It Was What It Was : The Football History Podcast

Welcome to The Overlap's football history podcast, It Was What It Was.


Each week Jonathan Wilson and Rob Draper will be talking about the key episodes in football history that have shaped the footballing world.


The show will be discussing the best stories from football's past, giving insights to the personalities involved. the tales from behind the scenes and the impact they left.


Join us at Football University!


If you enjoy the podcast please hit subscribe to never miss an episode.

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Recent Episodes
  • Zambia 2012: Africa's Greatest Fairytale
    Jun 10, 2025 – 54:22
  • Luis Enrique: Triumph, Tragedy, and PSG's Champions League Glory
    Jun 6, 2025 – 1:02:57
  • Why Brazil Have Turned To Carlo Ancelotti
    Jun 3, 2025 – 55:38
  • Paris Saint-Germain's Journey: Chasing the Champions League Dream
    May 30, 2025 – 52:47
  • Herrera's Inter Milan: The Birth of the Catenaccio
    May 27, 2025 – 1:02:54
  • 1984/85: The Season that Shook English Football, Part Two - Heysel
    May 23, 2025 – 1:01:16
  • 1984/85: The Season that Shook English Football, Part One
    May 20, 2025 – 59:42
  • Verona's Miracle Season: The Story of the 1985 Serie A Champions
    May 16, 2025 – 52:41
  • Crystal Palace 1990: Eagles' FA Cup Heroics and the Final that Saved Sir Alex
    May 13, 2025 – 38:22
  • Goodbye Goodison Park: The End of an Era at Everton
    May 9, 2025 – 50:24
  • Harry Kane's Road to Silverware
    May 6, 2025 – 53:28
  • Top of the Kop - Liverpool Title Wins Ranked
    May 2, 2025 – 52:21
  • The Man Behind Liverpool’s 20th Title - Arne Slot’s story
    Apr 29, 2025 – 47:10
  • Barcelona vs Inter: Pep, José, and the Semi-Final That Defined an Era – Part Two
    Apr 25, 2025 – 50:51
  • Barcelona vs Inter: Pep, José, and the Era-Defining Semi-Final - Part One
    Apr 22, 2025 – 45:12
  • The Horse That Changed Manchester United: The Glazer Takeover - Part Two
    Apr 18, 2025 – 58:01
  • The Horse That Changed Manchester United - Part One with David Walsh
    Apr 15, 2025 – 57:12
  • Brendon Batson: Football Pioneer and Big Ron Betrayal - Part Two
    Apr 11, 2025 – 46:55
  • Brendon Batson: Arsenal's Trailblazer and the Three Degrees Legacy - Part One
    Apr 8, 2025 – 37:52
  • Cameroon at Italia ‘90: England Showdown and Legacy - Part Two
    Apr 4, 2025 – 51:26
  • Cameroon at Italia ‘90: Roger Milla and the Legend of the Indomitable Lions - Part One
    Apr 1, 2025 – 47:42
  • Did Saudi Arabia Buy Sport? Soft Power, Newcastle and Jimmy Hill!
    Mar 28, 2025 – 58:02
  • Soccer: An American History - Part Three: Boom to Bust
    Mar 26, 2025 – 48:43
  • Soccer: An American History - Part Two: Struggles, Expansion and International Influence
    Mar 21, 2025 – 52:15
  • Soccer: An American History - Part One: Origins and Challenges
    Mar 18, 2025 – 52:54
  • The 1985 League Cup Final: The Match that Changed My Life
    Mar 14, 2025 – 49:22
  • League Cup Classics: Liverpool, Newcastle and the Greatest Finals
    Mar 11, 2025 – 45:36
  • From Arteta to Alonso: The Rise of Basque Coaches
    Mar 7, 2025 – 54:04
  • Guardiola: Dominance, Decline and a Post-Pep World?
    Mar 4, 2025 – 52:04
  • The Making of a Football Superpower - Part Three: A New Dawn
    Feb 28, 2025 – 47:49
  • The Making of a Football Superpower - Part Two: The Arrival
    Feb 25, 2025 – 51:18
  • The Making of a Football Superpower - Part One: The Birth of U.S. Women's Soccer
    Feb 21, 2025 – 57:24
  • The Making of a Football Superpower with Carli Lloyd - An Introduction
    Feb 18, 2025 – 44:43
  • Busby’s Man United: From Munich Tragedy to European Glory
    Feb 14, 2025 – 48:18
  • Manchester United's Darkest Day
    Feb 11, 2025 – 37:19
  • Who Were The Busby Babes?
    Feb 7, 2025 – 52:16
  • Gary Neville: The Triumph and Tragedy of the Busby Babes
    Feb 4, 2025 – 43:18
  • The Mystery of Matthias Sindelar, Part Two
    Jan 31, 2025 – 54:23
  • The Mystery of Matthias Sindelar, Part One
    Jan 28, 2025 – 50:05
  • The Brilliance of Bill Nicholson - Part Four
    Jan 24, 2025 – 45:45
  • The Brilliance of Bill Nicholson - Part Three
    Jan 21, 2025 – 48:13
  • The Brilliance of Bill Nicholson - Part Two With Steve Perryman
    Jan 17, 2025 – 39:24
  • The Brilliance of Bill Nicholson - Part One With Steve Perryman
    Jan 14, 2025 – 32:35
  • History's Biggest FA Cup Third Round Shocks - Part Two
    Jan 10, 2025 – 43:17
  • History's Biggest FA Cup Third Round Shocks - Part One
    Jan 7, 2025 – 47:41
  • Lines, Screens and Outrage! The Story, the Impact and the Cost of VAR
    Jan 3, 2025 – 54:55
  • Sir Alex And His Worst Ever New Year's Day - with QPR's Andy Sinton
    Dec 31, 2024 – 51:12
  • The True Story of the Christmas Truce 1914
    Dec 23, 2024 – 1:08:01
  • Pickles Finds The World Cup: The Story Of Football's Most Famous Dog!
    Dec 17, 2024 – 43:10
  • Wolves: Champions Of The World!
    Dec 10, 2024 – 54:35
Recent Reviews
  • HeyChrisCox
    Best football podcast
    Great show!
  • tassin.st
    Best football podcast
    Without a doubt the best and most informative football podcast available, and a ton of fun as well
  • markcre
    Worth your time…
    Great podcast. They weave seemingly random histories into wonderful stories about the game. Wilson has an unrivaled knowledge.
  • Dirigo77
    Great podcast!
    Tremendous show, exceptionally well researched and presented.
  • Ncb-uk
    The football podcast I’ve been waiting for
    Every single episode has been excellent, even when its on a team I don’t like! Good range of historical topics and I’ve learnt a lot about football history from listening to
  • DON JACO
    Seriously great
    Excellent show. Scratches the itch that the golazo podcast left.. loving every episode!
  • mwallenhorst
    Excellent Show
    Great show! Love hearing all the stories and how they work to tell them.
  • DCI Banks
    Wonderful Show
    I’ve listened to several episodes now. Just finished the Bill Nicholson 2 part episodes. So well done. Can’t overstate how much I enjoyed learning about him and hearing antidotes from Spurs record appearance holder, Steve Perrymen. Thank you
  • Joseph of the K
    Its football and its history.........
    It’s football and history, what could be better to listen to whilst working away.
  • SepticException
    Excellent and Essential
    I could very happily listen to Wilson talk about football history all day. His mind is a wunderkammer of facts and dates, his ability to investigate influences, draw connections and make postulations is second to none. Coupled with Draper’s journalism this pod is wonderful in its contextualisation of the subject. The episode in Puskas and Ange, with migration and the migrant experience of football in Australia was superlative.
  • Samewells
    Intoxicating show
    What a great pod. And a subject that’s long overdue. Wilson and Draper are a perfect pair and tell the stories in such a captivating way. Keep these coming guys. Bravo!
  • Arthur1676
    Football Heritage
    Great show. Wilson is the greatest football historian of our time.
  • smburrows
    Steve Coppell?
    A very enjoyable first episode. I was in the away end for the 2-1 defeat at Old Trafford where the banner was unveiled and I remember the deafening sound of “Fergie out.” We (Palace) were good that day, but we had lost 9-0 to Liverpool just a couple of months before. And I was at the two finals when we almost won the Cup. Would Steve Coppell have been a candidate for the Utd job had he been sacked and we won the cup (say by beating Oldham?) Funny that the recent 4-0 is probably the end for Ten Hag. Still, I would trade in the 5-0 and the 4-0 for Hughes not equalizing …
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