I am 40 years old.  My first memory of international soccer was in 1977, when I was 8 years old.  My brother brought home a magazine called World Soccer.  I think Kevin Keegan was on the cover, playing for Hamburg.  It was the greatest thing I’d ever seen.  All the more so due to the scarcity of information about European and International Soccer in America.  I think my brother had to go to Windsor to get the magazine.  And he’d come back with the British newspapers, maybe even a Celtic or Rangers News, on a good day.  There was no internet.  Television?  We had Mario Machado doing an English game for 60 minutes every Monday on public television.  He was fantastic.  Channel 9 from Windsor might show the FA Cup Final, and the European Club Cup Finals, but for the most part, it was a starvation diet.  And the World Cup?  In 1978, we had to go to the Masonic Temple Theatre in Detroit to watch Scotland v Peru on closed circuit.  The only way I could stay in touch with the game was World Soccer magazine; and that was on a delayed basis, as it was only a monthly. 

Thirty years later, a soccer fan is saturated with information, both on television and the internet.  You can watch games every day of the week from all over the world, unimaginable when I was a boy.  And you have incredible web site coverage with espnsoccernet and others giving you round the clock information about everything in the world.  You have journalism and insight of the highest calibre in places like the Guardian/Observer.  And World Soccer has survived as an essential source for any fan even in the internet age. 

But for me, there is one source of soccer information that towers over all the others:  World Football Daily.  For those of you who haven’t had the pleasure, WFD, found at www.worldfootballdaily.com, is a daily podcast, Monday through Friday, hosted by Steven Cohen and Kenny Hassan.  Cohen has also served as a host on Fox Football Phone-In on Fox Soccer Channel.  However, Prior to September 2009, Cohen hosted World Soccer Daily on Sirius Radio.  It was broadcast daily, Monday through Friday, from 1pm to 3pm.  But you had to have Sirius Radio.  In June 2009 I purchased a Ford vehicle and had free Sirius Radio for 6 months.  Thus, I was finally able to listen to the show my brother Mark had been raving about for months.  It was fantastic.  Cohen and Hassan broadcast from Los Angeles.  Cohen is Chelsea to the core, while Hassan is a huge Rangers supporter.  But for the most part, what they are is passionate soccer fans, who follow the game religiously, and are able to get the best and brightest writers and commentators from around the world to appear on their show. 

Cohen and Hassan are extremely funny and incredibly passionate.  And Cohen, who served in the U.S. Armed Forces, is a huge supporter of U.S. Soccer.  Remember, June 2009 was the time of the Confederations Cup.  After a tough start, the US defeated Egypt and Spain to earn a rematch against Brazil in the Final.  After leading 2-0 at halftime, we were unable to hold on, and Brazil won 3-2.  You had to hear the pain in Cohen’s voice the next day, as he described himself as “gutted, absolutely gutted.”  He had no interest in moral victories.  And when the Beckham Experiment was released?  All they did was have author Grant Wahl on the show the entire week.  You cannot get that type of coverage anywhere else in America, maybe even the world.

And then it all seemed to be over.  In September, Cohen announced that World Soccer Daily was finished.  Cohen’s primary passion, on a partisan level is Chelsea, but it seems to be closely followed by “having a go”, as he would say, at Liverpool.  Earlier in the year, on the 20th anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster, where 95 Liverpool supporters died due to overcrowding at an FA Cup semifinal, Cohen gave the opinion that a major factor in the tragedy was Liverpool fans showing up without tickets and trying to get into the match.  That opinion was not well received by Liverpool supporters, and a campaign was waged against the show, focusing on convincing sponsors to leave the show.  Apparently, the campaign was successful, as many did leave the show.  In addition, Cohen claimed that threats were made against himself and his family, and that it was not worth it anymore.  When I heard the news that the show was gone, I was devastated.  And why was the show gone?  Because of auld enmities from the auld country.  The Hillsborough disaster was a watershed in the history of British Soccer, but it is not an issue that resonates in America.  I don’t know whether Cohen’s opinion is factually accurate.  I do know that the great Tim Vickrey wrote an open letter to Cohen criticising Cohen for his comments.  But most importantly, I couldn’t help wondering why Cohen felt compelled to discuss Hillsborough on the show in the first place.  It could only be described as an irresistable impulse.  Certainly, fans of the show weren’t asking for it.

In any event, all fans of the show were left to mourn its passing.  And then, like the proverbial Phoenix, the show has risen from the ashes, better than ever.  No more Sirius Radio; the show is strictly internet.  As a result, while you can listen to the show live at 1pm, you can also listen to it whenever you want, by simply downloading it.  Furthermore, while the old show was great, like any other radio show, it was a slave to commercials.  The new podcast is commercial free, typically 2 solid hours of superb content 5 days a week.  Martin Tyler, Andy Gray, Grant Wahl, Tim Vickrey, Phil Ball, Graham Hunter, Amy Lawrence, etc., etc.,.  The primary focus is the Premiership, but they cover Serie A as well as anyone, plus Spain and MLS and everything important in the game.  They have had David Conn from the Guardian and World Soccer Magazine explaining the Manchester United debt crisis in terms that fans can understand.  They have had in depth coverage of the African Nations Cup.  And you can only imagine what they will have ready for South Africa.

There is a live feed that you can listen to for free, but the show is funded by certain loyal sponsors and those listeners such as myself who are willing to pay $40 per year as premium subscribers.  With the premium membership, you are able to get certain interviews that are unavailable in the live show.  It is money well spent.  There is nothing to compare it to in the United States, probably not in England either.  I cannot recommend it highly enough.

Is it without flaws?  No.  As of Friday, Cohen was promising to devote significant time this coming week to more discussion of Hillsborough.  Toward what end?  I would simply say to Steven Cohen: I understand you feel you have been hard done by Livepool supporters with the boycott and the ill will directed at you and your family.  And if Hillsborough were the dominant issue in the papers this week, and that is what your listeners wanted to hear you and guests discuss, then have at it and speak freely.  But I don’t want to listen to it.  I want to hear about Arsenal and Chelsea, Real Madrid and Barca, Charlie Davies‘ recovery and the MLS Labor Agreement.  I don’t want to hear auld scores from the auld country rehashed and refought.  And I can’t imagine Cohen can find any of the phenomenal guests he gets every week who will have any interest in talking about this issue.  He really needs to let it go.

But in the big picture, that is a quibble.  If you are a soccer fan living in America, or anywhere in the English speaking world, you HAVE to subscribe to this show.  Cohen and Hassan are passionate, entertaining and informative.  Cohen supports Chelsea and Hassan supports Rangers; my taste runs to Liverpool and Celtic.  Who cares?  It’s the best show out there.  I’ll comment about it from time to time, but there’s nothing like listening to it.  Find it at www.worldfootballdaily.com.  Pay the $40 for one year as a premium member.  You won’t be disappointed.

                                                                          Matt Switalski