Q&A: Can sport ever be apolitical?

The Two Matts

Podmasters

News, News Commentary, Government, Politics

4.4 • 523 Ratings

🗓️ 3 August 2025

⏱️ 34 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Today on The Two Matts podcast, Matthew d'Ancona and I again respond to your queries. After this week’s exclusive interview with Gary Lineker on Gaza, the BBC and podcasting we discuss whether sport - and sports personalities - can ever be truly apolitical. Also, has political podcasting now become more influential than newspapers?

Plus, we talk about whether cancel culture has peaked and what advice we’d offer 16 and 17-year-olds before voting for the first time. Finally, as Harry Frankfurt’s classic philosophical book, On Bullshit, is being republished to mark its 20th anniversary, we ask whether there is more bullshit around today than there was in 2005.

Have a question to stump the two Matts? Email us now at [email protected]

OFFER: Get The New World for just £1 for the first month. Head to https://www.thenewworld.co.uk/2matts

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Now, before we get into the podcast, a quick message.
0:02.2	The New World is journalism with a spine, smart, sharp, and it's asking the questions others
0:07.4	dodge.
0:08.4	We dig into power, hypocrisy, and the hidden forces shaping politics and culture, with writing
0:14.0	that respects your intelligence and never waste your time.
0:18.3	So if you're tired of the noise, craving clarity, the New World is where you
0:23.3	belong. So subscribe now. Find out what's making us the fastest growing political and cultural
0:29.0	magazine in the UK for the past four years running. And you'll discover a magazine that doesn't
0:35.7	just give you great journalism, it gives you great
0:38.2	hope for the future. Go to the newworld.com.com.uk forward slash two mats. That's the number
0:45.0	two, M-A-T-T-S, for a very special offer just for two-mats listeners. That's the newworld.com.com.
0:52.0	UK forward slash two mats. Enjoy the podcast.
0:58.1	Want to know the real story of how Oasis made Britain mad for it? How friends turned us on to
1:03.7	coffee culture and super layered hair. The secrets of Nirvana, train spotting, gay hookups,
1:09.7	Diana's revenge dress and what it was really like
1:12.4	to be a spice girl? plunged back into the decade when the world fell for cool Britannia,
1:17.8	bumster jeans and lemon hooch with Talk 90s to Me. You can listen now wherever you get your
1:23.4	podcasts and if you use Spotify, you can watch the whole show too. That's Talk 90s to me,
1:29.2	out every Monday.
1:40.6	Hello and happy Sunday. Happy Sunday, one and all. Hope you're having a great weekend. This is the two mats question and answer session brought to you by the wonderful subscribers of the new world. Should we dive straight in? Right. Well, I'm going to ask this question because I think that there's a bit of it that only you can answer. It's from Keith Fitzpatrick in the Netherlands. Hi, Keith. Could an Evertonian ever become Prime Minister? Oh, dear. What is the most likely route for Andy Burnham to become leader of the Labour Party after Kier Starrma? And could this happen before the next election, Matt? Well, I can answer the first bit, right? Very clearly. Yeah. Because it's self-evidential. And an Evertonian not only could become Prime Minister,
2:20.6	but has become Prime Minister, only not here in Canada.
2:24.7	Mark Carney's an Evertonian.
	...

Transcript will be available on the free plan in 5 days. Upgrade to see the full transcript now.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Podmasters, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Podmasters and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.