 triumph at bottom side Metz, and Marseille's dramatic - if a little fortuitous - victory over Monaco. George and JJ pick their tops and flops from the first part of the season - and everyone on the pod is allowed to make one Christmas wish.

Matt Spiro is joined by Tom Williams and Jeremy Smith to review the Round 15 action in France. PSG were in ominous form, putting five past Rennes thanks notably to a brilliant Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, but Lens are still the pacesetters after they won for the fifth week running, away to Nantes. But many of the chasers are falling away: Marseille, Strasbourg, Monaco and Lyon all suffered damaging defeats. Nobody is in a worse situation than OGC Nice, however. There's a in-depth look at the growing crisis on the Côte d'Azur including a chat with long-time Nice supporter Marc who claims that the accusations of fan violence made by Terem Moffi and Jérémie Boga are wide of the mark.

Host Matt Spiro and guest Baptiste Reynaud heap the praise on RC Lens who sit atop the Ligue 1 standings for the first time in more than two decades after their win at Angers. How has Pierre Sage built such a strong unit so quickly? The lads do their best to explain all. Cameroon international Sébastien Bassong pops in to discuss PSG's dramatic Champions League win over his former team Tottenham, and also assesses the survival chances of his first club FC Metz. Meanwhile, Matt has been a busy boy - he catches up with Luke Entwistle down on the Côte d'Azur to reflect on Monaco's huge win over PSG in the principality - and we ask what everybody else is thinking after another setback at the Vélodrome: do Marseille have the stomach for a title push?

This week we have an exclusive interview with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang who talks to Matt Spiro about Marseille's title push. Our host also catches up with podcast regulars George Boxall and Luke Entwistle at the Allianz Riviera to analyse Nice 1-5 Marseille. Podcast guest Andy Scott was in Rennes to witness Paul Pogba's debut - his first appearance in 881 days - and the remarkable ovation afforded to him by the Roazhon Park crowd. Tom Williams is also on board this week: Tom has plenty of positive things to say about Angers goalkeeper Hervé Koffi and RC Lens. But isn't so impressed by the French comedian Paul Mirabel.The podcast is produced by Stephen Willis.

In this episode, Matt Spiro speaks to the legendary former Marseille striker Tony Cascarino. The man still affectionately known in the south of France as 'Tony Goal' tells us all about those crazy years down at the Vélodrome: meeting Bernard Tapie and signing for the recently-crowned European champions (instead of Blackpool!), nearly coming to blows with the notorious club president at half-time in a game, being confronted by ultras on the team bus, scoring 61 goals in 84 games - and, most bafflyingly of all, watching one of his team-mates relieve himself on the pitch in the middle of the game! Tony also recalls his time at Nancy with plenty of fondness - plus he chats to Matt about Roberto De Zerbi's current crop and their chance of beating Newcastle in the Champions League next Tuesday night.

Matt Spiro is joined by Marseille-based journalist George Boxall and his Paris-based nemesis Jonathan Johnson to run the rule over another eventful weekend. Were Lyon hard done by against PSG? Are Marseille and Lens genuine title contenders after their latest impressive victories? It's close at the top of Ligue 1 - and it's close at the top of Ligue 2 too, as George's beloved Red Star push for promotion. He tells us in less than 60 seconds why Red Star should be everybody's second favourite club, while Jonathan sings the praises of another cult club RC Lens.