In short
Extra Short’s “funniest stories in sport this week,” centered on Messi’s disastrous India tour, Samuel Eto’o’s AFCON chaos, and other bizarre incidents across football and darts.
Guests
None mentioned in the transcript (hosts Jack, Zach, JP; no guest speakers).
Guest backgrounds
Not applicable.
Key claims
- Messi’s Kolkata appearance involved a 70-foot statue unveiled via video link (he didn’t show), a security ring so fans couldn’t see him, and a short waving session despite £100 tickets; fans rioted and the organizer was arrested and refused bail.
- Eto’o (Cameroon FA head) sacked Mark Briss on the eve of AFCON, creating two rival managers/coaching teams and overlapping squads; the dispute affects player selection.
- Other stories include a Sunderland striker allegedly carrying a knife, and Samuel Eto’o’s prior misconduct (assault threats, confiscating training gear, bans).
Notable examples
- Fans leaving their own weddings to see Messi.
- Ola Messi fan zone with a throne and trophy/house replicas.
- Eto’o omitting Vincent Aboubakar from his squad (claimed to protect a national record).
Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.
Chapters
Tap a time to open that second in VOChristmas Greetings and Plans
2:03 to 2:32
Hosts exchange Christmas greetings and share their holiday plans.
“you'll be in I'll be in Denmark Denmark getting my tummy rubbed eating fish on Christmas Eve is that what they do?”
Messi's Kolkata Catastrophe
7:44 to 8:30
Discussion about Messi's disastrous promotional tour in India.
“in India on his goat tour, which I think if you want a perfect example of greed sucking the soul and meaning from modern football, well, here you probably have it.”
Fans' Disappointment and Riots
9:40 to 10:32
Exploration of the chaos and disappointment from fans at the event.
“Anyway, so he went, but then no one could see him because there was this huge ring of security and like celeb hangers on and politicians and stuff.”
Messi's Fan Zone Experience
11:58 to 13:12
Description of the alternate fan experience in Kolkata featuring Messi's replicas.
“that happened, the organiser of the event has been arrested and refused bail.”
Messi's Tour Disaster in India
14:00 to 15:07
Explore the chaotic events surrounding Messi's poorly managed tour in India.
“it's like the fire festival Or the Willy Wonka experience.”
Fan Reactions and Bollywood Star Critique
15:08 to 16:10
Discussion on fan reactions to the tour and a Bollywood star's critique.
“Anyway, all the big old disaster for Messi.”
Messi's Past Controversies
16:11 to 17:51
A look back at Messi's previous tour mishaps and fan outrage.
“So Regina Ip, who's a local politician, said, Messi should never be allowed to return to Hong Kong.”
Messi's Impact on Fans
17:52 to 18:59
Why fans pay to see Messi and the emotional significance of his appearances.
“The whole match was organized just so Messi wouldn't play to embarrass the Chinese Communist Party.”
Nityan Kumar's Darts Breakthrough
19:00 to 20:06
Celebrating Nityan Kumar as the first Indian player to win at the Darts World Championships and its significance.
“I think he was surrounded by people I couldn't see.”
Darts Culture and Nityan's Aspirations
20:07 to 21:58
Exploration of the darts culture and Kumar's hopes for future Indian players.
“10 years down the line, if you have eight people in the World Championships walking out to Bollywood music, don't blame me.”
Show all 21 chapters
Merchandising in Darts and Pop Culture
21:59 to 24:21
Discussion on the quirky merchandising in darts and comparisons to celebrity culture.
“It's just like heat and sugar that makes them think it's summer.”
Gwyneth Paltrow and Unusual Products
24:22 to 28:00
A humorous take on Gwyneth Paltrow's unusual product line and its reception.
“yeah I was going to get I wanted one for Christmas Gwynny's Vag also Stephen Bunting on what smells like his arse 13 quid though yeah true also it's just a candle with their name on it yeah I guess it smells of him.”
Darts Drama and Pub Encounters
28:00 to 29:50
The hosts discuss a dramatic darts moment and their experiences at a pub event.
“You saw a picture of him afterwards with like blood He lands like three uppercuts on the table.”
Darts Drama and Pub Encounters
30:29 to 31:29
The hosts discuss a dramatic darts moment and their experiences at a pub event.
“Send Help is now streaming on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+.”
AFCON 2023 Preview and Eto'o Controversies
31:39 to 35:05
The discussion shifts to the upcoming AFCON tournament and the controversies surrounding Samuel Eto'o.
“In Morocco, who are favorites as well, I think.”
Barcelona's Referee Payment Scandal
35:05 to 36:46
The hosts explore the ongoing scandal involving Barcelona and payments to referees.
“So I don't exactly know which squad will be there or which manager or which backroom team.”
A Teacher's Tall Tales
36:46 to 42:01
A humorous story about a teaching assistant who fabricated an extraordinary past.
The Strange Tales of Mr. Trig Turner
42:01 to 47:10
Discussion about an unusual character named Trig Turner and his bizarre life experiences.
“yeah is it is it not harmless um i yeah i mean i don't know how he got found out i'm imagining that it was one of the kids came home from school and told their parents I was like you know Mr.”
El Hadji Diouf's Chaotic History
47:11 to 51:06
Exploring the tumultuous career and controversies surrounding footballer El Hadji Diouf.
“And it's safe to say he's had a bit of a checkered past, hasn't he?”
The Infamous Knife Incidents
51:07 to 55:52
Recounting the notorious incidents involving knives related to football players.
“They end up having a massive scrap again.”
Christmas Eve Memories
56:00 to 56:38
A humorous recounting of a Christmas Eve experience with friends.
“not bad luck but it's just what do you want to sing not through Christmas It was Christmas Eve, baby.”
Transcript
Automatic transcript. May contain errors.0:29So good, so good, so good. is brought to you by Fox One. Watch all 104 matches of the FIFA World Cup live in 4K for just$19.99 a month with three days free. Build your own multi-view, choose up to three streams, and follow player spotlights. Stay on top of every moment with live stats, highlights, and instant replays. The FIFA World Cup, streaming live on Fox One, offers a subject to change. See fox.com for complete terms and conditions. Study and play! Come together on a Windows 11 PC. And for a limited time, college students get... The best of both worlds. Get the Unreal College Deal. Everything you need to study and play with select Windows 11 PCs.
1:12Eligible students get a year of Microsoft 365 Premium and a year of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate with a custom color Xbox wireless controller. Learn more at windows.com slash student offer. While supplies last, ends June 30th. Terms at aka.ms slash college PC. Welcome back to Extra Short. the podcast about the funniest stories in sport this week. On the show today, Messi's Kolkata catastrophe, Samuel Eto 'o's AFCON meltdown, and a knife-wielding Sunderland striker. My name is Jack. Hello, Zach. Hello, Jack. Hi, JP. Bon Joino, fellas. Merry Christmas. Merry Christmas. Merry Christmas. Last extra shot of the year.
1:52Very sad. Taking a little break. Yeah, taking a little break. We've got some stuff coming out in the gooch between Christmas and New Year, but it won't be extra shot. it will be pre-recorded JLP will be in Henley getting his tummy rubbed I will you'll be in I'll be in Denmark Denmark getting my tummy rubbed eating fish on Christmas Eve is that what they do? no duck oh who eats carp? Poland that's Poland and I think quite a lot of Eastern Europe eats fish my brother's girlfriend is Polish and she was saying that a lot of people there they keep the carp in the bath wet for how long? because you like you get it obviously like a few days before Christmas and then it's it's just in the bath until Christmas Eve with a carp you're having a bath with a carp yeah literally yeah well if your relatives haven't got you a carp in your bathtub then perhaps they can gift you tickets to the Upshot Live that'd be the number one present wouldn't it that's a good Christmas present if you're if you're listening to this and you haven't bought someone a Christmas present it's a fucking good one it's too late I don't think Amazon deliver this late you've only got one option which is to get on the Upshot Live because tickets they are sold out in London and Dublin but you can still get tickets for Birmingham where we are down to the last few.
3:01Birmingham's about to fall. Manchester where we've had to add seats. We sold out the original capacity but more seats have been added. Fort Manchester hated us. They have put out more folding chairs in the room. You're probably wondering is more seats added a thing that people say about live shows? Yes it is. It is. We've dragged some fold-up chairs out into the auditorium, removed some tables that were blocking key space and we've expanded the capacity. So that was 150, but that sold. Sold out Manchester. And now it's going to be bigger. And Glasgow? And Glasgow, there are some tickets available as well.
3:35Be quick. There are not that many. Honestly, it's mostly gone. I wouldn't call it last few, but... No, we're approaching last several. Scotland A's. Dozens of tickets left. It's definitely going to fall. Yeah. All right. JP, I had a voice note from you over the weekend. I'm really regretting this now. bloody silly season. It was a very exciting voice to receive at about 2am. Yeah, let's listen to it. You were out on the piss, weren't you? Lads, I'm at Kensington Roof Gardens. Just bumped into Thomas fucking Tuchel. Tried to get a selfie with him. He said, no, fuck off. Lead me to glory. I'm absolutely buzzing.
4:15He was absolutely fucking off his chops as well. My life is complete. Tommy Tuchel. Kensington Roof Gardens again so that was at 1.47am on Saturday it's past my bedtime so was he just there tell the story so there's a couple of bits to the story really I'd had way too much to drink and I think his security were like get this guy away from oh he had security guys with him yeah he had security around him we'd gone into the nightclub at the back of Kensington Roof Gardens and I'd just seen a guy was surrounded by security at the bar and he then started walking towards me and he's tall, isn't he? He's like six foot four or whatever.
4:58And from about 10 meters off, I then clocked him. And as he walked past me, I kind of like just slipped into his security. So I was like in the circle. I grabbed him for a selfie. He put his hand on my phone and was like, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. No one knows I should be in here. Oh, he said that. Nobody knows I'm here. And then I said, oh, no worries, Tommy. Lead us to glory. And what did he say? I thought if you're going to meet the England manager, you want to say something quite profound. And I was like, when he wakes up the next morning, he's going to be like, actually, I'm really motivated now.
5:30That was really profound. That man who barged through my security, frothing at the mouth. Lead us to glory. Yeah, Guinness spilled down his front. And he made a deep philosophical statement. Lead us to glory. I text my mate who I was with the following morning. Obviously, I was a bit dusty. I was like, I cannot believe we met Tommy Tuchel last night. He's like, mate, can you not believe what he said to you? I was like, what? He goes, mate, after you said lead us to glory, he stopped, grabbed you by the head and said, it's coming home. I was like, what? That's unreal. And he goes, not really. He just told you to fuck off.
6:01I'm surprised he won't do photos. Does he not want to be seen? It's probably not a good look being in a nightclub. I mean, he's in a nightclub. How old is he? I reckon he must be 50, 50, 60. Yeah, I guess it's 60. And who was he with? So he's got bodyguards, but with that sort of... Couldn't quite work out. There was no like massive entourage, but it was just a couple of security and then a couple of older women, not young girls or anything like that. So all above board. Just in leather. But he put his hand right over my phone because he did not want the selfie. But I think he massively appreciated me saying Leeders to God.
6:35I'm sure he did. I'm sure he wore a couple of times. I should Leeders to God. I'm actually really motivated going into 2026 now. I always think he looks quite like an insect. Is that true? Yeah, he's very thin. You know that film? Ants? Quite gaunt. With a Z? Yeah, yeah. We actually get a picture off of that. It's either that or a bug's life. Yeah, a bug's life. Is it a bug's life I'm thinking of? No, ants. He does look a bit like that. Maybe a bug's life. Sorry. But really calm as well. Yeah, that thing. The main guy in a bug's life. That's Thomas Tuchel. Yeah. Please do that. Yeah, yeah. He was at Kensington Riff Gardens.
7:08That bug. But he wasn't rude at all. I mean, if there's anything it was probably me being fucking pissed out. Yeah, it must be annoying. But obviously Kensington Riff Gardens everyone's a bit like ooh you know I'm really sure it's a bit sceny it's a bit sceny and I'm just like bowled in there not a member and I just spotted him and then yeah just tried to get yeah because I was after you sent that voice message I looked up Kensington Roof Gardens and it looks like some weird like spa in Morocco or something yeah that's the vibe it's like Riyadh yeah it's like very Euro very like posh yeah I don't know what I was doing I was just cutting a rug mate I was just having a good Christmas do Leo Massey has been in India on his goat tour, which I think if you want a perfect example of greed sucking the soul and meaning from modern football, well, here you probably have it.
7:58So yeah, it was probably always going to be a disaster. He's not even playing any matches in India. He's just waving at people. He's doing some kick-ups and like some passing. Is this like India's equivalent of like when we go and watch like Paul Merson in a nightclub? Wilson Raider yeah kind of is at least people were just paying to look at Messi yeah walk around yeah I mean if they're lucky they'll look at him because he failed so basically he was unveiling the statue in Kolkata failed to turn up and did it by video link instead because of security concerns so this crowd turned up they built this 70 foot statue of him and he joined by video link quite a weird unveiling you see they just basically put a bag over his head over the statue's head yeah Was Messi supposed to pull the bag off?
8:44I guess, but he did it by video. Normally you cover the whole statue, but they've just covered the head. It looks like he's about to get waterboarded at Guantanamo. Yeah. Or like, you know, when they unveil a Scooby-Doo villain. Yeah. I've actually got a picture of it here. I'll show you what I mean. When they pull the thing off the Scooby-Doo villain. Why the statue in India? They just wanted to build it. They've built it next to, they've got a two-thirds replica of Big Ben, obviously. Nice. And it's the tallest statue of a soccer player in the world. Wow. Yeah, you'll never sing that. I actually can't think of any other statues of footballers.
9:21They're big on statues there, aren't they? Yeah, but normally, I looked up most of the biggest statues in India are like, there's a lot of Buddhas and there's a lot of like Hindu deities. And then coming in around 24 in the charts is Lionel Messi. That is really, really random. So that was all quite weird. And he didn't even fucking show up. And then staying in Kolkata, he was meant to do the stadium appearance where tickets were 100 quid to go and see him do a lap of honor. No football. It's not playing a match. Anyway, so he went, but then no one could see him because there was this huge ring of security and like celeb hangers on and politicians and stuff.
9:59So apparently there's a ring of 100 people around him. You couldn't even see him on the big screen, which is disappointing having spent 100 quid. Yeah, definitely. and he was meant to do a whole hour of waving but he ended up only doing 20 minutes because I think he was just like fuck this surely for 100 quid you're going to like do a promo match yeah just do like a pen sheet out or something the reason it's so disastrous and depressing is like they've dispensed with the pretense that it's a football match like any football I saw one clip of him having like a little kick around on the pitch I don't know if it was in Calcutta or one of the other cities it was with some like local statesman or something who was just like passing the ball to Messi but it was terrible he was just like passing it Messi was left like chasing the ball it was like you'd take your little cousin down to the park to the football and you'd end up just like chasing the ball around you've got one chance to pass the ball to Messi you don't want to fuck it up anyway the fans at this stadium the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata were understandably angry they paid 100 quid and seen fuck all at which point they rioted they're ripping the seats out good lads love that yeah
11:15just watching a video yeah you get the idea we'll link to that video if you haven't seen it Zach weren't you saying there was a guy there who he did an interview saying he'd left his own wedding yeah I saw they were interviewing various angry fans outside the stadium and one of them said he'd left his own wedding middle of the wedding to be there can you imagine being that guy's wife and you're just like, can we just come and take some photos with my parents? And he's like, I'm just off to see Messi. In his Argentina shirt. See you later, babe. Have a good night, yeah? To be fair, those Indian weddings do go on for days.
11:48You can probably do it without anyone noticing. Yeah. Just slip out. I didn't think about that. Yeah, it's still wild to leave your own wedding for that. Anyway, in response to all this chaos that happened, the organiser of the event has been arrested and refused bail. Good. Yeah, I don't know. For what? I don't know. Is it fraud? I think it's causing the disorder. Not adequately. Poor security arrangements. Poor lineup. There was an alternative for fans who were disappointed by that because in Kolkata, fans can visit the Ola Messi fan zone where there is a life-size replica of Messi sat on a throne.
12:22Looks like JFK. That looks fucking terrible. That looks nearly as bad as the Ronaldo. It's kind of a Madame Tussauds-y waxwork. So there you get the Messi on the throne. and you get a hall adorned with replicas of his trophies, including the La Liga golden boot, the biggie. And there's a recreation of Messi's Miami home complete with mannequins of his family.
12:45Recreation of his home. Yeah, yeah. And you can just have a photo of it. This is where he shears. To be fair, that is the only thing you're getting that isn't just like fucking inane. Like, why do I want to see a replica of a golden boot or even like any trophy? Has this gone down well? No, it's like seeing what his house is like. At least I've learned something. from the Chinese Museum. To Mary lives in America. Were they live streaming him walking around the stadium waving at people as well? Yeah, probably. They had a video with clips that you can watch at home on YouTube. Surely if you go out and buy these tickets you kind of know what the line-up is and you know what's going to happen so they can't be that disappointing.
13:19Yeah, I mean this is what I don't get. It's like, why are you paying 100 quid to see a person? Yeah. But people will. To be fair, why do people go to Madame Tussauds? True. See a waxwork person. True. They also, in the fan zone, built a messy throne which they said is kept ready in the hope that the legend himself might stop by if only for a few minutes he didn't sure he didn't stop by sure had to put wax work in the end the hope Messi might come you never know that's quite Father Christmas himself might even pay a visit you're a good boy I'm starting to see why this guy's been arrested this is like fire festival it's like the fire festival Or the Willy Wonka experience.
14:04That was amazing. What I hadn't realised is apparently specifically in Kolkata, Argentina are massive. There's like an Argentina fans club. So that's what, because everyone was in Argentina shirts, not like into Miami or Barca ones. But surely just bring the national team over then and do a tour. Something like that. Yeah. Come on guys, switch on. Argentina and Brazil do that all the time. Yeah. Anyway, at least Leo is the main man. He also dragged along Luis Suarez and Rodrigo de Paul as like, All my pacts. Of course. They're like sort of sidekicks. And that is humiliating. Like Luis Suarez and Rodrigo Porte Poole are both like excellent, successful footballers in their own right.
14:42And they're just being dragged along to the Messi tour. Probably getting a load of coin for it though, aren't they? I guess, yeah, I guess they are. Suarez actually, it's quite a good video, him playing with some children and a girl nutmegs him. Well, she meant to do it as well. Fair play, well done. And he laughs, but you know, because of how Suarez, because of how he looks, there is a moment where you're like, he's going to fucking bite you. Which to be fair, at least he's playing the hits. Instincts. That's kind of what you pay your ticket for. If you saw Luis Suarez bite someone. You're like, I was worth the undercut.
15:11I saw what I came to see. A child. Anyway, all the big old disaster for Messi. I should say, so we did an Insta post about this on Monday, which has angered some members of our Indian fan base who basically their objection was, what about the three other events? Because I think they also went to like Mumbai, Hyderabad and somewhere else, I forget. And they all went really smoothly. And we focused on, you know, the one that went wrong. The bad one. Which is a bit like saying what about all the buses that got to their destination safely? But among the people complaining in the comments was Bollywood star Arjun Kapoor.
15:48Wow. He's Bollywood heartthrob. Major star. He's got like 17 million Insta followers. Is he a listener of the pod or just... he's a viewer of reels he already followed us I noted nice we asked him to come on he said nah I'm alright genuinely but in his comment he said I think you need to assess it through the four cities he did visit this happened at the first stop but the other three cities were absolutely fine and well organised to be fair nah one bad one my objection isn't the rioting fans my objection is the soulless non-football tour thing which happened everywhere exactly so why did this one in particular go go so bad though I think poorly managed maybe yeah and yeah so no one even saw Messi but I think members of our Indian fan base felt that I was having a go at India but I wasn't I was just pointing out how fucking soulless this thing is so sorry Jack and we've been here before with Messi because do you remember was it last year he did that Hong Kong they actually did play a match Inter Miami did a tour of China and Japan and they played in Hong Kong but Messi was ruled out injured so he didn't play which led to a lot of anger among the fans and politicians.
16:57So Regina Ip, who's a local politician, said, Messi should never be allowed to return to Hong Kong. His lies and hypocrisy are disgusting. He's got a calf strain. Who's injured? What do you expect him to see? And then the reason they got quite so angry in China is then a week later Inter Miami went to Japan where he managed 30 minutes. But like that's when you're noticing an injury and you're coming back from an injury, you get subbed off for the last day. Was it that or was it a deliberate and planned snub to undermine China's status as a rising power. That was the conclusion in China. In the South China Morning Post after he played in Japan, they described him as all petulant in pink, like some thuggish flamingo.
17:36That's a good line. Just wearing his home strip. And then the Chinese press worked out that the organizer was the son of these anti-communist Cubans who'd fought the Castro regime. And so at that point, a conspiracy theory emerged in China that it was a deliberate plan. The whole match was organized just so Messi wouldn't play to embarrass the Chinese Communist Party. No, mate, it is just a calf injury, I promise. And then one on Weibo, you know, the Chinese social network, there was like this ultra-nationalist account that said, the possibility of direct intervention by relevant US forces cannot be ruled out.
18:11CIA, baby. It's fake limping. Mental. I don't know why, why does he do this to people's brains, Messi? It's like, I guess, like Michael Jackson used to make people go a bit mental as well, didn't he? Yeah, I guess he still is probably the biggest footballer on the planet, isn't he? But it makes people so hysterical that if he doesn't make them look good... Yeah. I can't get my head around it. Yeah. When you pay... That's all the people are paying for, really, is just to see him. What, to say I was there, I got there. Because it used to... You know that thing of like, my father-in-law was at the 66 final, and it's like, I was there.
18:45And it is the same thing. It's telling your kids that you saw Messi. I saw Messi. But normally it's, you saw Messi play. Yeah. Saw him wave. You just saw him in the stadium having a walk. I actually didn't. Maybe you're hoping that they just won't ask questions. In 50 years' time, you say, oh, I saw Messi. Yeah, I saw Messi. Wow, how was it here? Good. Yeah. He looked really smiling. I think he was surrounded by people I couldn't see. Yeah, yeah. Anyway, if the Indians do go cold on Messi, there's a homegrown hero in waiting. Because Nityan Kumar became the first ever Indian player to win a match at the Darts World Championships this week.
19:21Yeah. So we see it's a very English and Dutch dominated sport. Yeah, which is weird. Yeah, I was looking into it actually. And apparently, it originates like an English pub game, which is why it's big here. And it wasn't until the 90s with Barney, Roman van Barneveld, that it became popular in the Netherlands because he obviously was a great player, big rivalry with Phil Taylor. And that just catapulted its profile in the Netherlands. and inspired this whole generation of Dutch darts players. Ah, that's cool. Which, yeah, is interesting. And actually, Nitin is hoping that he's going to do the same to a generation of Indian dartists.
20:05That'd be great. So after his match, he was interviewed and he said, 10 years down the line, if you have eight people in the World Championships walking out to Bollywood music, don't blame me. That would be great. He does walk out to Bollywood music. Sick. He's got a fucking good outfit as well. remember to stay humble this is Punjabi MC great tune yeah yeah it is Punjabi MC oh he's got a good ponytail yeah yeah he looks like a vibe that is a better shirt than anyone else in the tournament the clobber that they've got still to this day is terrible because everyone else's is just like a sort of like gradient of like red and blue whereas he's got a tiger yeah yeah I mean I'd wear that what's his name Peter Wright snakebite yeah he's got an interesting look as well.
20:51Because he's gone Grinch this year. He's Grinch, yeah. So he came out with like the Grinch gloves. He's got green beard. Died green beard and hair which is quite disconcerting. Is Nitin Kumar any good? Yeah, he's won his first match. I actually managed to take out the Ali Pali wasp in the process. There's a clip of him hitting the wasp with a dart. Oh, buzzy cunt. Unfortunately, not spearing it, it just like catches it. It's good if it pinned it to the board. That would have been. What? So is it attacking? so is it already on the dark? No, I think he was in the air and he's thrown it there. If he pinned it to the board, that would be an all-time moment.
21:27We'll link to that clip. Explain, what's the deal with the wasps? I mean, it's been a problem at Ali Pali for years. The wasps buzzing around, bothering the players. Luke Littler was doing an interview the other day where he was batting it away. It's December, why are there wasps? Yeah, my theory is that they're woken up from their hibernation by the residual heat of these people in Smurf costumes. Just like strongbow residue sticking to the floor. It's just like heat and sugar that makes them think it's summer. Surely, yeah, they're just going there to hibernate. Probably, yeah. They like the darts.
22:14Maybe they do, they just love it. So Nitin, the Indian guy, is through to the next round against Stephen Bunting, who's really flogging his newfound popularity at the moment. He's got loads of different merch, released a teddy bear of himself. Well, every kid is going to want this Christmas. I'm sure. According to Stephen, they will. So he said his website crashed because so many people were trying to get a hold of it. 250 ,000 hits. Fucking hell, how many did he sell? Only 300. which isn't a very good conversion rate JP can help me see he needs to work on his checkouts I'll get on his e-com that's too much car abandonment going on in your funnel mate too much in the customer journey pal yeah personally though I know what bit of Stephen Bunting merch I'm going to be getting this Christmas because I found on Etsy a Stephen Bunting scented candle what does that smell of?
23:09it says this candle smells like Stephen Bunting oh really? No way What does Stephen Bunting smell like? Looking at him B.O.E. Darts I imagine he's quite sweaty He's playing darts Yeah In a humid alley In a high pressure environment Is that even official Stephen Bunting merch? That's a fan on Etsy Stephen Bunting will shut this down 13 quid's not bad Yeah I actually saw Luke Humphries and Luke Littler have ones as well Candles But 18 quid On Etsy? Yeah they can't be official match here guys no but who's a fan who's a fan who's thinking I want to maybe this is why you know I think there was what was it some Luke Lillard was like giving out his sweaty shirts or something after or like selling I can't remember there was some used shirt thing so maybe that's where they're you know collect the scent someone like rung it out and put it into a candle smells like monster energy drink nine hour gaming session smells like What's it?
24:11I think Gwyneth Paltrow had a candle vagina candle vagina scented candle sold out everywhere didn't they? yeah it was expensive oh yeah I had actually had a look at this a little while ago going for like$300 on eBay now really? yeah I was going to get I wanted one for Christmas Gwynny's Vag also Stephen Bunting on what smells like his arse 13 quid though yeah true also it's just a candle with their name on it yeah I guess it smells of him. Gwyneth was, she was also selling jars of sex dust at one point. For$60. What is sex dust? It said on the website they had primordial aphrodisiac powers. So I think it was basically like a powder that you would dissolve in your smoothie.
24:58Yeah. Oh, right. I thought you'd sort of sprinkle it over you before you shake. Mix it in with your spirulina smoothie, I think. And then you'll be a Lothario. Wasn't there a dildo that was like 10 grand? like a crystal healing crystal dildo she was slogging loads of niche sex toys for loads of dough is she not anymore I think the company something's happened with the company Stephen Bunting stepped into the market she got scared he ate her lunch Stephen Bunting cock rings for sale now this Christmas
25:33yeah I don't know I don't know I'd be forky out on Stephen Bunting sex dust either Luke Littler though yeah sex dust little butt plug it's hard to think of a dance player who's sex dust i'm drinking yeah um yeah i've actually got a new favorite though at the other end of the age spectrum to to luke and that is 71 year old singaporean paul limb yeah who became the oldest player to win a game at the world championships last weekend fair play very awesome yeah 71 cool so i was having a look into this when when paul was luke littler's age now uh the watergate scandal was just breaking edward heath was a number 10 and david bowie released ziggy stardust i think we were still using like pound shillings and pence before decimalization it was actually a mental year i was looking into it there was also uh uh the munich Olympics hostage taking Bloody Sunday Idi Amin expelling the Ugandan Asians Paul Lim turning in Paul Lim, yeah I've got to say I'd never heard of him before but he is actually a bit of a legend of the sport, he got the first ever televised nine dart finish at the World Championships in 1990.
26:54You get quite a lot of cash for that don't you? Maybe not in 1990. Yeah, nowadays you do. So has he been consistent has he been consistently good all that time or is he like making a comeback well he hasn't been in the world championships for four years or something like that but he at that tournament he was also the oldest ever player amazing so is dance getting big in the far east as well or is that south east Asia or Singapore I guess yeah I don't know to be honest we were watching we were watching it the other day and there was a guy from the Philippines I think and another guy from China because they love snooker in China yeah yeah yeah they have a Raymond Van Barneveld type figure in snooker there's quite a few of the top snooker players Asian century baby if you've got to pick who to support between Nitten Kumar and Paul Lim or Stephen Bunting Stephen Bunting I think I've got a soft spot for Paul Lim yeah he's sweet but I think Nitten Kumar's got a bit of sex appeal for me I think it's the tiger and the ponytail the tiger's got you going innit entrance track yeah also I've got a bit of making up to do to Indian fans I don't even notice I've been complimenting them quite a lot you and that surfer who shattered a sacred lake yeah yeah public enemy number one and number two in India I've noticed the industrial production in India this year is just fantastic economy's coming booming coming one more darts moment before we move on did you see this guy who Cameron Menzies I think his name was who lost a match and just completely lost the ball and started punching the table.
28:29Surely. Really like. That must really hurt your knuckles. Uppercuts. You saw a picture of him afterwards with like blood He lands like three uppercuts on the table. Surely your hands are the most key part of your body being a dart. He's been knocked out so it's just better. Yeah. Because I guess you get like 10 grand for getting to the second round I think. Five grand? Yeah. I think it might be more. I think it might be 25 or something. Either way you missed out on a big payday that was the day that I went the punching the table really? did you see it? no it was the afternoon session we were the evening session but I got chatting to this girl in the pub before we went and I said oh did you see the punching the table incident and she went yeah it really set the tone for the rest of the session everyone just started scrapping did you see any like I never really see fights none whatsoever everyone was just having a you can't have fights in fancy dress yes Well you can Sometimes it is quite funny There was a big scrap At Winter Wonderland This week Did you see that Really Yeah it's quite scary At Winter Wonderland I went over the night Yeah What is it Has it changed It's forced fun And it's just quiet I don't know Yeah You know What can I say What were you doing there Just getting in the I actually went on a VIP tour Oh yeah Yeah I went on all the rides God you really Why You're in the Crème de la crème Of London's High society I am mate Kensington Roof Gardens VIP Winter Wonderland It's been a hell of a silly season for me, Zach.
29:54God, I didn't realise who I was hanging out with. I'll take you next year, yeah. Please do. Up on the Ferris wheel. You don't wash your jersey during a win streak. You don't switch seats when your team's up big. And you definitely don't shave during the playoffs. When things are working, you don't change them. That's why when you drink Jägermeister, you drink it ice cold. Anything else? Well, that'd just be bad luck. Drink it cold or don't drink it at all. Jägermeister. Damn, that's cold. Drink responsibly. Jägermeister liqueur, 35 % alcohol by volume. Imported by Masked Jägermeister. U.S. White Plains, New York.
Read the full transcript
30:33Send Help is now streaming on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+. We're somewhere in the Gulf of Thailand. Getting us out of here should be your focus. I'm your boss. You work for me. You're not in the office anymore. It's bold, relentless, and endlessly rewatchable. Discover why critics give it 93 % on Rotten Tomatoes. You're so fired. Oh, am I? No help is coming. Send help. Rated R. Now streaming on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+. Comcast is delivering extraordinary experiences in live sports through the incredible broadcast and storytelling from NBC, innovative and personalized viewing features on Xfinity and Peacock, and the country's most reliable Wi-Fi.
31:16Viewers can enjoy every game-changing play faster and more seamlessly than ever. All in a network built to deliver unforgettable moments as close to live as possible. The ultimate experience for the American sports fan. Learn more at comcastcorporation.com slash sports. The other big event of December in the sporting calendar is of course AFCon, which kicks off on Sunday. Same. In Morocco, who are favorites as well, I think. There's quite a lot of interesting storylines. So Zinedine Zidane's son is in the Algeria squad. He's a keeper. Really? Why didn't he play for... Surely he played for France.
31:50I don't think he's necessarily good enough for that. Obviously, Salah is the big star. And we're all thinking, you know, is he going to send a message to Arna Slott about what he's been missing? But for me, the main draw this year's AFCON is the absolute shit show around our old friend Samuel Eto 'o, the former Barcelona and Chelsea striker, who is of course the head of Cameroon's FA where he's been having a pretty awful go of it for the last four years, just thrashing around. Quick recap on some of his wildest moments. So the Qatar World Cup, he kneed a cameraman in the face. He threatened his own deputy president and told him, I am a mafia of this revolution.
32:32He squared up to his own manager, Mark Briss, in a press conference in front of everyone. Literally started trying to fight him. And then he got his revenge on Briss by head of a match confiscating all the team's training gear, including kits, balls, and the team bus. Team bus, yeah. Couldn't even get to training. That'll teach him. And then he got banned from attending football matches for six months for, quote, offensive behavior at the Women's Under-20 World Cup. Absolutely shudder to thing. Well, that involved. Anyway, there's new developments, lads, because obviously AFCON's coming up, which is the major moment in the calendar for Cameroon.
33:11Because Cameroon aren't going to the World Cup, are they? I'm pretty sure they haven't qualified. So this is the big tournament for them. And on the eve of the tournament, Samuel Eto 'o decided this is the moment to sack the manager, Mark Briss, which he's done before. Yeah, they hate each other, don't they? They fucking hate each other. So he sacked him, announced a new manager and a whole new coaching team. And Briss refused to accept his sacking because in Cameroon, it's actually the Minister of Sport who chooses the manager. so there's now two managers two coaching teams and they've both named their own squads so how is this going to get picked?
33:43I'm unclear on which squad is going I think Mark Briss' squad will go two separate players as well two separate sets of players well there's overlap but they're slightly different so some players are only in one can you imagine some of them are trying to make their Christmas plans it's like you don't know what I'm doing might be going to Morocco yeah so Sammy Leto in his squad in the sort of rival squad he's omitted some quite big names So there's no room for Andre Inanna, the old Man United keeper, or Eric Chupamotting, the Bayern Munich forward. To be fair, those two have been out of form in the last year or two.
34:17But there's also no room for veteran striker Vanson Aboubacar, which everyone's quite confused about. Why would Eto 'o drop this star striker? Word in Cameroon is it's because Vanson Aboubacar is extremely close to breaking the country's national goals record. which is of course held by Samuel Eto 'o can you imagine going through all of that just to protect your fucking girl right at the record oh I love that so is he is uh what's his name Vincent Abubakar yeah Abubakar yeah so he's in he's in Mark Bruce's squad yeah so is Eto 'o sacked the manager and named a squad without the star striker so that he can protect his own record arguably the three most famous players well Anana and Chupa Mottinger like big names as well.
35:08Yeah. I don't know what their crimes are. They've been a bit out of form. But yeah, it's getting silly. So I don't exactly know which squad will be there or which manager or which backroom team. Sorry, and it starts on Sunday. Yeah. So they've got like three days to sort their team out. They'll work out. This has happened before. So that time where he confiscated the training kit, apparently Briss came down to the hotel lobby and there was another manager and coach. Can you imagine every time you go away at a Celestial GT and just be like, I don't know what it's going to be like. I quite like the idea of the other manager guy just being like, I'm the manager of Cameroon.
35:42I have been very boss. Just playing along. Yeah. Do you remember also Eto 'o was accused of match fixing by his own deputy, the guy he threatened. The guy called it the most scandalous incident in the history of mankind, which is a bit of an exaggeration, but he seems to fight with everyone. He wasn't like this in his playing career, was he? Yeah, that's why. I don't remember him being hot-headed. No. at Barca or Inter or play Chelsea he was fine he had a lot of child support lawsuits against him I know oh really there was a there was a a Spanish or Italian newspaper maybe it was when he was at Inter Milan and they said that Eto 'o's legal team that he has so many different legal cases going on that they his lawyers need to rotate more than Barcelona's front line
36:34yeah yeah I think he had a slightly scandalous private life but he like i don't remember him being sort of like hot-headed no feud feuding with your your managers it's an odd one actually while we're talking dodgy blazers juan laporta the barcelona president he's being grilled by prosecutors in spain at the moment over barca are accused of making these dodgy payments to referees remember that yeah so the accusation is that they bribed the vice president of the refereeing federation and this is all being televised it's recorded the prosecution and they're like going through all this evidence in it with Juan Laporta this week and they showed him they said this is an invoice from 2005 for 60 ,000 euros worth of aloe vera gift he says he doesn't remember giving them surely if you bought $60 ,000 what is an aloe vera gift pack just like some some cream yeah because usually there's a lot of gift packs or yeah one big one because usually they'd wrap it into like you know they've got like a five-star hotel stay for after the game and shit like that just to make sure just just aloe vera i mean he denies that there's anything to the prime reference he denies prime referees i should say but yeah aloe vera gift pack sort of thing you find in the glove box of a an elderly man's car i think um also in that also in that hearing the prosecutors called luis enrique the old barca manager um and they were like you you spent six years on the coaching staff at barcelona you're barcelona b manager then you're a club manager for three years and your boss says that the reason for these payments to referees was to obtain scouting reports ahead of matches because that's juan pay refs but it was to basically give like a report before each match on like what to expect and so they were like you were the manager did you ever receive one of these reports and he goes i've never seen one so who's looking for the reports reports on on what sorry about it's like a scouting report before the referee i think yeah maybe being like this is the sort of player who might get booked for this sort of thing still it's still shady as hell anyway still shady as hell it's very weird you're off to Morocco aren't you George aren't you going to AFCON yeah I'm going I'm flying off tomorrow and then yeah I'm going to try and get to a game for sure yeah I think I'm going to Cameroon game actually let us know which one you're supporting to be determined is it easy to get tickets yeah I mean a lot easier than FIFA I'm sure than the World Cup but yeah I'm excited for it that is a great trip yeah that'd be good fun all right well tip for you george and for samiletto and mark briss and their two squads while you're out there say lee cheap overseas data for your phone if you're going abroad and want to use data to browse insta or listen to your favorite podcast or score petty points in a feud with your workplace rival then say lee is your answer so it's an e-sim app just get the app and then while you're while you're abroad yeah you can browse cheaply none of that like landing somewhere and it's like it'll be 10 quid a day for 100 megabytes bullshit yeah fuck you yeah this is this is the cheap solution so Saley is actually from the creators of NordVPN our old pals yeah and you get free access to NordVPN as well when you get it so deal yeah it's a Christmas bundle download Saley once cheap data plans for 200 countries cheapest ways use your phone abroad and lots of us are heading abroad this winter.
40:16And 15 % discount for Upshot listeners. Just get it in. Gifts upon gifts, isn't it? So yeah, download Saley. That's S-A-I-L-Y in the app store. Use the code Upshot at the checkout. I get 15 % off. I put a link in the old description box as well. Now, as any teacher will tell you, year eights are notoriously hard to impress. But even so, you'd think that Newport-based teaching assistant Scott John Trig Turner would get a bit of respect from them because he represented Wales for wheelchair rugby, an esteemed professional. But clearly the year eights at Basileg School were nonplussed by these impressive achievements, which would explain why Scott decided to tell his class that he had also served as a US Marine sniper and had upwards of 250 confirmed kills.
41:12Was he showing off or something? It would appear so To 12 year olds To 12 year olds I know what will get him So he also told them that his nickname was Killswitch That he was a lord with an MBE And that he'd served during the troubles in Northern Ireland Which he was far too young to have done anyway He also said that he's still undergun I don't know what he was Fucking hell Trying to be like don't fuck with me Yeah so he said he was a lord with an mbe yes that's probably my favorite bitch kill switch surely he knew at some point he was going to get in some trouble here how did he get yeah so those are all lies so these are all lies he's actually he's just been removed from his job at the school and banned from classrooms for two years yeah is it is it not harmless um i yeah i mean i don't know how he got found out i'm imagining that it was one of the kids came home from school and told their parents I was like you know Mr.
42:12Trig Tarder he used to be in the US Marine he's killed 250 people and he's a lord and a man he's got a gun he says he'll bring it in show and tell yeah it sounds like a parent caught wind of it and was like can you stop talking to my children about fucking sniping the Taliban your confirmed kills in Jalalabad it's very Ross Kemp and extras isn't it? Super Army soldiers. Super Army soldiers. SAS stands for Super Army People lie about stuff like this is it always claiming that they've killed loads of people in the Marines? Yeah. And why are you trying to impress 12-year-olds? To be fair, if you are trying to impress a 12-year-old, confirmed kills.
42:54Yeah. But also, surely playing for Wales is still an amazing thing. Just stick with that, mate. Yeah, exactly. What would your lie be? It was definitely more impressive than Miss Evans Pembrokeshire Half Marathon. That didn't touch the sides with you, right? Yeah. what would your lie be I think you're naturally gravitating towards represent a country at sport yeah I would say professional footballer which has done or killed people yeah yeah professional footballer I mean for year eights then tell them your fortnight streak yeah it's low stakes he's an interesting man because he's got a double barrel first and last name as well Scott John Trig Turner yeah are we definitely sure he's represented England at Wales sorry Wales at Walsh he is a lord I've seen pictures of him in a whale shirt playing wheelchair rugby don't meet many Welshmen in the US Marines he's dual nationality Killswitch is a good name I'll give him that he must have nicked that off like someone's cod yeah I once met a guy who told me that his dad's name everyone called him Cheesewire because that was his method of of killing in I guess Afghanistan Iraq that he was like a which again feels like you might have played too many video games.
44:08I had a teacher at school who it was actually before I'd started, he was on trial for doing illegal circumcisions. You had a teacher? My science teacher at school who I won't name. Illegal circumcision. He was a doctor but he had a doctor but his doctor was in rats brains or something like that but he'd been sort of introducing himself as a medical doctor and performing circumcision. So he'd go around to people's houses. He'd been doing it for years, apparently. Was he at a PhD? Not just students, not just students, but it was like babies. It was just like his sort of side. Right. He was doing circumcisions.
44:53And yeah, a few years before I started at the school, he went on trial for, because obviously you need to have like medical qualifications to do that. It was cleared, I should say. It was cleared. so he could could he legally do it was he allowed to he'd done it I think there were only a few times where there were complications it was on it was on BBC News one's enough we've got this oh yeah wow a man circumcised two baby boys in their mother's front rooms after leading them to believe he was a medical doctor at court heard wow that was him surprised you can get a job as a teacher after that yeah surely that's like a big no no so he was our he was a science teacher but he refused to teach evolution because he didn't believe in it really I bet he was he was quite religious I bet he was he'd sometimes teach biology classes but just wouldn't teach evolution I'm starting to wonder if this guy should be a teacher he was actually I actually really liked him he was a good teacher I bet he was really good at dissecting the frogs didn't he
45:58fucking hell he's really precise doesn't he Has he got the eyes out? How do you get into illegal circumcisions? Someone's got to be the first. Yeah, I don't know. I guess... I don't know. Someone needs to do it, don't they? Blokeye went to... Someone's got to do it. Blokeye went to school with an actual doctor and is running a clinic doing them and he's apparently making shitloads out of it. King of the foreskin. He's basically opened it up near a mosque and apparently he's got so many people coming in that he has multiple rooms where they're happening at once and he just goes from room to room to room.
46:29I suppose it is just, it's quite a quick procedure, isn't it? Is it? I don't know. I don't know. Yeah. I presume it is. I've never done it. All right. Starting to think I should. It sounds easy. Money for old rope.
46:46I own a pair of scissors. Yeah. I think that was pretty much his credentials as well. So I just like, it's so bold to do the first one. Do you know what I mean? Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Just like, How hard can it be? Well. I have to watch a few YouTube videos, just get it done. So talking of dangerous weapons, El Hadjouf is back in the news this week. And it's safe to say he's had a bit of a checkered past, hasn't he? You know, multiple charges of spitting at fans. He's abused ball boys. You might remember his famous scrap with Celtic manager Neil Lennon. and you know he was never one of the most popular characters I'd say he's probably the most widely hated player in by elite history and fans and just like pretty much anyone you speak to hates him Steven Gerrard fucking hates him hates him big time but he's like 500 appearances over 100 goals I think he's one of Senegal's top all time yeah I saw he won African player of the year twice as well but just in general I think he was just a bit of a little shit.
47:59Anyway, this new one is from an ex-teammate, Martin Waghorn. You might remember Martin played with him at Sunderland. How could I forget? He's a Geordie. He's now applying his trade in the baller league, playing for Jens Yeaman. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Top scorer, apparently. Jens Lehmann? Yeah. Is Jens Lehmann in the baller league? Jens Lehmann's a manager in the baller league. Is he? Yeah. I thought he was in jail for all that weird shit. Now he's a manager in the baller league. Yeah. anyway it's claimed that Juve had fallen out with then manager Roy Keane a number of times but this particular training session there was a huge spat between the pair and this row continues into the changing room and the players are like fucking hell they're going to kick off here Roy's going to smack him or Juve's going to go for him and mid-argument Juve just walks out of the changing room and everyone's like oh fucking hell maybe he's gone home maybe he's gone to like cool off or whatever gone to get roy some oranges to to say sorry anyway five minutes later he comes back in he's got a fucking bread knife in his hand he's just sitting there with a bread knife roy apparently looks at him ignores him as if like he's not even there carries on with a team talk and a couple of minutes later do you have is still there with the bread knife and keen just looks at him and apparently goes put that away will you i don't know who the fucking hell you think you are and i think that's an absolute nails line from roy like yeah great fuck no don't can you stab someone with a bread knife it's got around it saw my arm off like who's your money on roy keen with just his fisty cuffs or eladjude for the bread life probably i don't think a bread knife is that effective a weapon to be fair if you can get it in them it's gonna do some serious You can actually saw it away.
49:47I guess on the throat, you could sort of saw someone's throat. Would that work? Yeah, I mean, but just like knives at the training ground. That's wild. Pulling a knife on your manager, how did his son's career pan out? Not too well. So I did a bit of a deep dive about what happened after this and he had a run-in with a colleague using similar apparatus. Yeah, is that not Anton Ferdinand? Anton Ferdinand. So they had a bust-up after a post-match meal. They'd won 1-0 against Fulham. And they ended up having this fucking mad scrap. Apparently both of them on the ground. Elad's juif gets pulled off Anton.
50:21And as he's getting pulled off, he says... He grabs his butter knife. It probably was. He said he's going to stick Anton with a knife. A butter knife. You know, one of those like really rounded ones. And I think post... A fish knife. better than a fish fork probably wouldn't want that anyway I think like post this Sunderland start getting like he needs to go so I'm surprised I've got a feeling this guy is not great for squad harmony he's struggling to you and your bread lives can fuck off so they sell him to Blackburn 24 hours later for 2 million quid they take a massive loss I think Keno had had enough and then anyway Eladjouf and two Eladjouf Style did an interview with the Parisian magazine about a month after he joins Blackburn and he says they asked him like how was your time in England and how was Sunderland and he said that there were little wankers in the group who thought that they were the best but they were crap Anton he was the number one wanker oh fuck he just went for him he went for him big time it's quite rare and then a couple of a couple of years after that they were both playing for separate clubs in somewhere in the north and they bumped into each other in a Manchester nightclub.
51:43Shock. They end up having a massive scrap again. Duf is arrested and this time it's a threatening Anton with broken glass. Oh, shit. Again and again and again. Spoon. Where can we go from? It's one of those plastic knives. Broken glass. Yeah. He got arrested for it. Anton was questioned. And yeah, I just don't think that they're on each other's Christmas list. Has he ever actually starved anyone or he's just, just gives it all that. I think maybe he's just more of a threatening kind of vibe. Holds the knife and then spits in your face. Yeah. Quite a funny sequence of weapons. Broken glass is genuinely quite scary, but a bread knife.
52:19And what sounds a lot like a butter knife if they're at a team meal. There's nothing sharp on the table. Yeah, there's a bit of carving knife.
52:31It's quite good to have some proper beef there. Yeah, I'd always heard the rumor of the Anton Ferdinand one that he pulled a knife on him. never heard the Roy Keane one most of the managers that he played for seemed to either get rid of him fairly quickly or didn't Neil Warnock he said he said like I'd call him a sewer rat but that would be disrespectful to sewer rats but then he signed him like a year later yeah he was a quality player yeah he was good but surely if you think that about him don't buy him yeah I also love the idea of all that shit going down at Sunderland and then they're like we can flog him to Blackburn Blackburn whoever's managing Blackburn at the time Steve Keane I think it was Sam Allardyce I was Allardyce just being like yeah just like you know I thought I'd just call you just check he's he's an alright and you'd be like yeah yeah he's fine he's sound he's great great around the group absolutely fine he's actually quite good squad morale you got any team meals coming up might want to get that airport break the bread airport cutlery soft food only yeah talking about airport cutlery I was saying 1972 was a mental year and there was a um one of the other things that happened there was a shooting at a airport in Tel Aviv and I was reading the like the report of it and it said that these three it was three Japanese guys they'd got a flight from Paris to Tel Aviv and when they they like got off the plane fine and they were collecting their luggage and when their luggage arrived on the conveyor belt they opened it up pulled up machine guns and grenades and just killed everyone it was just like so what they just they just had them they just checked in luggage with this is like pre-9-11 security airport security after that they don't x-ray the bags or anything they literally just put their guns in the in the hand luggage and then in the like hold luggage and grenades even the 9-11 attackers didn't have guns no that's mental yeah sorry tangent but uh yeah it was quite bad that is wild well on that note Merry Christmas Merry Christmas Merry Christmas have a great new any new year's resolutions yeah that was that was the last extra shot of the year what a way to end it so yeah we will be putting stuff out between Christmas and New Year's we've obviously got part two of our fake shake series which people are loving if you haven't done part one already I had a lot of positive words about that and then we've got our annual awards where we'll be looking back on the year and dishing out some awards for biggest Roman's heroes and all the rest that's a really good one actually and then there's a Luke Littler special co-encertaining with the darts so there's plenty to get your teeth into over the break and we are we are still advertising our job for a video producer to come and join the team so we've had a lot of applications but the deadline has not yet passed so if you're going to apply get it in we've had an application from Xavi Hernandez someone submitted I heard he was looking which is just it's literally just in the name and CV of the Barcelona legend Xavi Hernandez has he got a mobile on it?
55:25I don't know if it's just Xavi like the CV is just as if it's Xavi ring it see what happens the lix of stuff was like YouTube highlights real Xavi's there's like 1 % of me that's like could it be our new video producer Shabby whoever's done that fair play well done so get your applications in and get your nearest and dearest the tickets to the live shows in Birmingham Manchester and Glasgow if you haven't got them anything already happy Christmas are we going to sing them out shall we old lang syne or it feels weird to do that before Christmas it's not bad luck mate it's December not bad luck but it's just what do you want to sing not through Christmas It was Christmas Eve, baby.
56:06And the drunk tank. El had just said to me. I've got a bread knife. I've got another knife. JP, thanks a lot. Thanks, guys. Thanks, Zach. Thank you. Happy Christmas. Happy Christmas. Happy Christmas.
56:24Well, Lorenzo, the pitch looked good. Yeah, so green. USA Keeper was decent enough. Didn't have much to do. Ugh, 99 minutes. Not a single goal. Well, Bet365 sure came through, though. I bet$10 and got$150 in bonus bets, just for signing up. At least someone scored. Bet365. Winning is everything. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER. 21 plus only. Must be physically located in Illinois. T's and C's apply. In-app only. That's the sound of zero sugar, 200 milligrams of caffeine, and the power to burn body fat. Storm. Energy for life. Storm Energy Blend helps boost metabolism, which in combination with exercise and a healthy diet helps burn fat.
57:06This product alone does not produce weight loss. Individual results may vary.
From the publisher
Plus: Samuel Eto’o’s AFCON meltdown and a knife-wielding Sunderland striker.
Get tickets to to the Upshot’s Live shows in April: https://www.livenation.co.uk/the-upshot-live-tickets-adp1637635
We’re hiring! Apply for the role as The Upshot’s new video producer: https://www.upshot.email/p/we-re-hiring-a-video-producer-36e9
Download SAILY in your app store and use our code UPSHOT at checkout to get an exclusive 15% off your first purchase! For further details go to https://saily.com/upshot
Join The Upshot’s Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/upshottowers
(Sign up in your browser, not the patreon app - it’s cheaper).
Links from the pod:
Kolkata riot: https://www.reddit.com/r/soccer/comments/1plfmgo/ani_fans_at_salt_lake_stadium_got_angry_with_the
Statue unveiling: https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2025/12/12/12/104672397-15377981-image-a-45_1765543002051.jpg
Hola Messi fanzone: https://assets.telegraphindia.com/telegraph/2025/Dec/1765375010_hola-messi-1.gif
Suarez nutmeg: https://www.reddit.com/r/soccer/comments/1pmfjzm/suarez_got_nutmegged_by_a_teen_indian_girl/?utm_source=www.upshot.email&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=i-see-a-snake&_bhlid=16c820a8f979cb6080947e9b36af165b189dceb7
Nitin Kumar walking out: https://www.tiktok.com/@thedarter88/video/7583727677526396193
Killing the Ally Pally wasp: https://x.com/MarkWilsonRadio/status/2000235018254459016 Cameron Menzies meltdown: https://x.com/_shaunmiller_/status/2000578781082251448
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices




