Men In Blazers

I don’t recall the precise circumstances I first chanced upon Rog and Dave-o (or as their passports would know them, Roger Bennett and Michael Davies) but my relationship with their podcasting endeavours has been nearly as long-lasting as any other in my life.

The subject matter (mainly British soccer, though they wave the Stars and Stripes for the U.S. Men’s and Women’s teams a lot and make a genuine effort to promote the game domestically in their adopted country) certainly had an allure for me but I think the reason I kept coming back, and back, and back would be what the New York Times characterized as their “absurd levels of chemistry.”  At its heart this is a show about two accomplished and articulate middle-aged men who stumbled upon the perfect way to spend a couple of hours together a week and then had it pay off.  Big time.

Though the format has changed a little from years gone by (the interview segments, formerly a favourite of mine, have largely been transferred to the Men in Blazers TV show broadcast on NBC Sports in the U.S.) the core concept remains the same: banter between exuberantly pessimistic Rog from The North of England and bullishly optimistic London-born Dave-o.  Amazingly these two only met each other in 2006 at a mutual friend’s wedding, but from the ease of their repartee and relationship you’d think they were old school chums.

If you have an interest in “footy”, or would like a low-barrier to entry way to help get further interested/informed, this is the pod for you.  Who knows?  Maybe someday soon you, too, will join such luminaries as ex-NFL Quarterback Andrew Luck, comedian John Oliver, or musician Shaggy as a “GFOP (Great Friend of the Pod)”.

Essential first listens: Leicester City’s miraculous season finale and the insights of Oakland Athletics GM Billy Beane on how they “Moneyballed” their way to the title.