Today, we're celebrating our first Europa and Conference League double extravaganza, as 36 matches played out over the course of 5 hours on Thursday.

We begin with Europa, where Benfica and Leverkusen are staking their claim as the tournament's top contenders. Milan and Juventus also come out with big road victories, while Bournemouth and Sunderland tries to build momentum with wins – though Sunderland had to work hard for theirs against a pesky Torreense. Meanwhile, Besiktas took down another big-league opponent. Are they a legitimate challenger for the title?

We also discuss the teams struggling in the early days of the season, including Marseille, Hoffenheim, and Celta Vigo, who have no points to show for their first two outings. Can they turn things around?

In the Conference, most of the big boys came away with opening-day wins, with a few notable exceptions. Getafe could only manage a draw in Craiova. What're the ceiling for Bordalás' men in this competition? Ajax lost at Hajduk Split, continuing another poor run of form. Is there something rotten in their infrastructure? And Braga extends their bad start to the season, losing 3-0 at Copenhagen while looking a shell of their former selves.

It's not all doom and gloom, though, as a pesky Egnatia side earned a shock draw with Midtjylland, despite having to play outside of their usual home in Tirana.

Along the way, we give some winners and losers, panic meter scores, and choose the teams we believe can actually win the title in both tournaments.

Cheers to Nevil Dede!

Chapters:

00:00 – the start

2:28 – Europa League | Results & Big Takeaways

10:32 – Europea League | Winners & Losers

20:09 – How many teams can actually win the Europa League?

26:30 – Europa League | Panic Meter

31:58 – Conference League | Results & Big Takeaways

36:23 – Conference League | Winners & Losers

45:36 – How many teams can actually win the Conference League?

48:56 – Conference League | Panic Meter

51:52 – David's Coefficient Corner

On today's Across The Continent, we're taking a look at clubs who have had surprising starts to their league campaigns and asking the question, are we BUYING or SELLING their position?

We debate the bright falls of Brighton, Lazio, Cagliari, Augsburg, Elversberg, Alavés, and Paris FC, then bring a couple of smaller-league teams to your attention, including Belgium's Sporting Charerloi, Turkey's Amed SK, Hungary's Vasas SC, and Albania's FK Teuta Durrës.

We also highlight a couple of struggling clubs in Tottenham, Fiorentina, and Marseille.

Then, Maxwell discusses the insane parity in La Liga's midtable – a featured carried over from last season – with 8 clubs all level on 8 points through 8 rounds of fixtures. What's real and what's not in this group, and who is likely to separate?

And finally, David tells us about Australian cup winners South Melbourne FC, a historic club, controversially cut off from the Aussie A League. How did they upset first division clubs en route to their triumphant victory in the final? And why are they joining the new Oceanic division?

Cheers to Sinisa Cohadzic!

Chapters:

00:00 – the start

01:39 – teams we're buying & selling

18:50 – clubs outside the top 5 leagues

23:30 – clubs off to terrible starts

30:58 – Maxwell's topic | La Liga midtable parity

34:09 – David's topic | South Melbourne FC's cup triumph

Today, we round up all the most interesting developments from the new, extended international break.

We've had a long three weeks without domestic football, but many interesting things are afoot on the national-team scale.

We begin in Europe, where many new coaches have taken over post-World Cup. We do quick hits on Klopp's Germany, Xavi's Netherlands, Zidane's France, as well as Italy, Croatia, Belgium, and Scotland. And yes, we talk about the very silly Ronaldo situaiton...

Then we discuss goings-on in other other continents, including Messi's farewell to Argentina, the CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinals, and Africa's usual chaos.

Finally, we close on a sort-of-serious segment on what's happening down in Oceania. Hail Fiji!

Cheers to Stéphane Auvray!

Chapters:

00:00 – the start

03:06 – UEFA | Germany

05:32 – The Netherlands

10:01 – France

14:01 – Croatia

17:42 – Portugal & Ronaldo

25:09 – Italy

30:04 – Belgium & Scotland

33:53 – South America & CONCACAF

38:53 – Africa & Asia

42:34 – Oceania

It's our very first edition of ACROSS THE CONTINENT's intended format!

Every Monday, we will discuss a shared topic demanding our attention across the footballing word. Then, each of us will bring a surprise subject to present to the other.

This week, we have no choice but to tackle Manchester City as the main story, after it was announced they've been found guilty of nearly all 115 charges leveled against them.

David the lawyer breaks down exactly what those charges stipulate, then we debate the merits of potential punishments, as well as the affect this will have on the legacy of Pep Guardiola and his players.

We then turn our attention to the current international break. First, David updates us on the 12 new coaches hired by UEFA nations since the World Cup. Then Maxwell points to the shifting balance of power in the 2nd tier of CONCACAF, from Central American to Caribbean teams.

Cheers to Dick Advocaat!

Chapters:

00:00 – the start

02:16 – overview of charges against Man City

09:25 – potential punishments

17:42 – how will this affect legacies?

20:50 – David's topic | 12 new coaches in UEFA

28:19 – Maxwell's topic | balance of power shifting in CONCACAF?

We're back to cover the Greek National Team in our latest Club Spotlight!

This one is long awaited by us, as we've been talking about the influx of young Greek talent across Europe for awhile now – but how did they get here?

We begin by giving a brief history of the national team in the 20th century, which was mainly a struggle, qualifying for only a couple major tournaments.

Of course, everything changed at Euro 2004, when Otto Rehhagel led Greece to a shock title, defeating the Portuguese hosts in both the group stage and the final.

But after the 2014 World Cup, the talent dried up and the nation went through a decade of international strike. Desperate to change their fortunes, the FA put together a project to revitalize Greek football and bring through a new generation of technical players.

We discuss how they did this, what their long-term vision is, and how the current side shapes up, highlighting many of the talented youngsters that have been tearing up Europe – Konstantelias, Karetsas, Tzolis, Tzolakis, Kostoulas, and more.

Cheers to Ivan Jovanović!

Chapters:

00:00 – the start

03:03 – 20th Century history

08:13 – Euro 2004

19:47 – dark ages

21:17 – the revitalization project

29:17 – the current team

Sources:

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6896033/2025/12/24/inside-greek-footballs-rebirth-from-euro-2004-to-the-battle-of-thermopylae/

https://blog.transferroom.com/how-greek-and-cypriot-football-has-become-a-new-hotbed-for-top-talent

https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/greek-football-primed-renaissance-055000125.html

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5339532/2024/03/31/greece-euro-2004-history/

Fotmob

It's our final league preview episode on ACROSS THE CONTINENT, and to wrap up our journey through Europe's top 9 divisions, we're bringing you our takes on THE NETHERLANDS, BELGIUM, and TURKEY's top flights.

Beginning in The Netherlands' Eredivisie, we debate the order of the big 5, speculate if anyone can keep pace with PSV, explain why Ajax still has a ways to go in their restructuring, and highlight AZ Alkmaar's exciting roster.

Over in Belgium's Pro League, we compare four sides off to flying starts – Union St Gilloise, Club Brugge, Gent, and Sporting Charleroi. Are these the clubs that will be battling for the title? And could Genk, Sint Truiden, or Royal Antwerp join them?

Finally, in Turkey's Süper Lig, everyone is once again chasing Galatasaray. Will this be the year Fenerbahce finally catches them? And what about Mo Salah's Trabzonspor, who have already had a chaotic start to the season? We also explain why we're so high on Besiktas and why we think Vincenzo Italiano is one of Europe's most underrated managers.

Plus, we discuss the strengths and weakness of each league as a whole. Who has the most depth in the midtable? And how would the best clubs in each other's divisions?

Cheers to Okan Buruk!

Chapters:

00:00 – the start

01:53 – Netherlands

15:04 – Belgium

23:51 – Turkey

Our CLUB SPOTLIGHT series returns, and our first club of the 2026-27 season is Portugal's S.C.U. TORREENSE.

2nd-tier Torreense shocked the footballing world by winning the Taça de Portugal, defeating the mighty Sporting in extra time. As a result, the small-town club earned Europa League football, despite not competing in the top flight since 1992.

David breaks down the club's history and circumstances, its incredible cup run, and its outlook for the Europa League league phase.

Cheers to Luís Tralhão!

Chapters:

00:00 – the start

02:28 – club intro

06:59 – the cup run

18:25 – current team, Europa League outlook, & historical precedents

For the fifth of six league previews to kick of ACROSS THE CONTINENT, we're taking on France's LIGUE 1 and Portugal's LIGA PORTUGAL.

Over in France, we begin with the relegation battle and debate which of the recently promoted teams we like best, as well as why we think OG Nice could be in serious trouble.

Next, we tackle mid-table and European outsiders, including some clubs with unusual financial stability and upside for a league often strapped for cash.

Then, we hit on the usual suspects in the European races, including Lille, Lyon, Rennes, and Lens, sharing concerns for Marseille and excitement for new-challengers Paris FC. Can Liam Rosenior man-age his new side to glory? And finally, just how good do we think Monaco is? Can they actually compete for the title?

For the latter portion of the episode, we head to Portugal, where we're set for yet another photo-finish of a title race between Porto, Sporting, and Benfica. Porto has embraced continuity, Sporting has embraced change, and Benfica swapped Mourinho for Marco Silva – so who has the edge?

We then finish we a trip to the island of Madeira, where its two clubs, Marítimo and Nacional will reignite their derby this season after Marítimo's return to the top flight.

Cheers to Stéphane Dumont!

Chapters:

00:00 – the start

01:24 – Ligue 1 | intro

04:05 – Ligue 1 | relegation

13:45 – Ligue 1 | mid-table

21:18 – Ligue 1 | European push

27:28 – Ligue 1 | Champions League

35:40 – Liga Portugal | title race

41:58 – Liga Portgual | Medeira derby