The Sweeper is a football podcast unlike any other. Once a week, journalists Lee Wingate and Paul Watson bring you unique and quirky football headlines and stories from across Europe and the wider world that you won’t hear elsewhere. Whether it’s San Marino’s 20-year winless run, Greenland’s week-long season or the two-team league in the Scilly Isles, The Sweeper does not focus on Europe’s top five leagues - but instead casts its net across FIFA’s 211 members and beyond. Join us for a whistle-stop tour of the football world every Wednesday. Episodes are released at midnight CET.
https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/sweeperpod
The Valletta funeral parade, Al Ahly’s unique feat & dark arts in Chechnya
Having just visited Malta and witnessed an historic weekend of football, Lee tells Paul all about the key events in Europe’s only island micro-state in Part 1. Who came out on top in the title-decider between Ħamrun Spartans & Floriana? Why do Valletta hold a funeral parade through the streets when they win the league? How has the island reacted to the capital club’s first relegation? And what is it like to accidentally get caught up in a bus parade? Part 2 is dedicated to three big stories on three different continents: Africa, Europe & South America. Two teams think they have won the Republic Youth League in Egypt – but why? Who was allegedly behind the poisoning of Sochi’s players before their recent game against Akhmat Grozny in Russia? And what unique tribute did Brazilians Cariri pay to their owner after gaining promotion to the Campeanato Cearense Série A last week? Tune in to The Sweeper to find out the answers – and join us on Patreon at patreon.com/SweeperPod for a bonus segment as we answer some big questions from across Europe. Which is the only top-30 UEFA nation to have rejected VAR? What was the unlikely resting place for a shot in the third tier of French football? And did a former Port Vale player really get a pilot’s license just to mock his old club’s relegation? RUNNING ORDER: 00:00 - Intro 00:51 - Ħamrun Spartans vs. Floriana live 10:05 - Promoted Melita's bus parade 11:34 - Valletta’s first-ever relegation 15:31 - Football on Gozo & Comino 20:11 - Title confusion in Egypt’s Youth League 29:27 - An alleged poisoning in Chechnya 34:22 - A funeral home tribute in Brazil