EPISODE 409: "F***in' Hell, It's Paul Cannell"

It's a no-holds-barred conversation with footballing legend Paul Cannell — the Geordie striker who lit up mid-1970s Newcastle United, vaulted into the heyday of the North American Soccer League, and left a trail of memorable goals, disciplinary cards, and impish chaos in his wake.

Best remembered for his fiery stint with the two incarnations of the NASL's Washington Diplomats, Cannell was as much a headline in the nightlife columns as he was on the sports pages. On the field, he was fearless in the air and relentless in the tackle, leading the Dips in scoring while collecting enough penalty points to draw more than a few league suspensions. Off the field, he became a fixture in DC-area bars and dance clubs, a radio guest of a young new voice named Howard Stern, and — by his own telling — the first soccer player ever signed by Nike, bringing Studio 54-era disco-inspired white boots to the playing pitch.

Cannell takes us straight into the heart of those wild years. He opens up about the highs and hangovers of the NASL boom (including stints with the Memphis Rogues, Calgary Boomers & Detroit Express), brushes with legends like Johan Cruyff and Pelé, the infamous “F***in’ Hell, It’s Paul Cannell” chant that followed him everywhere, and the unfiltered stories that made his memoir as outrageous as its title.

Blunt, funny, and never shy of controversy, Cannell reminds us why he became one of the NASL’s most colorful figures — and why his name still carries a mix of respect, disbelief, and laughter decades later — especially among DC sportswriters and soccer fans. 

PLUS: The "Mayor of Georgetown" helps Tim remember classic DC night spots of the day like Winston's, Tramp's & Sign of the Whale!

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Get the best in high-quality commemorative Dips, Memphis Rogues Detroit Express, Calgary Boomers & NASL league T-shirts with promo code savings from our friends at OldSchoolShirts.com (code GOODSEATS)! 

F***in’ Hell, It’s Paul Cannell - buy Book Here

EPISODE 160: “Soccertown USA” – With Tom McCabe & Kirk Rudell

Film producers Tom McCabe and Kirk Rudell (“Soccertown USA”) join the podcast this week to discuss their newly released documentary about the modest working-class New Jersey town with an outsized influence on the history of the sport of soccer in the United States.

In the mid-1980s, as the domestic pro game began to fade with the demise of the once-hot North American Soccer League, and FIFA’s passing over of the US as potential replacement host for the 1986 World Cup – it was three kids from largely-unheralded Kearny, NJ who helped save it.

Native sons Tab Ramos, John Harkes, and Tony Meola – who formed the backbone of a Men’s National Team that willed its way to breakthrough success in both the 1990 and 1994 World Cups, and laid the groundwork for the pro game’s rebirth in 1996 with the launch of Major League Soccer – were products of a uniquely rich soccer-passionate culture dating back to the town’s Scottish immigrant influx in the 1870s.

Kearny’s storied heritage as a fertile American soccer hotbed – spirited factory-sponsored leagues, ASL cup-winning “pro” teams, strong youth programs, a vibrant street-soccer scene, and even local heroes in the 1970s NASL (including a member of the mighty New York Cosmos virtually next door) – not only nurtured these three pioneers of the game, but also continue to help inspire future generations to play and support the “beautiful game.”

EPISODE #35: National Soccer Hall of Famer Paul Child

Former NASL, MISL, CISL (and even ASL) soccer great Paul Child becomes the fifth National Soccer Hall of Famer to join the podcast – and regales host Tim Hanlon with a bevy of eyebrow-raising anecdotes from a 25+ pro career as a player and coach across teams and leagues in both the outdoor and indoor versions of the game, including: 

  • Taking a chance to get first-team play as a 19-year-old via loan with the Atlanta Chiefs in the fragile 1972 North American Soccer League;
  • Learning to love the narrow confines and uniquely spray-painted burgundy and black penalty areas of San Jose’s Spartan Stadium;
  • Laying carpet for and dodging chicken wire during the NASL’s primitive inaugural indoor tournament in San Francisco’s Cow Palace in 1975; 
  • Wondering if sellout crowds in Atlanta’s Omni for Chiefs indoor games in the early 1980s were for spirited play, or cheeky promotions like “Who Shot J.R.?” night;
  • Taking the early 1980s Pittsburgh sports scene by storm – and regularly outdrawing hockey’s Penguins – with the MISL’s Spirit; and
  • Earning two caps for the US National Team – despite not being an actual American citizen!

This week’s episode is supported by our friends at Audible and Podfly!