When the World Comes to Texas

While football might mean something different here in the U.S. (and Texas specifically), it means something much different around the world. And it has so much merch attached to it as well: everything from jerseys, hats and giant banners called tifos. In this episode, Ron and Miranda sit down with Tom Boyce, owner of London Calling and Crossbar Soccer and Beer to talk about bringing soccer culture from across the pond. They also speak with Jason Rosales Sanchez, Christian Lazalde and Braulio Morales, founders of Tifo Market to talk about about their soccer kit swap business.

We’ve talked about the professional side of soccer, but the sport is much more than elite athletes running around on the pitch in front of millions of fans. There’s also a strong and thriving street soccer culture that contributes to its immense popularity all over the globe. Hugo Gonzalez is the founder and co-owner of Dallas Street Soccer, and he sat down with Ron and Miranda to talk about how street soccer makes the sport more accessible and also how street soccer can bring people together across culture and language barriers.

Sports commentary can be one of the most essential parts of the experience of a game, whether you’re watching it on television or listening to the play-by-play on the radio. But what does that experience feel like when you’re blind? Elliott Stockdale is the founder of Hear Sport, an organization that provides audio descriptive sports commentary for people who are blind or have low vision. He sat down with Ron and Miranda to talk about how this kind of commentary is different than what you might traditionally hear, and how low vision and blind people can enjoy the games. 

Did you know that one of the country's most premier soccer clubs happens to be in North Texas? The FC Dallas Youth Academy was founded in 2005 by the Hunt Family, and it has gone on to produce some of the world’s most elite soccer players. Chris Hayden is the vice president and director for the FC Dallas Youth Academy, and he sat down with Ron and Miranda to talk about the history of the academy and how North Texas’s unique sports culture makes it the perfect environment for training elite athletes. 

This isn’t the first time the U.S. has hosted the biggest sporting event in the world. The World Cup came to the country in 1994, and it was then and there that Michael Hitchcock discovered a love for the sport of soccer. Now, Hitch works as a soccer management executive, and he sat down with Ron and Miranda to talk about how soccer went from being a neglected sport to one of major status in the country. 

Here's a preview of our new KERA News podcast about how soccer is about to transform North Texas this summer.