Libero

Atmosphere is one of the Premier League’s biggest selling points to broadcasters, but ask anyone who regularly goes to games and they will tell you that atmospheres in English grounds are in stark decline. If we do accept that atmospheres are getting worse, why is that?

On today’s episode John Brewin, Jack Pitt-Brooke and James Horncastle try to unpack what exactly we mean when we talk about a ‘good atmosphere’, and whether we are taking a selective view of English football's vibrant year gone by.

P1: (02:41)

P2: (31:19)

Produced by: Tom Bassam

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Music: Kid Kodi - Blue Dot Sessions
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Libero might like knocking the Champions League, but even we know there's nothing like European knock-out football for compelling drama. But with six English clubs in the last 16 and Manchester City playing Real Madrid, again, is this really as exciting as it should be? Is this as good as it once was? This week on Libero, Miguel Delaney, Tariq Panja and Rory Smith ask when the Champions League was at its best, what it was that made it so special, and whether that can be recaptured.

P1: (10:45)

P2: (37:11)

Produced by: Tom Bassam

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Music: Kid Kodi - Blue Dot Sessions
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Every year football's rich and powerful gather at a West London hotel to do deals, shake hands and talk about the game in a way would be quite unfamiliar to anyone not in the posh seats at 3pm on a Saturday. Several Liberi were in attendance at the recent FT Business of Football Summit, so they found a quiet corridor to discuss what they'd overheard at the conference, as well as the detachment between those who seek to profit from football and the game itself. You'll hear from Tariq Panja, Rory Smith, Miguel Delaney and James Horncastle. There's also a fabulous cameo from The Mirror's John Cross.

P1: (00:27)

P2: (25:03)

Produced by: Tom Bassam, who apologises for the lack of proper video on this episode.

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Music: Kid Kodi - Blue Dot Sessions
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In recent years it has felt as if the Premier League was permanently stratified, with the poor teams unable to win and the rich teams unable to lose. But Tottenham Hotspur have the ninth biggest revenue in Europe and they are at increasing risk of going down.

On today’s episode Jack Pitt-Brooke, John Brewin and Jonathan Wilson discuss the possibility of Spurs’ relegation from the top flight. Jonathan tells the story of their relegation in the 1970s, and the team ask whether that is comparable to a big team going down in 2026.

Because if Spurs do go - and they still have a four point gap - what would it mean for English football? Would it tell us that the Premier League is in fact starting to de-stratify?

P1: (05:39)

P2: (27:34)

Produced by: Tom Bassam

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Music: Kid Kodi - Blue Dot Sessions
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It is – it turns out – quite difficult to pin down an accurate definition of what 'bottling it' means and, therefore, which teams can be fairly described as having committed this failure of will in the past. Miguel Delaney, Rory Smith and Jonathan Wilson give it their best shot at outlining the true meaning of the phrase and discuss the most famous 'bottle jobs' in football history. With the nerve of Mikel Arteta's Arsenal being severely tested as they seek to end a 26-year wait for a Premier League title, are we about to see another egregious example of 'bottling it' or would it be unfair to apply that description to this Gunners side? All covered in a landmark episode of Libero.

P1: (02:43)

P2: (27:46)

Produced by: Tom Bassam

Email in via [email protected]

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Music: Kid Kodi - Blue Dot Sessions
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