#37 Broadcast Bias - Controversy Rocking Rugby and Leinster & Ulster Return to Finals

The Rugby Pod

The Ringer

Sports, Comedy, Rugby

4.7 • 5.3K Ratings

🗓️ 5 May 2026

⏱️ 70 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

European rugby finally delivered the chaos it’s been promising. Bigs joins Jim and Goodey to break down a weekend of semi-final action, with two blockbuster finals now locked in. From Bordeaux’s ruthless efficiency dismantling Bath, to the growing controversy around French TV coverage and TMO decision-making, there’s plenty to get stuck into. Leinster grind out a statement win over Toulon, showing a less flashy but more resilient edge that could see them finally get their fifth star. Ulster book their first European final in 14 years with a dominant win over Exeter, and Montpellier scrape past the Dragons to reach a final. Away from the pitch, the boys react to winning Best Sports Podcast at the Oscars of sport, Eddie Jones’ latest rant, Bristol’s “marketing agency” comments, and George North’s retirement. We cover all the big calls as we gear up for Bilbao. Sign up to NordVPN by going to https://nordvpn.com/rugbypod to get a Discount off your NordVPN Plan + 4 additional months free. It’s completely risk-free with Nord’s 30-day money-back guarantee Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Pod, pod, pod, rugby pod.
0:06.7	Rugby pod.
0:11.6	Right, let's get into it.
0:12.7	Hello and welcome back to the rugby pod where Champions Cup rugby
0:15.7	rugby finally delivered.
0:18.1	Semi-final chaos controversy and a couple of blockbusters lined up in Espagnol, Bilbao.
0:25.6	Yes, the finalists are in the books.
0:27.6	We've got Lensster versus Bordeaux in the Champions Cup and Ulster versus Montpellier in the
0:32.6	challenge.
0:33.6	Who said Irish club rugby was in decline?
0:35.6	Oh yes, but more importantly, we're going to be talking about everything.
0:38.3	Yellow cards, non-yellow cards, TV directors,
0:41.8	cowboys, clowns, the lot.
0:44.3	It has been a massive weekend
0:45.8	of two very different semifinals in the Champions Cup,
0:49.1	two decent semifinals in the Challenge Cup.
0:51.0	So without further ado, settle back, enjoy, and make sure you've subscribed on Spotify.
1:00.1	Right, before we get into it, some big news.
1:03.4	Some big news for people that might have missed it.
1:05.6	We won an award.
1:06.6	Is this our first award, Roberto, officially the best sports podcast in the UK? A big thank you to everyone. Rob, is this our first award, Roberto, officially the best sports podcast in the UK?
1:29.2	A big thank you to everyone. Rob, is this our first award, like meaningful award? I think we've won awards before, but I think this is the best one we've ever won. It was that good that you put a suit on, Roberto, to go up there and do the speech, talk us through. We should have been there, but we couldn't be there. Hey, it's a little bit rock and roll.
	...

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