The Sweeper - World Football Stories

A sleepy town of 22,000 people in southern Slovakia is home to a top-flight football club that is challenging for national titles and boasts an ultra-modern, sleek stadium that is entirely out of step with its surroundings – thanks to money from abroad.
We paid a visit to Dunajská Streda to watch local team DAC 1904 play domestic giants Slovan Bratislava in a top-of-the table clash in Slovakia. But this was no ordinary game. It was the most politically charged football match we’ve ever seen.
The reason for that lies far beyond the football pitch. Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is funding clubs in neighbouring countries as part of a broader political strategy – one that may help him win re-election in April and shape the balance of power in the EU.
Elsewhere, the Copa Libertadores is reportedly preparing to invite guest clubs from Mexico and the US to participate in the competition starting in 2027, while Chinese football has hit a new low after nine of the Super League’s 16 clubs were deducted points.
Chapters
00:00 - Intro
01:49 - Live game: DAC 1904 v Slovan Bratislava
14:32 - Viktor Orbán's political power play
21:18 - Copa Libertadores guest invitations
23:04 - Analysis from Jon Arnold
25:59 - China's Super League low point
27:21 - Analysis from John Duerden
Sources for the lead story
Atlatszo: https://english.atlatszo.hu/2018/12/11/the-orban-government-spent-billions-on-hungarian-football-clubs-in-serbia-romania-and-slovakia
Balkan Insight: https://balkaninsight.com/2025/07/08/hungary-and-croatia-build-stadium-for-e7-5-million-in-village-of-500-inhabitants
Denník: https://dennikn.sk/1380564/bolo-to-ako-vojna-bitka-policajtov-s-fanusikmi-dunajskej-stredy-po-ktorej-sa-zmenil-zakon/
Radio Free Europe: https://www.rferl.org/a/hungary-orban-sport-influence-romania/31977287.html
Salzburger Nachrichten:https://www.sn.at/sport/fussball/international/dac-dunajska-streda-orbans-aushaengeschild-in-der-slowakei-art-371392

Qarabağ have made Champions League history this season, becoming the first Azerbaijani club to ever reach the knockout stages of the competition – and setting up a play-off tie against Premier League team Newcastle United.

Their run has come at a time of dramatic geopolitical change in the South Caucasus, with the club preparing to return to their hometown of Ağdam after spending more than three decades in exile in the capital Baku.

Elsewhere, Bodø/Glimt stunned the continent by qualifying for the knockouts despite not playing domestic football since November, while Benfica hit the headlines with a goalkeeper goal and a viral TV interview from a local priest.

Club Brugge also progressed through the league phase, but that will not be the enduring memory of their season for three fans who accompanied the team to Kazakhstan and ended up in jail in one of the strangest away-day stories of the season.

Ghost Cities FC by James Montague for the BBC: www.bbc.com/audio/play/p0lxg7xy

Chapters
00:00 – Intro
00:41 – Qarabağ's historic Champions League run
02:01 – A story of exile and homecoming
07:22 – Soft power and state support
10:50 – The secret to their sporting success
14:37 – The challenges ahead: Newcastle and Sabah
17:02 – Patreon preview: Chapecoense and South America
18:33 – Another milestone for Bodø/Glimt
21:45 – Benfica's keeper goal and priest interview
26:07 – Brugge's congratulations and Borat arrests

Christmas has come and gone, but for Santa Claus – the football club that is, not the man with the beard – the other big moment of the year is fast approaching.

This amateur team of tourism and post office workers are about to enter the Finnish Cup – their one big moment each year to show they are more than just a novelty name.

But beyond Lapland, what else is so unique about the competition? We speak to Tomi Leivo-Jokimäki, the chief organiser at the Finnish Football Association, about its soaring popularity, English influence and the trophy's wacky back story.

Finally, we take a look at other unique cup competitions across the European continent – from France’s all-inclusive cup to Bosnia’s strange final.

Chapters
00:00 – Intro
00:32 – Santa Claus' other big moment
03:38 – The uniqueness of the Finnish Cup
05:42 – A typical run in the competition
07:40 – Favourite Finnish club names
09:38 – Interview with Tomi Leivo-Jokimäki
23:20 – Patreon episode sneak peak
24:29 – Cup craziness across Europe

In just three seasons, a small-town club from central Luxembourg have gone from third-tier obscurity to challenging for the top-flight title.
 
At the heart of their rise is president Carlos Teixeira, a construction entrepreneur who literally built the club’s stadium himself before reluctantly taking over the reins.
 
On this episode, we tell Atert Bissen's story – before heading to the Netherlands, where an amateur club in the KNVB Beker are guaranteed to lift a trophy whether they win the competition or not.
 
To complete the Benelux trio we finish off in Belgium, where an angry father, a potential Iraqi investor and a revolving door of coaches have allegedly turned Olympic Charleroi into a hot mess.
 
Chapters
00:00 – Intro
00:45 – Atert Bissen’s remarkable rise
06:35 – Rapid risers across the globe
08:40 – De Treffers & the Blue Pine Cone
14:40 – Amateur rewards worldwide
18:00 – Chaos at Olympic Charleroi
22:20 – Special Sweeper announcement

In Part 1, Lee & Paul preview the inaugural OFC Pro League – the first fully professional football competition in Oceania’s history – which kicks off in New Zealand on Saturday 17 January. What matches will take place in the first circuit series in Auckland – and where can you watch them? Which team will have to travel the furthest and cross the International Date Line for their fixtures? Who are the standout players to watch out for? And what does the new tournament mean for the future of the OFC Champions League?In Part 2, there are stories from Europe, Africa and Asia. In Germany, a former Bundesliga coach is managing two McDonald’s restaurants – but what other unusual careers have footballers had after hanging up their boots? At AFCON, Mali have turned to a fetish priest to tip fate in their favour for their game against Tunisia. What on earth is one of those, we hear you ask?! And finally, Japan prepares for its transition to an autumn-spring league. But which J-League club have been royally screwed over by the switch?
Chapters
00:00 – Intro
04:11 – OFC Pro League: Format & fixtures
08:58 – OFC Pro League: Distances & date lines
13:24 – OFC Pro League: Intriguing individuals
23:23 – OFC Pro League: Concurrent competitions
27:54 – The German ex-coach working at McDonald's
31:32 – Strangest former footballer careers
38:53 – Mali's fetish priest & Gabon's letter
46:03 – Japan's schedule switch & Fukushima United