Football is the most popular sport on the planet.

This shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone who's experienced the excitement of match day.

It's hard to remain indifferent when thousands of tightly packed fans,

each patriotically sporting the colours of their team, sing, cheer

and heckle in unison.

The thrill of a crunching challenge, a Derby victory, or a last-minute winner will undoubtedly

elicit excitement.

For the skeptic, there is nothing beyond this superficial appeal.

Foolball is simply a game of chance, in which the sports novelty appeal is only sustained

through blind patriotism. Football is pushpin and is not to be confused with poetry. Durham University,

Stephen Munford defends football in the face of this attack. For Mumford, football has an

intellectual depth that rewards more detailed consideration. When we watch football

through a philosophical lens, we are called to deliberate a great wealth of ideas, from categories

of aesthetic virtue and the role of chance, control and victory, to the nature of a team and the

persistence of a club throughout time. As always, thank you to the podcast chairs, Cullum St. Gabriel's and the West Hill Endowment,

as well as the loyal supporters for cheering on the show.

In particular, thank you to Dylan Kirby, Lily Hooper, David Liginesse, Mr. T, Jimmy Casperson,

and Jim Clare.

If you're enjoying our aesthetic display and you're committed to supporting the show as Dylan, Lily, David, Mr. T, Jimmy and Jim, head over to the Patreon forward slash panpsychas to show your support.

A link is also available in the iTunes description.

Like a game of football, the podcast comes in two halves.

In part one, we're going to be looking at the philosophy behind the game.

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