The Assistant Professor of Football: Soccer, Culture, History.
The academic treatment for English-speakers who get that soccer is more than gamedays, stars and goals. Who wonder about the histories, subcultures and politics that make the game so different from many American sports cultures; and who care about a critical take on soccer as a global capitalist machine. A European-guided journey, with one expert "visiting professor" each episode.
The Assistant Professor of Football: Soccer, Culture, History.
(No) Mustard at Continental Europe's Oldest Soccer Club: FC St. Gallen in Switzerland
We begin with the Eurovision Songcontest and end with Sturm Graz's cup win, but consider, most of all, FC St. Gallen. Saint who? True, if I would ask you who invented club football in Europe in continental Europe, would you guess that the answer is the same as to the Ricola cough drop question? The Swiss did! Well, technically English students living in Switzerland, but nevermind - the year was 1879 and the place was right near St. Gallen, Saint Gallen, and the continent’s oldest soccer club was founded. Not some club who is big and famous today, and not in some big famous city, but in St. Gallen, an old regional textile metropolis.
FCSG, as the club is known, have won two championships in their long history. 1904, and 2000. And there’s one cup win, too. Plus, they have what may well be the fanciest, best designed and most intellectually stimulating fan-run magazine. It’s called Mustard. And today, one of it’s masterminds joins us. He is Ruben Schöneberger, and in his regular job, he is a data journalist for one of Switzerland’s largest media outlets. St. Gallen is a bit off the beaten path even for those abroad who know a little bit about Swiss football, and the fact that this, of all places, is continental Europe’s oldest club is odd at first sight. But that is also what makes it so endearing.
HELPFUL LINKS FOR THIS EPISODE:
Senf - Das St. Galler Fussballmagazin (Mustard Magazine)
“The Notorious FCSG” - tifo from FCSG fans in 2024 (Youtube video)
Impression from the new stadium (Youtube video)
SRF, Swiss public TV, on “The Shame of Espenmoos” when FCSG got relegated in the last match in the old stadium.
Movie Trailer on the same events (Youtube video)
Windows95 Man at the Eurovision Songcontest 2024 - No Rules, filmed from the audience
Please leave a quick voicemail with any feedback, corrections, suggestions - or just greetings - HERE. Or comment via Twitter, Instagram, Bluesky or Facebook.
If you enjoy this podcast and think that what I do fills a gap in soccer coverage that others would be interested in as well, please
- Recommend The Assistant Professor of Football. Spreading the word, through word of mouth, truly does help.
- Leave some rating stars at the podcast platform of your choice. There are so many sports podcasts out there, and only ratings make this project visible; only then can people who look for a different kind of take on European soccer actually find me.
Artwork for The Assistant Professor of Football is by Saige Lind
Instrumental music for this podcast, including the introduction track, is by the artist Ketsa and used under a Creative Commons license through Free Music Archive: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Ketsa/