TMHS Episode 31 - Christian Polanco

Christian Polanco (The Cooligans podcast) talks the 2026 FIFA World Cup, sportswashing, and how teams getting punished (or not punished) for their government's behavior. We discuss the growth of American soccer, equal pay in the women's game, FIFA's treatment of Russia and Iran, the Maccabi Tel Aviv riots in Amsterdam, efforts to ban Israel from FIFA, and how fan-owned clubs in Germany approach inclusivity and identity.Support the show as a free or paid subscriber at https://www.patreon.com/maryhoulihan.Timestamps:00:00:00 Trailer 00:00:43 Intro 00:01:05 World Cup 2026 and What Brought Him to LA 00:02:27 How The Hooligans Podcast Started 00:04:00 American Soccer's Growth Since 1994 00:06:41 Playing Soccer at 29 and the $1M Tournament 00:07:17 Interviewing David Beckham and US Women's Players 00:11:20 Equal Pay Fight: US Women's National Team 00:15:00 Athlete Activism and Press Conference Culture 00:22:00 Maccabi Tel Aviv Riots in Amsterdam 00:26:20 Ireland's "Show Israel the Red Card" Campaign 00:57:00 Fan-Owned Clubs, Germany's 50+1 Rule, and FC St. Pauli 01:01:00 Sports Teams, Dodgers, and Compromised Values 01:06:22 OutroFollow Christian: Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/christian_polanco/?hl=en Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/christianpolanco/ X - https://x.com/chrispolanco?lang=enFollow Mary:YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@maryhoulie Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/maryhoulie/ twitch - twitch.tv/maryhoulie TikTok - tiktok.com/@maryhoulieSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.