The Sweeper - A World Football Podcast9 Joulu 2025

Quebec's Athletic Bilbao, Guadeloupe's 4-point per win rule & Norway's naked cup winner

In Part 1, Lee and Paul take a deep dive into Canadian football, including the national team's World Cup draw, Vancouver Whitecaps' incredible campaign and the changes to the line-up in the Canadian Premier League. Do Canada have a chance against Qatar, Switzerland – and probably Italy? Will the Vancouver Whitecaps be able to stay in Vancouver? How on earth did the Canadian Premier League's bottom club qualify for the top continental competition? And who are FC Supra du Quebec, the new club joining the division in 2026?

In Part 2, it's the usual array of stories from across the world. Several French overseas territories award four points for a win – but what other location-specific football rules exist around the world? Lee tests Paul in a quiz! Over in Norway, a season of surprises continues as Viking claim the Eliteserien and second-tier Lillestrøm win the Norwegian Cup. We hear from Viking's No.1 overseas fan Babsi! And finally, the 2026 World Cup group stage draw is now done and dusted. Which debutant has the best chance of going through?

Copa 90 documentary on Vancouver Whitecaps: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A6Hnk37Lwo8

Weird and wacky football rules: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Group_tournament_ranking_system#Association_football

Chapters:

00:00 – Intro

00:47 – Canada's World Cup prospects

02:38 – The Vancouver Whitecaps story

07:24 – Relocation fears

11:35 – Vancouver FC's Champions Cup qualification

15:33 – The newcomers: FC Supra du Québec

17:50 – The departure: Valour FC

19:43 – The rebrand: Inter Toronto

24:33 – Four points per win in the Caribbean

28:15 – Bizarre football rules quiz

36:30 – Norway's season of surprises

48:14 – Debutant World Cup groups

50:38 – On The Spot

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