Ahead Of The Game

In the summer of 1998, the French national team became a symbol of a diverse, confident nation—only for that dream to curdle twelve years later with the public shame of the Knysna mutiny in South Africa. Few teams have carried more complicated meaning: triumph sparked celebrations of a more expansive French identity, while failure unleashed arguments about loyalty, national character, and who gets to be called ‘French.’ On this episode of Pitch and Power, we explore why this team became a lightning rod for social debates in France, how far‑right voices and mainstream media shaped the story, and what the journey from 1998 to the Knysna mutiny reveals about race, belonging, and power. We hear from reporters who were there, examine the narratives that turned heroes into scapegoats, and unpack how a squad once hailed as the Republic’s emblem of progression came to be portrayed as a national embarrassment.

It’s been forty years since a ragtag Canadian team made its unlikely World Cup debut. On this episode of Pitch and Power, host Eoin O’Callaghan and guests Jay Baruchel and 1986 team member Colin Miller unpack the public indifference and skepticism that greeted Canada’s soccer pioneers, who briefly stood on the world stage before vanishing from public memory. How have self-doubt, underfunding, and a series of inexplicable choices shaped Canada’s relationship with soccer? And can recent successes and the upcoming co-hosted World Cup break the cycle?

Behind every World Cup is a larger story — about national identity and the historical moment in which the games unfold. Eoin O’Callaghan hosts Pitch and Power: How Soccer Shapes Everything, a Globe and Mail series that rewinds the World Cup to eight moments when the game crossed into politics, culture, and the public consciousness. These are stories about ambition, rivalry, grief, and triumph. About the highest highs and the lowest lows. The first episode of Pitch and Power: How Soccer Shapes Everything arrives on May 28, 2026, from The Globe and Mail. Follow us now wherever you get your podcasts