Latest / Whatever It Takes with Carli Lloyd and Jenny Taft / From Pitch to Pod: Alexi Lalas on Navigating the Media Landscape

Transcript

From Pitch to Pod: Alexi Lalas on Navigating the Media Landscape · Whatever It Takes with Carli Lloyd and Jenny Taft

• 0:11
  Speaker 1: Welcome to Whatever It Takes. I'm Carly Lloyd with my
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: co-host and friend, Jenny Taft. Today we have a special guest.
• 0:20
  Speaker 1: Joining us is one of the most iconic figures in
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: American soccer history, a veteran of the 94 U.S. World
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: Cup team, a National Soccer Hall of Famer, and he's
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: never been one to hold back his opinions on or
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: off the pitch. Please welcome Fox Sports analyst, friend, and colleague,
• 0:40
  Speaker 1: Alexi Lalas. What's up, Lex?
• 0:43
  Speaker 2: Hey there.
• 0:44
  Speaker 1: Pleased to have you joining us. We're entering your world here,
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: the podcast world.
• 0:48
  Speaker 2: This is amazing. Well, you started with Stu and now
• 0:50
  Speaker 2: with me and it can only get better from here.
• 0:55
  Speaker 1: No, stop it. Got to give yourself more credit.
• 0:57
  Speaker 3: Yeah. And you were, when we decided to do this
• 1:01
  Speaker 3: podcast together, of course, you were a name that came
• 1:04
  Speaker 3: up immediately to join us because one, you are in
• 1:06
  Speaker 3: the space and two, you've been such a great friend
• 1:09
  Speaker 3: and colleague to both of us and we all go
• 1:12
  Speaker 3: way back.
• 1:12
  Speaker 4: So thank you. You can give us any podcasting advice
• 1:15
  Speaker 4: as well.
• 1:15
  Speaker 2: I mean, look, you can see me and you can
• 1:17
  Speaker 2: hear me. So already you're ahead of the game for
• 1:19
  Speaker 2: a lot of podcasts out there. I will say this,
• 1:21
  Speaker 2: having done it now, gosh, almost. Well, if you go
• 1:24
  Speaker 2: back to even back in my ESPN days and everything,
• 1:26
  Speaker 2: I mean, that's last 20 years, 15 years, probably. Routine
• 1:31
  Speaker 2: is important. Most podcasts come and go in the first
• 1:34
  Speaker 2: couple of months because people either get bored or they
• 1:37
  Speaker 2: just don't want to do the work. We know that
• 1:39
  Speaker 2: everybody and their mother, including my mother, have podcasts out there. So,
• 1:44
  Speaker 2: you know, I love the fact that there's this whole
• 1:46
  Speaker 2: ecosystem that has been birthed to give people a voice. And,
• 1:52
  Speaker 2: you know, some of it's niche, some of it's big
• 1:54
  Speaker 2: picture and stuff like that. But I wish you all
• 1:57
  Speaker 2: the luck in the world and welcome to the world
• 1:59
  Speaker 2: of podcasting, if you will.
• 2:01
  Speaker 1: Appreciate it. Thank you.
• 2:02
  Speaker 4: Well, you said giving birth.
• 2:04
  Speaker 3: So I have to, before we even get into questions, Carly,
• 2:06
  Speaker 3: I need a quick update, how you're feeling, because we
• 2:08
  Speaker 3: are at the finish line.
• 2:10
  Speaker 1: We are days, hours, minutes, who knows, very close, very ready.
• 2:17
  Speaker 1: You know, the hair's done, the nails are done, everything's
• 2:21
  Speaker 1: set in place, because I'm most likely not going to
• 2:25
  Speaker 1: have time to be able to do that anytime soon.
• 2:27
  Speaker 1: So yeah, I told Brian the other night laying in bed,
• 2:30
  Speaker 1: I'm like, you know, getting up four or five times
• 2:33
  Speaker 1: to pee in the middle of the night, just getting
• 2:36
  Speaker 1: very uncomfortable. But yeah, baby's low and we'll see when
• 2:42
  Speaker 1: baby's going to enter the world. So I'm ready. We're ready.
• 2:46
  Speaker 2: Is baby getting to decide this or where are we
• 2:48
  Speaker 2: right now? Excuse me, I haven't been, you know, reading
• 2:51
  Speaker 2: the blog or anything.
• 2:52
  Speaker 1: Yeah, you know, well, there's this, you know, this whole
• 2:57
  Speaker 1: I guess, world, Jenny probably knows, you know, after 35,
• 3:00
  Speaker 1: they start to call women geriatric. It's a geriatric pregnancy,
• 3:05
  Speaker 1: which I think that they need to kind of extend
• 3:09
  Speaker 1: that age a little bit because there's a lot of
• 3:11
  Speaker 1: women that are having babies later on in their lives.
• 3:13
  Speaker 2: Or at least rebranded, I mean, because it's... Yeah, it.
• 3:17
  Speaker 1: Just doesn't sound very fitting. My OB and midwife are great.
• 3:22
  Speaker 1: You know, they're They know what they're doing. They're advising
• 3:26
  Speaker 1: me well. And I am approaching this week, this Thursday,
• 3:30
  Speaker 1: I'll be approaching the 40-week mark. So we're just, yeah,
• 3:34
  Speaker 1: just kind of taking it day by day and just
• 3:37
  Speaker 1: kind of want to let my body do its thing,
• 3:39
  Speaker 1: see what happens. So, yeah. Awesome. Awesome. So good. Yeah,
• 3:43
  Speaker 1: it's hard to believe. I'm like, oh, boy, here we go.
• 3:46
  Speaker 1: Newborn stage.
• 3:48
  Speaker 3: Yeah, if you got to run, just give us the,
• 3:50
  Speaker 3: you know, guys, it's been fun.
• 3:52
  Speaker 2: Hey, you asked me for advice when it comes to podcasting.
• 3:55
  Speaker 2: Content is king, right? I mean, if you could at
• 3:58
  Speaker 2: least break off and go to the emergency room or
• 4:00
  Speaker 2: anything like that to have this baby, that would be
• 4:02
  Speaker 2: wonderful content. I mean, I'm not saying have it on
• 4:05
  Speaker 2: the actual podcast, but.
• 4:06
  Speaker 1: I mean, if... That would be pretty epic.
• 4:08
  Speaker 2: If you really want to, you know, suffer for the
• 4:10
  Speaker 2: cause here.
• 4:12
  Speaker 1: It's a quick check-in. Pretty epic. Harper's sleeping, so yeah,
• 4:15
  Speaker 1: I'd have to get my parents over here quick. Actually,
• 4:17
  Speaker 1: funny thing is, I started to feel some... more intense cramps, um,
• 4:24
  Speaker 1: the other night. And I said to my parents, I mean, they're,
• 4:26
  Speaker 1: they're about 30 minutes away. So they're, they're kind of
• 4:29
  Speaker 1: the ones on call currently, um, just because they're both retired.
• 4:33
  Speaker 1: And so they're not really around the corner per se.
• 4:37
  Speaker 1: And I'm like, you know, it's probably a good idea
• 4:39
  Speaker 1: for you guys to probably not sleep with your phones off.
• 4:43
  Speaker 1: Cause I think they do, which is, is bizarre to me. Uh,
• 4:48
  Speaker 1: And maybe pack a bag just in case you've got to,
• 4:51
  Speaker 1: you know, shoot over here. So my dad, we were
• 4:54
  Speaker 1: at my niece's game the other day. It was ended
• 4:58
  Speaker 1: up being kind of a chillier morning and then got
• 5:01
  Speaker 1: really hot by the time our game started. So they're,
• 5:03
  Speaker 1: you know, in long sleeve. My dad's in jeans. He's like, well,
• 5:07
  Speaker 1: I got a change of shorts in the car that,
• 5:10
  Speaker 1: you know, I could go. And I'm like, you guys
• 5:12
  Speaker 1: have your bags in your car. They're ready. They're ready.
• 5:18
  Speaker 1: They are ready.
• 5:19
  Speaker 3: So yeah, hopefully no baby this episode, but we'll be good.
• 5:24
  Speaker 3: And we are just so excited for you. So Carly,
• 5:27
  Speaker 3: you keep us posted. Lex, we are obviously, I feel
• 5:32
  Speaker 3: like what's so fun about the dynamic of all of us, we've, well, Lex,
• 5:35
  Speaker 3: you covered Carly so much as a player, and I
• 5:38
  Speaker 3: think that would be fun to get into. And also
• 5:40
  Speaker 3: I've worked with you now for so many years. I've
• 5:41
  Speaker 3: probably been on the desk with you as much as
• 5:44
  Speaker 3: anyone else. So we've known each other for a while
• 5:47
  Speaker 3: and I think it's only natural to start with the
• 5:49
  Speaker 3: World Cup. Your kind of now, how you're feeling about it,
• 5:54
  Speaker 3: how this World Cup compared to others for you. I
• 5:57
  Speaker 3: think we've all been processing what we experienced together this summer.
• 6:01
  Speaker 3: So just kind of where you're at with the experience. Yeah.
• 6:04
  Speaker 2: I mean, you know, we've said for years and, you know,
• 6:07
  Speaker 2: about the marathon aspect of a World Cup as opposed
• 6:10
  Speaker 2: to a sprint. But when that marathon is done. after
• 6:13
  Speaker 2: that day in and day out kind of grind, I mean,
• 6:16
  Speaker 2: it just stops. And, you know, a lot of times
• 6:19
  Speaker 2: your body physically will compensate for that daily, you know,
• 6:27
  Speaker 2: ground honk type of day experience that you have. And
• 6:30
  Speaker 2: then you realize, you know, I mean, look, this, again,
• 6:35
  Speaker 2: these are champagne problems, but you realize, you know, the
• 6:37
  Speaker 2: kind of toll that it took. And it's a little
• 6:41
  Speaker 2: jarring to get up that next day and not have
• 6:43
  Speaker 2: the thing that you were doing day in and day
• 6:45
  Speaker 2: out for six weeks to be there. And so there's
• 6:49
  Speaker 2: a decompression mode, I'm sure, for all of us. And
• 6:53
  Speaker 2: we all had different types of experiences. And that marathon
• 6:58
  Speaker 2: approach is that you're going to have ups and downs
• 7:01
  Speaker 2: and good days and bad days, but ultimately it has
• 7:04
  Speaker 2: to be in totality. And I think individually, I think collectively,
• 7:08
  Speaker 2: you'd agree with me that You know, this was an
• 7:10
  Speaker 2: incredible moment for soccer. I think at Fox, we we
• 7:14
  Speaker 2: harnessed it. You know, the numbers bear that out. But
• 7:18
  Speaker 2: more importantly, I think just the way in which we
• 7:20
  Speaker 2: did it, you know, it was it was wonderful to
• 7:23
  Speaker 2: see in this particular instance, obviously being in the United
• 7:27
  Speaker 2: States and Canada and Mexico, but 80 percent of it
• 7:31
  Speaker 2: being in the U.S. to see everybody come into that tent.
• 7:33
  Speaker 2: and experience soccer through the lens, you know, and not
• 7:38
  Speaker 2: just soccer, but America through the lens of, you know,
• 7:40
  Speaker 2: of the World Cup. And not just to experience, but
• 7:44
  Speaker 2: almost to remind Americans and to maybe affirm for some
• 7:50
  Speaker 2: what America is. And so that, I think, we have
• 7:52
  Speaker 2: to be incredibly happy and proud of. But, you know,
• 7:56
  Speaker 2: the circus comes to town and it leaves town. And
• 7:59
  Speaker 2: there is a kind of mirage aspect of it or
• 8:01
  Speaker 2: a Brigadoon-ish type of thing where, poof, it just, it
• 8:04
  Speaker 2: goes away. And did it really happen? Well, it definitely happened.
• 8:07
  Speaker 2: And maybe we will see the effects even more so
• 8:11
  Speaker 2: as we get further and further from it.
• 8:12
  Speaker 1: And you were obviously in studio working a ton, but
• 8:16
  Speaker 1: I got to be part of the desk on those U.S.
• 8:20
  Speaker 1: game days, which for me, being a player for so long,
• 8:24
  Speaker 1: I never really experienced the whole hype of the crowd
• 8:28
  Speaker 1: and fans supporting. But I know you and Rob in particular,
• 8:33
  Speaker 1: you know, were emotional seeing some of those scenes. I mean,
• 8:36
  Speaker 1: can you explain what that meant to see? I mean,
• 8:40
  Speaker 1: because from my point of view, I mean, it was incredible.
• 8:43
  Speaker 1: I mean, Jenny, you were out there on the field,
• 8:45
  Speaker 1: but it was remarkable to see the support and the
• 8:51
  Speaker 1: cheers and just so many people that were there, you know,
• 8:55
  Speaker 1: watching us at the desk and then going in and
• 8:57
  Speaker 1: supporting the team.
• 8:58
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I think... Part of our job, whether we're on
• 9:01
  Speaker 2: the desk, whether we're on the field, whether we're inside
• 9:04
  Speaker 2: the stadium, outside the stadium, was obviously to paint that
• 9:07
  Speaker 2: picture and what a picture it was. It was something
• 9:10
  Speaker 2: that I will never forget. And yeah, it was not
• 9:13
  Speaker 2: just exciting, but it was emotional. And for an old
• 9:16
  Speaker 2: guy like me, you guys are still young, but for
• 9:19
  Speaker 2: someone that's been around as long as I have, and
• 9:23
  Speaker 2: to kind of have it come full circle, you know,
• 9:26
  Speaker 2: with the 1994 World Cup, all of that was, yeah,
• 9:28
  Speaker 2: incredibly emotional to see, again, not just the celebration of
• 9:33
  Speaker 2: a World Cup, not just the celebration of soccer, but
• 9:35
  Speaker 2: through that, the celebration of America. And, you know, that
• 9:40
  Speaker 2: national anthem and the unity, let's be honest, the way
• 9:44
  Speaker 2: that people kind of came together At a time, let's
• 9:47
  Speaker 2: also be honest, where you don't see a whole lot
• 9:50
  Speaker 2: of that. And it's interesting to me, but not surprising,
• 9:54
  Speaker 2: over the last couple of years, when we have seen
• 9:57
  Speaker 2: the country come together the most has been through sports.
• 10:00
  Speaker 2: we've seen it with you know with soccer with uh
• 10:02
  Speaker 2: with baseball obviously with hockey um and you know that's
• 10:06
  Speaker 2: what sports does you guys have both worked and been
• 10:09
  Speaker 2: in sports most of your lives and you know that
• 10:12
  Speaker 2: there's nothing you know more impactful and nothing unites us
• 10:17
  Speaker 2: more and so to kind of see that yeah it
• 10:20
  Speaker 2: We are doing our job, but we are there also
• 10:23
  Speaker 2: to be honest and to be human in terms of
• 10:25
  Speaker 2: our reactions. And if we do it right, we paint
• 10:28
  Speaker 2: that picture and there's some FOMO. We want people that
• 10:32
  Speaker 2: are watching to say, God, I wish I was there.
• 10:34
  Speaker 2: And this is the next best thing is watching. And
• 10:37
  Speaker 2: I think everybody individually, you guys, you mentioned Rob Stone
• 10:41
  Speaker 2: and everybody that we worked with, men, women, Americans, people
• 10:45
  Speaker 2: coming over, people that had done television for the first time,
• 10:48
  Speaker 2: I think that that was impressed upon them. And I
• 10:50
  Speaker 2: think ultimately that played out where a lot of people
• 10:52
  Speaker 2: tuned in each and every day, not just to the U.S. Games,
• 10:55
  Speaker 2: but to the World Cup because they knew that this
• 10:58
  Speaker 2: party was going on. And even though they might not
• 11:00
  Speaker 2: have been there, they wanted to be there and they
• 11:03
  Speaker 2: didn't want to miss out. And it became almost a
• 11:05
  Speaker 2: comfort food type of existence. I can't tell you the
• 11:08
  Speaker 2: amount of people that have come up to me since
• 11:09
  Speaker 2: the World Cup and said, what do I do now?
• 11:12
  Speaker 2: You know, because that it was their diet every single day.
• 11:15
  Speaker 1: Did it surprise you, the crowds and just being on site?
• 11:19
  Speaker 2: There's an element of if you build it, they will come.
• 11:22
  Speaker 2: And they did. I wasn't concerned about ticket sales or
• 11:27
  Speaker 2: anything like that. So the actual numbers, that didn't surprise me.
• 11:32
  Speaker 2: But the way in which people celebrated both the sport,
• 11:37
  Speaker 2: their countries, because not just the U.S., and then just
• 11:41
  Speaker 2: everything in general, it was just a real feel-good moment.
• 11:45
  Speaker 2: And let's be honest, again... there was some concern. There
• 11:49
  Speaker 2: was concern that I'm so glad everybody was safe. I'm
• 11:52
  Speaker 2: so glad that there weren't things that were kind of
• 11:54
  Speaker 2: counter to that celebration of not just the U S
• 11:57
  Speaker 2: but the sport and everything that was going on. And
• 12:01
  Speaker 2: that's a credit to a lot of the men and
• 12:03
  Speaker 2: women that worked behind the scenes to make sure that
• 12:06
  Speaker 2: it was fun, that it was safe. And that also it,
• 12:11
  Speaker 2: it celebrated the, On the 250th birthday, what I feel
• 12:15
  Speaker 2: is the greatest country in the world. So we did
• 12:17
  Speaker 2: that on a continual basis. So I was pleasantly surprised
• 12:22
  Speaker 2: by the way it happened, but not necessarily by the numbers.
• 12:25
  Speaker 2: I knew it was going to make a lot of
• 12:27
  Speaker 2: money and draw a lot of people. But we can
• 12:30
  Speaker 2: do that. But more importantly is the emotion and what
• 12:34
  Speaker 2: those masses actually do.
• 12:36
  Speaker 3: I love how you mentioned how your body kind of
• 12:38
  Speaker 3: the comedown. For the first couple days post-World Cup, I
• 12:41
  Speaker 3: was like not functioning at a high level.
• 12:43
  Speaker 4: I was like, I feel like my, I was just slow.
• 12:47
  Speaker 1: You're probably like, I need to travel again.
• 12:49
  Speaker 4: I need to get on a plane.
• 12:50
  Speaker 3: It was so bizarre. Like, and I physically was tired. Thankfully,
• 12:55
  Speaker 3: knock on wood, I didn't get sick.
• 12:56
  Speaker 1: I think.
• 12:57
  Speaker 3: weirdly, Lex, I don't know if you've experienced this, but like,
• 13:00
  Speaker 3: I definitely got sick after the women's world cup in France.
• 13:02
  Speaker 3: I definitely got sick after Australia. Something about the women's
• 13:05
  Speaker 3: world cups really get me, but like you physically actually
• 13:08
  Speaker 3: get sick from not sleeping, working, working, working.
• 13:11
  Speaker 4: Did you have any of that?
• 13:12
  Speaker 2: Oh yeah.
• 13:12
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 13:13
  Speaker 2: I mean, I was, I was useless. Um, here at home.
• 13:16
  Speaker 2: My wife can attest to that. I mean, that's nothing new.
• 13:20
  Speaker 2: But yeah, you, you, you know, physically you are just,
• 13:23
  Speaker 2: you're grinding through it. And so once that grind isn't there,
• 13:27
  Speaker 2: your body goes, okay, I don't have to compensate. And
• 13:30
  Speaker 2: so a lot of times you do, you get sick,
• 13:31
  Speaker 2: obviously you're tired. You know, there's an emotional aspect of
• 13:35
  Speaker 2: it where you've done this day after day after day,
• 13:37
  Speaker 2: and you've seen the, you know, the same people and
• 13:39
  Speaker 2: you've been on that same type of a routine.
• 13:41
  Speaker 1: And I.
• 13:43
  Speaker 2: Once a routine changes, it can throw you for a loop,
• 13:46
  Speaker 2: both physically and emotionally and mentally and all that. And again,
• 13:50
  Speaker 2: we weren't coming home from war or anything like that.
• 13:54
  Speaker 2: But this was what we were doing for a long time.
• 13:57
  Speaker 2: And that's happened, like you said, each and every World
• 14:00
  Speaker 2: Cup that you do it. It's a different experience each
• 14:02
  Speaker 2: and every time. But again, that closure and that finite
• 14:06
  Speaker 2: moment where it just all ends is And as you
• 14:10
  Speaker 2: guys know, everybody kind of scatters immediately and you have
• 14:13
  Speaker 2: the best intentions. All right, I'm going to say this
• 14:15
  Speaker 2: to this person. I'm going to say goodbye. But, you know,
• 14:18
  Speaker 2: a lot of people, they just they want to get home.
• 14:19
  Speaker 2: They want to see their family. They want to see
• 14:21
  Speaker 2: their friends. They want to get into some kind of normalcy.
• 14:24
  Speaker 2: And so it's it's not all your best laid plans
• 14:30
  Speaker 2: in terms of how it ends usually never occur like that.
• 14:33
  Speaker 1: And you're I mean, your grind started what, beginning of
• 14:37
  Speaker 1: the year? Just appearances and even.
• 14:40
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, over the last year, we've done a lot.
• 14:43
  Speaker 2: But this was, again, these are all wonderful, you know,
• 14:46
  Speaker 2: experiences to have. And it was all with an eye
• 14:50
  Speaker 2: to making this what I felt was the greatest World
• 14:53
  Speaker 2: Cup ever. And I know I'm biased. So, yeah, we
• 14:57
  Speaker 2: were all over the map and just a lot of travel.
• 14:59
  Speaker 2: But I love it. You guys know, I mean, this
• 15:01
  Speaker 2: is what I do. This is what I love.
• 15:02
  Speaker 1: You're a machine.
• 15:02
  Speaker 2: I enjoy being around and I enjoy, yeah, I enjoy seeing...
• 15:06
  Speaker 2: I enjoyed seeing the lead up to it and the
• 15:09
  Speaker 2: anticipation of what it was. And then obviously the payoff
• 15:13
  Speaker 2: during the actual summit.
• 15:14
  Speaker 1: And you're such a hard worker.
• 15:16
  Speaker 3: Yeah.
• 15:16
  Speaker 1: I mean, I don't know how you do half of
• 15:19
  Speaker 1: the stuff that you do. Leading up to it, I
• 15:21
  Speaker 1: was like, he's everywhere. Flying this, that. The one flight,
• 15:28
  Speaker 1: your flight got canceled to New York?
• 15:32
  Speaker 2: I got canceled in some sort of connection. I was
• 15:34
  Speaker 2: scheduled to do... Fox News in New York and I
• 15:39
  Speaker 2: got canceled getting to New York and I wasn't going
• 15:42
  Speaker 2: to be able to get there. So I rerouted through Pittsburgh.
• 15:46
  Speaker 2: I landed at Pittsburgh. We got a car. We drove
• 15:49
  Speaker 2: through the night in order to get there in the morning.
• 15:52
  Speaker 2: But I loved it. I looked at it like a challenge.
• 15:54
  Speaker 2: It's like, you know, a rally race.
• 15:55
  Speaker 1: I wouldn't have done that. I would have been like, sorry.
• 16:00
  Speaker 2: I love to do this stuff. And as long as
• 16:02
  Speaker 2: they'll have me, I'll keep doing it. They can pry
• 16:04
  Speaker 2: it from my cold, dead, red-headed head.
• 16:06
  Speaker 1: Were you tired, though, after this World Cup? Was this
• 16:09
  Speaker 1: the most tired, do you think? I mean, were you
• 16:11
  Speaker 1: at all?
• 16:12
  Speaker 2: I mean, there's obviously no jet lag or anything like that.
• 16:16
  Speaker 1: But just drained. I mean, it's a lot.
• 16:18
  Speaker 2: Yeah, it's a lot. I mean, anybody listening or watching
• 16:22
  Speaker 2: is going to be like, what are they complaining about?
• 16:24
  Speaker 2: I would love to do it. And they're absolutely right. Again,
• 16:26
  Speaker 2: this is nothing to complain about in terms of the work. But,
• 16:32
  Speaker 2: you know, there's also the responsibility. of broadcasting a World Cup.
• 16:37
  Speaker 2: And this was on our watch. And when I say our, yes,
• 16:41
  Speaker 2: Fox's watch, but also America's watch. And I think from
• 16:44
  Speaker 2: an American perspective, we did it right and we did
• 16:50
  Speaker 2: it proud. But I also think from a Fox perspective,
• 16:52
  Speaker 2: we wanted to put our best foot forward and make
• 16:54
  Speaker 2: sure that we were giving people that daily dose of
• 16:58
  Speaker 2: World Cup and bringing people into the tent. And I
• 17:01
  Speaker 2: talk about the tent a lot, but it's so important
• 17:04
  Speaker 2: and you guys know from our industry, to recognize that,
• 17:09
  Speaker 2: especially at a World Cup like this or a big
• 17:10
  Speaker 2: event like this, there's going to be a lot of
• 17:12
  Speaker 2: people that are coming in. And you don't want to
• 17:14
  Speaker 2: dumb it down, but you also don't want to talk
• 17:17
  Speaker 2: above them or past them. You want to make it accessible.
• 17:20
  Speaker 2: And I think we did a really good job with
• 17:22
  Speaker 2: that balance of giving people that are diehard soccer fans
• 17:26
  Speaker 2: what they needed, but also making sure that it was
• 17:29
  Speaker 2: inviting people. to people that maybe were just coming to
• 17:32
  Speaker 2: it for the first time. Because as you guys know,
• 17:34
  Speaker 2: the last thing in the world that we want to be,
• 17:36
  Speaker 2: when I say we, like soccer in America, but this
• 17:39
  Speaker 2: applies to other sports too, is elitist or snobby or
• 17:46
  Speaker 2: gatekeepy in the way that we televise the game. And
• 17:49
  Speaker 2: I don't think we did that by any stretch of
• 17:51
  Speaker 2: the imagination. I think we made it incredibly welcoming. And
• 17:55
  Speaker 2: the last thing in the world, like I said, we
• 17:57
  Speaker 2: want to be is be turning anybody away or turning
• 17:59
  Speaker 2: anybody off. I mean, literally turning anybody turning off what
• 18:02
  Speaker 2: we were doing at Fox. So that was that was good.
• 18:04
  Speaker 2: And that was done by design and obviously by the
• 18:07
  Speaker 2: people in front of the camera and many behind the
• 18:09
  Speaker 2: camera that were orchestrating this.
• 18:11
  Speaker 3: I always tell you, you've Mary Taft, big fan, big
• 18:14
  Speaker 3: Alexi Lawless fan.
• 18:15
  Speaker 4: She really big.
• 18:16
  Speaker 3: And she's the she's just she's like, just seems like
• 18:20
  Speaker 3: such a such a nice guy who loves soccer.
• 18:22
  Speaker 1: Like, all right, Mary Taft.
• 18:23
  Speaker 4: She really likes you, Lex.
• 18:25
  Speaker 2: I love Mary Tess. She's the best.
• 18:26
  Speaker 1: Is she subscribed to his podcast? Oh, yeah. She's listening.
• 18:30
  Speaker 1: Don't you listen?
• 18:30
  Speaker 3: Like and subscribe. I'm like, you have to leave a review, too.
• 18:32
  Speaker 3: I'm going to have to explain how to do that.
• 18:34
  Speaker 2: Perfect. She texts me all the time. It's beautiful. It's wonderful.
• 18:37
  Speaker 2: Check it in. She's great.
• 18:48
  Speaker 4: You bring up a good point about soccer fans and
• 18:50
  Speaker 4: you want to be welcoming.
• 18:51
  Speaker 3: I have found, I think soccer fans... can be tough
• 18:54
  Speaker 3: at times. They're quite opinionated. They don't shy away from
• 18:58
  Speaker 3: sharing their opinions. So I do want to ask you,
• 19:00
  Speaker 3: I mean, there was a lot of chatter about the
• 19:02
  Speaker 3: desk at first with.
• 19:04
  Speaker 4: New colleagues, obviously.
• 19:05
  Speaker 3: I think you mentioned a World Cup as a marathon,
• 19:08
  Speaker 3: but you really were working with Rebecca Lowe for the
• 19:11
  Speaker 3: first time, with Thierry Henry and Zlatan in that capacity
• 19:14
  Speaker 3: for the first time. How was the experience from start
• 19:17
  Speaker 3: to finish?
• 19:18
  Speaker 2: Yeah, so this is the question I get the most
• 19:21
  Speaker 2: since the World Cup and even during the World Cup.
• 19:23
  Speaker 2: It's about the desk and about the personalities and more importantly,
• 19:26
  Speaker 2: about the dynamic that existed between us. Because there was
• 19:30
  Speaker 2: a lot said, there was a lot written. I had
• 19:33
  Speaker 2: a blast. You know, those guys and Rebecca were wonderful.
• 19:38
  Speaker 2: As you mentioned, you know, when it comes to someone
• 19:40
  Speaker 2: like Rebecca, while she's done TV forever, and I actually
• 19:44
  Speaker 2: worked with her when she first came to the U.S.
• 19:45
  Speaker 2: years and years ago back at ESPN. And she's gone
• 19:49
  Speaker 2: on to great things. and done Olympics and worked for
• 19:51
  Speaker 2: multiple different broadcasts out there. And obviously she does an
• 19:55
  Speaker 2: incredible job with the EPL. But, you know, this is
• 19:57
  Speaker 2: a World Cup and she'll be the first to tell
• 19:59
  Speaker 2: you this was the pinnacle of her career, which is
• 20:03
  Speaker 2: already a great career. But she's not only doing soccer,
• 20:08
  Speaker 2: she's doing soccer in America. Soccer in America on television
• 20:13
  Speaker 2: and Soccer in America on television on Fox. And so
• 20:16
  Speaker 2: she had to be true to herself because that's what
• 20:19
  Speaker 2: she's hired to be herself, but also recognize that the
• 20:23
  Speaker 2: way we do things at Fox might be different than
• 20:25
  Speaker 2: the way we do things elsewhere. And especially in this
• 20:27
  Speaker 2: particular moment. Then you had, you know, Cherry, who certainly
• 20:30
  Speaker 2: has done TV and there's a much more kind of, um,
• 20:34
  Speaker 2: scholarly character that he plays, X's and O's, very understated, solemn,
• 20:43
  Speaker 2: but sneaky smart and sneaky wit. And then obviously you
• 20:49
  Speaker 2: have Zlatan, who is a larger-than-life personality, but has never
• 20:53
  Speaker 2: done television, let alone television when it comes to Fox.
• 20:57
  Speaker 2: And so it was a work in progress from the
• 20:58
  Speaker 2: very first day. And I like to think that with
• 21:01
  Speaker 2: the experience and the experiences that we had, We came together.
• 21:07
  Speaker 2: From my perspective, my job is to give Fox what
• 21:10
  Speaker 2: they want. My job isn't to do what's best for
• 21:14
  Speaker 2: me individually. It's to do what's best for the production.
• 21:17
  Speaker 2: It's to do what's best for the long-term production of
• 21:21
  Speaker 2: this World Cup to build, hopefully, in terms of introducing
• 21:25
  Speaker 2: the different characters and introducing the different interplay and, like
• 21:28
  Speaker 2: I said, the dynamic that exists. And I think people
• 21:30
  Speaker 2: gravitated to that. You like me, you don't like me,
• 21:34
  Speaker 2: you know, whatever. I don't care as long as you
• 21:36
  Speaker 2: are watching. And, you know, the interactions that we have,
• 21:40
  Speaker 2: you know, some of it is talked about beforehand, but
• 21:43
  Speaker 2: I'll be honest with you. A lot of it was,
• 21:45
  Speaker 2: you know, just came out of growing together. And it
• 21:49
  Speaker 2: was very, very organic. I know, you know, at times...
• 21:54
  Speaker 2: It made people tune in because they were saying, well,
• 21:57
  Speaker 2: what's going to happen next? And what's Lataan going to say?
• 22:01
  Speaker 2: Or what's Thierry going to say? Or what's... Are they
• 22:06
  Speaker 2: going to yell at each other or are they going
• 22:08
  Speaker 2: to have an awkward moment or all these things? But
• 22:11
  Speaker 2: this is as far as I'm concerned, this is this
• 22:13
  Speaker 2: is good TV. And that's what my job was individually.
• 22:18
  Speaker 2: And us as a group was to make the best
• 22:20
  Speaker 2: possible TV for Fox that made sure that people wanted
• 22:24
  Speaker 2: to watch that desk and wanted to watch it in
• 22:29
  Speaker 2: the context of watching the World Cup.
• 22:31
  Speaker 1: Yeah, I would say, I mean, yeah, I think at
• 22:33
  Speaker 1: first it's, I mean, for me being on a desk
• 22:36
  Speaker 1: with new people, first time initially, it's tough. But I
• 22:41
  Speaker 1: thought you guys rocked it. By the end, it was
• 22:43
  Speaker 1: great taking helicopters to the final and doing all sorts
• 22:47
  Speaker 1: of stuff.
• 22:48
  Speaker 2: Hey, by the way, so for those that maybe missed it,
• 22:52
  Speaker 2: our pregame leading up to the final, which was in
• 22:56
  Speaker 2: New Jersey, we took a helicopter, like Carly said, Zlatan
• 23:01
  Speaker 2: was not having the helicopter. He looked down at his feet,
• 23:07
  Speaker 2: did not say a word the entire ride. I'll be honest,
• 23:10
  Speaker 2: I think it was the best moment of the entire
• 23:12
  Speaker 2: World Cup for me.
• 23:14
  Speaker 4: Yeah, he was not into it.
• 23:16
  Speaker 2: It was sitting across from him. Hey, it's not for everybody.
• 23:18
  Speaker 2: And here's this, like I said, this larger-than-life personality and everything,
• 23:22
  Speaker 2: but he was not having the helicopter at all. But
• 23:26
  Speaker 2: he was wonderful, and I will say this, they could
• 23:29
  Speaker 2: not have been more gracious and kind. And they, I think,
• 23:36
  Speaker 2: recognized that they were ultimately part of a team. And
• 23:38
  Speaker 2: obviously there's the team on the desk, but there's all
• 23:41
  Speaker 2: the team that includes you and everybody else out there
• 23:43
  Speaker 2: in front and behind the camera. And I think we
• 23:45
  Speaker 2: made them feel comfortable to be who they are, to
• 23:49
  Speaker 2: put the best part of them forward and to, again,
• 23:53
  Speaker 2: do what Fox wanted from a television perspective.
• 23:56
  Speaker 1: That's true.
• 23:57
  Speaker 3: I remember sitting at that dinner ahead of the World
• 23:59
  Speaker 3: Cup final and Zlatan was like, if the helicopter can't happen,
• 24:02
  Speaker 3: it's fine.
• 24:02
  Speaker 4: Like, we don't have to push that. Like, and I'd
• 24:05
  Speaker 4: never really.
• 24:05
  Speaker 1: Heard him so opinionated about it. The guy shows no
• 24:07
  Speaker 1: sign of weakness or vulnerability and doesn't like the helicopter.
• 24:12
  Speaker 2: We found the kryptonite.
• 24:13
  Speaker 1: Oh, that's so good. And you guys got detoured, right?
• 24:16
  Speaker 1: Or something happened, right?
• 24:17
  Speaker 2: So it was supposed to be like a seven-minute flight
• 24:20
  Speaker 2: from where we were on the, you know, the other
• 24:23
  Speaker 2: side of Manhattan over on the east side over there and,
• 24:25
  Speaker 2: you know, come around and Land at Teterboro, get the
• 24:29
  Speaker 2: police escort to the stadium. And so we get up and,
• 24:32
  Speaker 2: you know, they were going to fly us around the
• 24:34
  Speaker 2: Statue of Liberty, which was fine. I'm not fine. It
• 24:37
  Speaker 2: was incredible, by the way. I was in awe the
• 24:39
  Speaker 2: whole time. I just loved it. I'm pointing out different places.
• 24:42
  Speaker 2: And then we went up the Hudson and we were
• 24:44
  Speaker 2: supposed to, you know, then turn and go over to Teterboro. Well,
• 24:47
  Speaker 2: we get up the Hudson and we turn the corner
• 24:49
  Speaker 2: and come back around and we start doing loops. And
• 24:52
  Speaker 2: I said, this, this is not right. And so then
• 24:55
  Speaker 2: at one, and so we're getting up there and we're like,
• 24:56
  Speaker 2: it been in the air for 20, 25 minutes. And,
• 24:59
  Speaker 2: and we have no communication with anybody on the ground
• 25:02
  Speaker 2: and no communication with the pilots. And so then all
• 25:05
  Speaker 2: of a sudden it swerves over, you know, over like,
• 25:08
  Speaker 2: Hoboken and Secaucus there. And we land and we land
• 25:13
  Speaker 2: and I look out, he goes, this is not Teterboro
• 25:16
  Speaker 2: at all. We ended up landing at, you know, some
• 25:18
  Speaker 2: like place in Kearney, New Jersey, by the way, Soccer Town, USA.
• 25:23
  Speaker 2: So the soccer gods have a sense of humor. They
• 25:25
  Speaker 2: landed us in Kearney, New Jersey and at some, you know,
• 25:29
  Speaker 2: commercial industrial kind of helipad there, at which point The
• 25:35
  Speaker 2: state troopers from New Jersey, who originally were scheduled to
• 25:37
  Speaker 2: pick us up at Teterboro, come flying down the parkway,
• 25:42
  Speaker 2: pick us up, and then take us back because Trump
• 25:45
  Speaker 2: was coming in and everything was going to be closed out.
• 25:46
  Speaker 2: So we had this small window. We were going 105
• 25:49
  Speaker 2: miles an hour down the Jersey Turnpike in order to
• 25:52
  Speaker 2: get to the stadium. So there was a lot going
• 25:54
  Speaker 2: on behind the scenes.
• 25:55
  Speaker 1: We had some more airtime, Rob and our crew on
• 25:59
  Speaker 1: the desk. I remember hearing, all right, you guys got
• 26:01
  Speaker 1: another segment going on.
• 26:02
  Speaker 2: Keep it going. Keep talking.
• 26:04
  Speaker 3: I never heard that story, that that's why you guys
• 26:07
  Speaker 3: had time. Oh, yeah.
• 26:08
  Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah.
• 26:09
  Speaker 2: Okay. Poor Rebecca. I mean, this was, you know, the final,
• 26:12
  Speaker 2: and this was the moment and the pinnacle of the pinnacle,
• 26:15
  Speaker 2: and she was just distraught that she was going to
• 26:18
  Speaker 2: miss out on the actual final. But we actually got there.
• 26:21
  Speaker 2: It worked out. It worked out great. Thank you to
• 26:24
  Speaker 2: the troopers. Like I said, it was a nutty, nutty day.
• 26:28
  Speaker 2: There's a whole movie to be made just on that
• 26:30
  Speaker 2: particular day.
• 26:31
  Speaker 1: And Zlatan had more time in the helicopter, which was
• 26:34
  Speaker 1: his worst nightmare, probably. It was great.
• 26:36
  Speaker 2: I would, you know, I would talk to him and
• 26:38
  Speaker 2: he wouldn't even respond to me.
• 26:42
  Speaker 4: Found it. We found his weakness.
• 26:44
  Speaker 3: On that, like a follow with that, Lex, I feel
• 26:47
  Speaker 3: like you're someone, and I think this applies to real life, too.
• 26:51
  Speaker 3: you handle criticism well. Some love you, some hate you,
• 26:55
  Speaker 3: and you never care. And I actually find that to
• 26:57
  Speaker 3: be so refreshing about who you are as a person
• 26:59
  Speaker 3: because you always feel like all PR is good PR.
• 27:02
  Speaker 3: But I have a hard time on social media sometimes.
• 27:04
  Speaker 3: I don't want to read negative comments about myself. It's
• 27:07
  Speaker 3: how have you kind of become so confident in who
• 27:10
  Speaker 3: you are on TV and, you know, and not on TV?
• 27:13
  Speaker 3: It's just I feel like you don't let that get
• 27:15
  Speaker 3: to you.
• 27:16
  Speaker 2: Well, Jenny, to dispel any rumors out there, I am human, okay?
• 27:22
  Speaker 2: I do feel, I do hurt. I don't go looking
• 27:26
  Speaker 2: for people to say mean things to me. And so,
• 27:29
  Speaker 2: but I recognize that in our job, it's inevitable, okay? Now,
• 27:33
  Speaker 2: some of it's going to be fair. A lot of
• 27:35
  Speaker 2: it is just going to be people, especially in this
• 27:37
  Speaker 2: day and age, where in the palm of your hand,
• 27:39
  Speaker 2: you have a microphone and a platform. And the ability
• 27:42
  Speaker 2: to have that message amplified is unlike anything that we've
• 27:46
  Speaker 2: had in history. And so it, it has a much
• 27:49
  Speaker 2: greater chance of reaching your intended victim. I guess it would,
• 27:54
  Speaker 2: it would be, um, it, it comes with the territory.
• 27:56
  Speaker 2: I knew this a long time ago. Um, whether you're,
• 28:00
  Speaker 2: and you know, Carly will attest to this on the field,
• 28:02
  Speaker 2: off the field, it doesn't matter if you are in
• 28:04
  Speaker 2: a public eye type of position, you know, the slings
• 28:08
  Speaker 2: and arrows are going, are going to come. Um, I, uh,
• 28:13
  Speaker 2: I recognize that I may at times give people a
• 28:19
  Speaker 2: warped perception out there. If it bleeds, it leads oftentimes.
• 28:23
  Speaker 2: And I am, hand up, admittedly, kind of sometimes attracted
• 28:28
  Speaker 2: to the fight and to the provocative nature of some
• 28:32
  Speaker 2: of these. And I'm falling into a trap and I'm
• 28:35
  Speaker 2: admitting I am doing that. The amount of positive feedback
• 28:40
  Speaker 2: I get It's exponentially higher than anything that I get negatively,
• 28:44
  Speaker 2: especially when it comes to actual human on human types
• 28:47
  Speaker 2: of contacts. So when I'm out in the wild, if
• 28:50
  Speaker 2: you will.
• 28:51
  Speaker 1: Everybody loves you.
• 28:52
  Speaker 2: The interactions that I have are wonderful.
• 28:55
  Speaker 1: I'm like, wow, people do like you.
• 28:57
  Speaker 2: I know. Exactly.
• 28:58
  Speaker 1: It is.
• 28:58
  Speaker 2: It's very surprising to some people who are with me. So, yeah,
• 29:03
  Speaker 2: it's all good. It's all part of it. I will
• 29:05
  Speaker 2: have a conversation with anyone, whether you agree with me
• 29:08
  Speaker 2: or don't. I agree with me. I recognize that. But
• 29:10
  Speaker 2: I just want to emphasize that I don't go looking
• 29:15
  Speaker 2: for this. And sometimes while I have a much thicker skin,
• 29:19
  Speaker 2: you know, my wife, I have kids, all that, you know,
• 29:23
  Speaker 2: they see and they read. They're not dumb. And it
• 29:25
  Speaker 2: can be, you know, it can be much for. But
• 29:31
  Speaker 2: if I have to come for you, I'll come for you.
• 29:32
  Speaker 1: All right.
• 29:33
  Speaker 2: But you should hope that I come for you because
• 29:36
  Speaker 2: if my wife comes for you, you're done.
• 29:38
  Speaker 1: Yeah. You do not want to mess with it. her.
• 29:40
  Speaker 4: I'm not messing with Anne. Absolutely not.
• 29:43
  Speaker 1: When you first started with TV, though, were you always
• 29:46
  Speaker 1: outwardly giving opinions?
• 29:48
  Speaker 2: Yeah. I mean, it's the kind of TV that I enjoyed.
• 29:51
  Speaker 2: And I know the hot takey type of nature of
• 29:56
  Speaker 2: not just television, but I guess just general media out there.
• 30:01
  Speaker 2: It's nothing new. Like I said, Bleeds It Leads has
• 30:03
  Speaker 2: been around forever, okay? You know, headlines have been designed
• 30:07
  Speaker 2: to draw you in, you know, going back to newspapers
• 30:12
  Speaker 2: or anything else. It's not the full extent of the story,
• 30:17
  Speaker 2: but it's designed to make you turn and make you
• 30:20
  Speaker 2: pay attention. And paying attention is means that people are watching.
• 30:24
  Speaker 2: And when people are watching, that's how the business survives
• 30:27
  Speaker 2: and is successful. Now, you have to be very, very careful.
• 30:31
  Speaker 2: As both of you know, you have to be able
• 30:33
  Speaker 2: to back up the things that you say. One of
• 30:35
  Speaker 2: the questions that I get a lot is, do you
• 30:37
  Speaker 2: believe everything that you say? And I can honestly tell
• 30:40
  Speaker 2: you that, yes, I do. Now, I grew up in
• 30:41
  Speaker 2: a family that encouraged debate, encouraged you to be able
• 30:46
  Speaker 2: to put yourself in other people's shoes or maybe to
• 30:49
  Speaker 2: argue other sides with the understanding that Um, that's how
• 30:55
  Speaker 2: you get to more of the truth. It's also how I,
• 30:59
  Speaker 2: I learn and I can be persuaded or I can
• 31:02
  Speaker 2: change the way that I view things by having these
• 31:05
  Speaker 2: types of conversation. But as you also know, on television,
• 31:09
  Speaker 2: we have a very limited time to make the point.
• 31:12
  Speaker 2: So efficiency is crucial. Economy of words, your ability to edit,
• 31:17
  Speaker 2: not just, um, beforehand, but even in real time, you
• 31:21
  Speaker 2: guys will both know this. Here, I'm going to give
• 31:23
  Speaker 2: you 45 seconds to talk. And then, I don't know,
• 31:26
  Speaker 2: Zlatan's going off about something or whatever, and it's coming
• 31:29
  Speaker 2: down the line. And I know in my ear, it's like, yeah,
• 31:31
  Speaker 2: it's going to be about 15 seconds. You got to
• 31:33
  Speaker 2: make it quick. You got to make it quick. If
• 31:34
  Speaker 2: I had a nickel for every time someone said, you
• 31:36
  Speaker 2: got to make it quick, I would be a very
• 31:38
  Speaker 2: rich man. So you have to, in that moment, what
• 31:40
  Speaker 2: you were going to say, either you got to throw
• 31:42
  Speaker 2: it out and find something new, or you have to
• 31:44
  Speaker 2: edit it down to whatever is going to make it
• 31:47
  Speaker 2: before you got to go to commercial. And that in
• 31:49
  Speaker 2: and of itself is a skill and something that I've
• 31:53
  Speaker 2: certainly gotten better at. I'd like to think that I've
• 31:55
  Speaker 2: gotten better at doing this job over the years, but
• 31:58
  Speaker 2: I still make mistakes and I still got a long
• 32:00
  Speaker 2: way to go.
• 32:00
  Speaker 1: I think that's probably the number one question since I've
• 32:03
  Speaker 1: been with Fox, sitting next to you that people have
• 32:06
  Speaker 1: asked me, what's Alexi like? What's he truly like? Literally,
• 32:12
  Speaker 1: if I had a dollar for every time somebody asked
• 32:14
  Speaker 1: me that, I'd be rich. And I'm like, he's a
• 32:16
  Speaker 1: really nice guy. I mean, I probably hated him a
• 32:19
  Speaker 1: bit during my playing career and the criticism. And, you know,
• 32:22
  Speaker 1: you guys, 2015 was the first World Cup that Fox
• 32:26
  Speaker 1: came on board with, and we did not start out well.
• 32:29
  Speaker 1: I did not start out well. And you guys are
• 32:32
  Speaker 1: probably all thinking, this team's not even going to get
• 32:34
  Speaker 1: out of the group. That was the whole messaging that
• 32:37
  Speaker 1: was going on, you know, and So it's funny, like
• 32:40
  Speaker 1: Brian and my family, they're like, oh, Lexi, so annoying,
• 32:43
  Speaker 1: you know, this, that. But I think what's great about
• 32:46
  Speaker 1: you getting to know you all these years and working
• 32:49
  Speaker 1: with you is you do like to debate. You do
• 32:52
  Speaker 1: listen to other people. You ask questions. It's not, you know,
• 32:59
  Speaker 1: your way or the highway. You genuinely want to learn
• 33:02
  Speaker 1: and understand other people and their viewpoints. And I have
• 33:06
  Speaker 1: a lot of respect for that. And I think that's great. And,
• 33:08
  Speaker 1: you know, I think, I think it was 20, was
• 33:11
  Speaker 1: it before the 2019 World Cup where I think I
• 33:13
  Speaker 1: saw you on an appearance and I think you said,
• 33:16
  Speaker 1: you know, you guys aren't going to win the World Cup.
• 33:18
  Speaker 1: I'm like, oh, really? Like, no, we're going to win
• 33:21
  Speaker 1: the World Cup. I'm going to prove to you that
• 33:23
  Speaker 1: we're going to win the World Cup. And you're like,
• 33:24
  Speaker 1: all right, prove it. And then, you know, it's like
• 33:27
  Speaker 1: we do, we win the World Cup and you're the
• 33:31
  Speaker 1: first one there that's clapping and applauding. And I think
• 33:34
  Speaker 1: that that's Something very special. And that's why I tell people,
• 33:37
  Speaker 1: I'm like, Lexi has a heart of gold. Like he
• 33:39
  Speaker 1: would do anything for anybody. And you've helped me tremendously.
• 33:43
  Speaker 1: So I just want to say thanks. Oh, wow.
• 33:45
  Speaker 2: Well, I mean, listen, in your current condition, I know
• 33:47
  Speaker 2: you're really emotional and all that kind of stuff. But
• 33:49
  Speaker 2: so I get it that you're saying.
• 33:51
  Speaker 1: No.
• 33:53
  Speaker 2: I will say, I remember that moment. So first off,
• 33:57
  Speaker 2: when it comes to criticism, I always felt, you know,
• 34:01
  Speaker 2: when I started in television and before even, that in
• 34:03
  Speaker 2: order for soccer to be taken seriously, it has to
• 34:05
  Speaker 2: be treated equally like the other sports. And, you know, Jenny,
• 34:08
  Speaker 2: you've worked in soccer for a long time, but you've
• 34:10
  Speaker 2: also worked in a bunch of other sports. And even
• 34:11
  Speaker 2: when it comes to college football, which, let's be honest,
• 34:14
  Speaker 2: while it has this amateur type of status. We know
• 34:17
  Speaker 2: that that's changing even as we speak. But the reality
• 34:21
  Speaker 2: is that each and every day there is analysis, and
• 34:25
  Speaker 2: part of that analysis is criticism. And there is a
• 34:29
  Speaker 2: machine that is based on churning all of the stories.
• 34:34
  Speaker 2: And part of those stories are criticizing both on and
• 34:37
  Speaker 2: off the field. And for me, I have always equated
• 34:40
  Speaker 2: that with authenticity and credibility. And that's what I wanted
• 34:44
  Speaker 2: for soccer. And so while at times it may even
• 34:48
  Speaker 2: be directed at me, that's okay because the greater good
• 34:52
  Speaker 2: is more important for me. And I think whether it's
• 34:56
  Speaker 2: the United States Soccer Federation or any type of team
• 34:59
  Speaker 2: out there, they should pay me. For the motivation, all right,
• 35:02
  Speaker 2: that I give to players.
• 35:04
  Speaker 1: You motivated me a lot. Exactly.
• 35:06
  Speaker 2: I'll never forget. I can tell you, I know exactly
• 35:08
  Speaker 2: what you're talking about. We were in New York City
• 35:10
  Speaker 2: and we were doing an appearance.
• 35:11
  Speaker 1: I think we were on a rooftop.
• 35:12
  Speaker 2: Rooftop, yeah. And it was, you know, this wonderful kind
• 35:14
  Speaker 2: of send off and there were players all over the place.
• 35:18
  Speaker 2: And then I was talking to Carly and I think
• 35:21
  Speaker 2: she even got it out of me because she asked
• 35:23
  Speaker 2: me point blank, how do you think we're going to do?
• 35:24
  Speaker 2: And I told her point blank how I thought they
• 35:26
  Speaker 2: were going to do. And in that moment, I saw
• 35:29
  Speaker 2: everything that you need to know about Carly Lloyd, the competitor.
• 35:32
  Speaker 2: Because I know that in that moment, I had planted
• 35:36
  Speaker 2: a seed. Now, I'm not going to take credit for it.
• 35:38
  Speaker 2: But in that moment, even up there, you know, we're
• 35:41
  Speaker 2: having drinks. We're in New York just having a good
• 35:43
  Speaker 2: old time. Even in that moment, I could see that
• 35:46
  Speaker 2: fire churning of, oh, yeah? Well, I'm going to, you know,
• 35:50
  Speaker 2: you're going to stick this back up your ass. And
• 35:52
  Speaker 2: I'm going to make you eat your words here. And ultimately,
• 35:56
  Speaker 2: she and... And that team did. And I couldn't have
• 35:59
  Speaker 2: been happier for that moment. But I have to be honest.
• 36:02
  Speaker 2: I'm not always right, but I'm always giving you my
• 36:05
  Speaker 2: honest opinion. And in doing so, it may ruffle some feathers.
• 36:09
  Speaker 2: It may hurt your feelings out there. But believe me,
• 36:13
  Speaker 2: whatever feathers are being ruffled out there, it's coming back
• 36:16
  Speaker 2: tenfold to me.
• 36:18
  Speaker 1: So you said you believe everything you say. But has
• 36:21
  Speaker 1: there ever been a take or an opinion that you've
• 36:23
  Speaker 1: had where you're like, oh, I may have gotten that
• 36:26
  Speaker 1: a bit wrong?
• 36:28
  Speaker 2: I've gotten opinions wrong, but I believe it. I don't
• 36:31
  Speaker 2: just take another side just to take another side. If
• 36:35
  Speaker 2: there are multiple sides to an issue, I can put
• 36:38
  Speaker 2: myself in different sides of that issue, but I'm never
• 36:40
  Speaker 2: going to say something that I truly don't believe just
• 36:44
  Speaker 2: because it's going to rile people up or something like that.
• 36:48
  Speaker 2: Because I think I think that's disrespectful to the viewer.
• 36:51
  Speaker 2: You know, the viewer can suss it out. As you
• 36:55
  Speaker 2: guys know, I don't know a lot about football, okay?
• 36:59
  Speaker 2: But I know what I'm being talked down to, or
• 37:02
  Speaker 2: I know when I'm not seeing something that's genuine and authentic.
• 37:05
  Speaker 2: And by the way, just because it's performative doesn't mean
• 37:09
  Speaker 2: that it's not genuine and authentic, all right? We are
• 37:12
  Speaker 2: in a entertainment industry. We are in a performative type
• 37:15
  Speaker 2: of industry, and that's okay. The way that we look
• 37:18
  Speaker 2: the way that we say things, the words that we choose,
• 37:20
  Speaker 2: the gestures that we make, all of that is incorporated
• 37:23
  Speaker 2: into that performance on television. But it doesn't mean that
• 37:26
  Speaker 2: the content that you are talking about isn't truthful and
• 37:29
  Speaker 2: isn't genuine. So, yeah, I mean, that's a long answer
• 37:32
  Speaker 2: to your question. But yeah, I believe everything ultimately that
• 37:35
  Speaker 2: I say. It doesn't mean that I can't be wrong.
• 37:36
  Speaker 2: It doesn't mean I can't change my opinion later on,
• 37:39
  Speaker 2: given what has happened.
• 37:40
  Speaker 1: Yeah, it makes sense. I mean, your power rankings, they're
• 37:44
  Speaker 1: always fluid. You know, we Come and go. Teams come
• 37:47
  Speaker 1: and go. Players come and go.
• 37:49
  Speaker 2: It's like catnip, these power rankings, by the way. And
• 37:52
  Speaker 2: not just for soccer. We all know that in sports,
• 37:54
  Speaker 2: lists really, really generate a lot of eyes and a
• 37:58
  Speaker 2: lot of attention. Because there's just something in human nature
• 38:02
  Speaker 2: that it's so simple, and it's right in front of
• 38:05
  Speaker 2: your face, and it's... There is an instant recognition and
• 38:09
  Speaker 2: an instant reaction that people have to like, well, that
• 38:11
  Speaker 2: can't possibly be. How can you possibly have this this
• 38:14
  Speaker 2: person here? And obviously it's subjective. And so it invites debate.
• 38:19
  Speaker 2: It invites argument and it invites disagreement or agreement on
• 38:23
  Speaker 2: a very simple type of level. So, yeah, you can't
• 38:25
  Speaker 2: go wrong with lists and power rankings are part of that.
• 38:29
  Speaker 3: So right now, how are you feeling about, what's your
• 38:33
  Speaker 3: opinion on Mauricio Pochettino back with the U.S.? We haven't
• 38:36
  Speaker 3: even asked you that. I mean, we could talk all
• 38:37
  Speaker 3: day about broadcasting backgrounds, but even today, I've heard a
• 38:41
  Speaker 3: couple of your opinions, but good decision, bad decision?
• 38:45
  Speaker 1: What do you think?
• 38:46
  Speaker 2: You want somebody that you believe in. You want somebody
• 38:49
  Speaker 2: that has experience. You want somebody that has confidence. I
• 38:52
  Speaker 2: think all of those elements are present for Mauricio Pochettino, the...
• 38:57
  Speaker 2: the head coach of the U.S. men's national team. And
• 39:00
  Speaker 2: he's coming off of a very unique experience being the
• 39:03
  Speaker 2: coach of the team for this 2026 World Cup in
• 39:08
  Speaker 2: that they didn't have to go through qualifying. He came mid-cycle. And,
• 39:12
  Speaker 2: you know, as you know, Jenny's spending so much time
• 39:14
  Speaker 2: with him. He had to kind of get up to
• 39:17
  Speaker 2: speed very quickly, never coached internationally. And my problem is
• 39:23
  Speaker 2: that While I think he is a good coach, and
• 39:26
  Speaker 2: I think he could certainly do good things, given this
• 39:29
  Speaker 2: opportunity now to go. on with the team, we paid
• 39:32
  Speaker 2: $ 6 million a year for him. And the most important
• 39:38
  Speaker 2: game and really the game that he was hired to
• 39:40
  Speaker 2: find a way to win was Not only do we
• 39:43
  Speaker 2: not win it, but we failed spectacularly. I mean, against
• 39:48
  Speaker 2: this Belgium team at the worst possible moment. We picked
• 39:51
  Speaker 2: the worst day to have our worst game. And that's concerning.
• 39:56
  Speaker 2: And I know that that's small, but this is what
• 40:02
  Speaker 2: you're hired to do. Having said all of that, I
• 40:05
  Speaker 2: think that he will have learned over the last couple
• 40:07
  Speaker 2: of years. I think he's going to make some changes
• 40:11
  Speaker 2: in terms of how he goes about taking this team forward.
• 40:15
  Speaker 2: So I'm cautiously optimistic. I'm willing to see how this ends.
• 40:21
  Speaker 2: I probably, if it had been my choice, I would
• 40:23
  Speaker 2: have gone in a different direction, thanked him for his time,
• 40:25
  Speaker 2: because I think he did do some really, really good things.
• 40:27
  Speaker 2: And there are some spectacular moments that we talked about
• 40:30
  Speaker 2: this summer in the World Cup that I think are
• 40:32
  Speaker 2: directly related to him being in that leadership role. But,
• 40:37
  Speaker 2: you know, we're still, from a men's perspective, We haven't
• 40:41
  Speaker 2: reached the hill. We haven't figured it out yet. And
• 40:45
  Speaker 2: if he's the one to take us to the promised land, okay. But,
• 40:50
  Speaker 2: you know, he's got a lot of work to do
• 40:52
  Speaker 2: over this next four years.
• 40:53
  Speaker 1: Yeah, what do you think it is? I mean, do
• 40:55
  Speaker 1: you think the team, you know, again, 2022 World Cup,
• 41:00
  Speaker 1: this whole group was called, you know, the next generational
• 41:05
  Speaker 1: talent that can– do things, accomplish things, great group of players.
• 41:10
  Speaker 1: Then we see them at this World Cup. It did
• 41:11
  Speaker 1: a bit better. But what do you think is it
• 41:15
  Speaker 1: where you just can't get over that hump? Because we've
• 41:18
  Speaker 1: obviously seen it on the women's side. And then, you know,
• 41:20
  Speaker 1: next summer with Emma Hayes, the team, you know, that
• 41:24
  Speaker 1: will be their true test. But, I mean, what do
• 41:27
  Speaker 1: you think it is with the men?
• 41:28
  Speaker 2: Yeah, so I think you guys would agree that in
• 41:31
  Speaker 2: sports in general, becoming elite is the hardest thing part
• 41:37
  Speaker 2: of the ladder to climb. It might be the smallest part,
• 41:40
  Speaker 2: but it's the most difficult. Because let's be honest, the
• 41:44
  Speaker 2: United States has for decades now been in the top 20,
• 41:49
  Speaker 2: for times even in the top 10. So really what
• 41:52
  Speaker 2: we're looking at is, you know, because if we're, you know,
• 41:54
  Speaker 2: around the 14th or 13th ranked team in the world,
• 41:59
  Speaker 2: what we're trying to be is in the top 10 consistently.
• 42:02
  Speaker 2: That's where the elite teams are. And that's where, you know, again,
• 42:06
  Speaker 2: Of the eight teams that have ever won a men's
• 42:08
  Speaker 2: World Cup, that's where you want to be. But it's
• 42:12
  Speaker 2: also the most difficult step to take for any country,
• 42:15
  Speaker 2: not just the U.S. And then you add all of
• 42:17
  Speaker 2: the challenges and the specific challenges that we have as
• 42:21
  Speaker 2: a country and culture. You know, the compare and contrast
• 42:25
  Speaker 2: with the women's program, it is night and day. I'm
• 42:28
  Speaker 2: sure you'd agree, Carly. It's just the reality of the
• 42:31
  Speaker 2: situation when it comes to the money that we spent,
• 42:34
  Speaker 2: the way in which we recognized what not just women's soccer,
• 42:41
  Speaker 2: but women's sports needed to be given resources and needed
• 42:46
  Speaker 2: to be given opportunities out there. And the rest of
• 42:50
  Speaker 2: the world wasn't doing that. And we benefited from that. Now,
• 42:53
  Speaker 2: the rest of the world, in a good way, is
• 42:55
  Speaker 2: now competing on the women's side. On the men's side,
• 42:57
  Speaker 2: we got to find a way to make up that
• 43:00
  Speaker 2: last hurdle. And we have to do it in a
• 43:03
  Speaker 2: country where that thinks about the game in so many
• 43:06
  Speaker 2: diverse and different ways. It makes us a great country,
• 43:09
  Speaker 2: but it makes it very difficult to find 11 men
• 43:12
  Speaker 2: to go out there and win soccer games. And that's
• 43:17
  Speaker 2: a long way of saying we still have not a
• 43:22
  Speaker 2: long way to go, but the most difficult part of
• 43:25
  Speaker 2: the way to go. And I'm confident that we will
• 43:28
  Speaker 2: do it. I don't know. I'm not smart enough to
• 43:31
  Speaker 2: know what ultimately the answer is on how to finally
• 43:34
  Speaker 2: reach that promised land of winning a World Cup. I
• 43:37
  Speaker 2: think right now, just concentrating on being within that elite
• 43:41
  Speaker 2: group that could win a World Cup. Keep in mind,
• 43:43
  Speaker 2: every World Cup, Men's World Cup, we talk about the
• 43:46
  Speaker 2: Dutch and we talk about Belgium and we talk about Portugal,
• 43:49
  Speaker 2: these teams that have never won a Men's World Cup,
• 43:51
  Speaker 2: but they're consistently in that conversation. And if we're there
• 43:54
  Speaker 2: consistently in that conversation, then, you know, with a little
• 43:57
  Speaker 2: help from the soccer gods and stuff, you know, things
• 44:00
  Speaker 2: can happen. But until we're consistently in that conversation and
• 44:03
  Speaker 2: in that top 10 of teams, it's going to be difficult,
• 44:08
  Speaker 2: as close as we are.
• 44:10
  Speaker 1: Do you think that there's something in the American soccer
• 44:14
  Speaker 1: culture that needs to change? Development, like MLS, college soccer coaching.
• 44:18
  Speaker 1: Do you think there's anything that needs to, is there
• 44:23
  Speaker 1: anything that sticks out to you that really needs some changing?
• 44:26
  Speaker 2: So if it's specifically about winning a men's World Cup,
• 44:31
  Speaker 2: and I've said this before, then I think we have
• 44:35
  Speaker 2: to get much more specific and detailed about how we
• 44:39
  Speaker 2: want to play. You know, I said this before, if
• 44:41
  Speaker 2: you ask 100 Americans involved in soccer what good soccer
• 44:45
  Speaker 2: is or beautiful soccer is, you're going to get 100
• 44:47
  Speaker 2: different answers. Now, that's not the case when you go
• 44:50
  Speaker 2: to Spain, when you go to France, when you go
• 44:51
  Speaker 2: to England. There's a collective understanding based on history is
• 44:54
  Speaker 2: this is who we are. This is how we play.
• 44:58
  Speaker 2: We don't have that here. And maybe because of who
• 45:02
  Speaker 2: we are as a country, it's impossible for us to
• 45:04
  Speaker 2: have it. But until we have it, and in doing so,
• 45:07
  Speaker 2: we have to define and say, this is how we're
• 45:09
  Speaker 2: going to play because this is the most direct path
• 45:12
  Speaker 2: to being successful. You might not agree with it, but
• 45:14
  Speaker 2: you're going to have to adapt and adjust. And so
• 45:17
  Speaker 2: this whole melting pot of a country that we have,
• 45:20
  Speaker 2: that's all fine and well for a country, but for
• 45:22
  Speaker 2: actually making that team, I think we're going to have
• 45:25
  Speaker 2: to at times, and I think the U.S. soccer, I
• 45:28
  Speaker 2: don't know if you've seen, I don't want to get
• 45:29
  Speaker 2: in too much in the weeds right now, but at
• 45:30
  Speaker 2: least U.S. soccer right now is recognizing that in order
• 45:34
  Speaker 2: to do that, you have to mandate. And they're taking
• 45:37
  Speaker 2: more power and want to mandate and say, this is
• 45:40
  Speaker 2: how we're going to play. This is how you're going
• 45:42
  Speaker 2: to structure things. Because otherwise, we're just a bunch of
• 45:46
  Speaker 2: different tentacles going off in a bunch of different directions.
• 45:50
  Speaker 2: And that's, you know, that's fine for just you know,
• 45:55
  Speaker 2: playing soccer, but for actually winning a World Cup, you're
• 45:58
  Speaker 2: going to have to get much more exclusionary almost in
• 46:05
  Speaker 2: that this is who you are and this is how
• 46:08
  Speaker 2: you play. And if you fit in, great, because this
• 46:10
  Speaker 2: is the way the direction we're going. But if you don't,
• 46:13
  Speaker 2: then this isn't for you or you're going to have
• 46:15
  Speaker 2: to adjust and adapt in order to be part of
• 46:18
  Speaker 2: that going forward.
• 46:19
  Speaker 1: Well, it's almost felt like for me from the outside perspective,
• 46:22
  Speaker 1: looking in that with every manager, it kind of has
• 46:25
  Speaker 1: just changed. The identity has just changed. I don't know
• 46:28
  Speaker 1: what you guys think. I mean, Jenny, you were embedded
• 46:30
  Speaker 1: with the team. I mean, did you... Was there a
• 46:33
  Speaker 1: clear and concise identity that... I mean, you could kind
• 46:36
  Speaker 1: of see it this World Cup, but again, is that
• 46:38
  Speaker 1: the American way?
• 46:39
  Speaker 3: Yeah, and I'd love, Carly, your thoughts on if the
• 46:42
  Speaker 3: women's side has that culture and identity, because it almost
• 46:45
  Speaker 3: feels like you guys have evolved in your play, even
• 46:48
  Speaker 3: just in the last couple years. But on the men's
• 46:50
  Speaker 3: side first, I think the culture... I think they still
• 46:54
  Speaker 3: need time. And I liked what Mauricio Pochettino was doing.
• 46:57
  Speaker 3: I mean, for whatever reason, the men's side had gotten comfortable.
• 47:01
  Speaker 3: And we saw that. We saw that on display when
• 47:03
  Speaker 3: they didn't qualify for the World Cup, right? So this
• 47:06
  Speaker 3: comfort was there for really no reason. And I do
• 47:09
  Speaker 3: think Mauricio Pochettino has a way in which he holds
• 47:12
  Speaker 3: players to a very high standard. He has this yet
• 47:16
  Speaker 3: he's extremely demanding. And you've seen some quotes lately. He's
• 47:18
  Speaker 3: calling out players. You know, we know he wasn't happy
• 47:21
  Speaker 3: with Christian Pulisic not being there this summer.
• 47:23
  Speaker 4: Like, that's not a secret anymore. And he's not going
• 47:26
  Speaker 4: to be afraid to share that.
• 47:27
  Speaker 3: And I, Lex, to your point about the cycle, he
• 47:30
  Speaker 3: did tell me during the World Cup, he said, I
• 47:33
  Speaker 3: understand now why you need four years. Because you just
• 47:36
  Speaker 3: can't build what I want to build in two years.
• 47:40
  Speaker 4: And I didn't know that before.
• 47:41
  Speaker 3: And I thought admitting that also says that he's someone
• 47:44
  Speaker 3: who could admit you know, it's not perfect or he
• 47:47
  Speaker 3: thought it'd be different. And, you know, he didn't have
• 47:48
  Speaker 3: that international or that experience before coaching a national team.
• 47:52
  Speaker 3: So I thought that was cool, just the fact that
• 47:54
  Speaker 3: he has the four years now, which hopefully that culture continues.
• 47:57
  Speaker 3: But yeah, Carly, do you think the women's side has
• 47:59
  Speaker 3: more of that identity that's always set in stone? I do.
• 48:02
  Speaker 1: I mean, I think, you know, like Lex was saying,
• 48:05
  Speaker 1: you know, I get the comparison. People come to me,
• 48:08
  Speaker 1: you know, oh, the women are better than the men.
• 48:09
  Speaker 1: And why can't the men be like the women? I'm like,
• 48:12
  Speaker 1: you can't compare the two. It's like comparing apples to
• 48:15
  Speaker 1: oranges because, you know, the first men's World Cup was what, 1930-ish?
• 48:21
  Speaker 1: First women's World Cup was, official World Cup was 91.
• 48:25
  Speaker 1: You know, so we just had such a head start.
• 48:28
  Speaker 1: And I think the culture was always that winning mentality
• 48:32
  Speaker 1: that we had. And that was just passed down and
• 48:35
  Speaker 1: paved from players before us. We got a lot. I
• 48:39
  Speaker 1: think we got a bit away from that, you know,
• 48:42
  Speaker 1: kind of after winning two world cups in a row.
• 48:44
  Speaker 1: And there's some complacency in my opinion, 2023 world cup
• 48:48
  Speaker 1: wasn't great on the woman's side. But Emma has now
• 48:51
  Speaker 1: brought that back in with her own style and tactical
• 48:54
  Speaker 1: and technical, you know, ways of, of what she wants
• 48:58
  Speaker 1: the team to play. But yeah, the, on the men's
• 49:02
  Speaker 1: side for me, I'm, I'm always like, I don't, you know,
• 49:04
  Speaker 1: when I watched 94 world cup team, Lex, you guys like,
• 49:10
  Speaker 1: there was that same sort of never-say-die attitude that you
• 49:14
  Speaker 1: all had, that the women's team had. But now, I'm
• 49:18
  Speaker 1: not really sure. Look who's here! Oh, my gosh. Look
• 49:21
  Speaker 1: who it is. Bruce.
• 49:24
  Speaker 2: Bruce is on the scene.
• 49:26
  Speaker 1: The man of the hour. Oh, I love that.
• 49:31
  Speaker 4: I always forget you're a little dog guy.
• 49:33
  Speaker 1: I know.
• 49:33
  Speaker 2: Oh, yeah, I'm a little dog guy.
• 49:34
  Speaker 1: I find that so funny.
• 49:35
  Speaker 2: Oh, yeah.
• 49:36
  Speaker 4: You definitely are.
• 49:47
  Speaker 2: Carly, you know, I always wonder, obviously, we talk a
• 49:51
  Speaker 2: lot about Spain on the women's side right now. Well,
• 49:54
  Speaker 2: not just the women's side in general, but on the
• 49:56
  Speaker 2: women's side. If the Spanish... national team players on the
• 50:02
  Speaker 2: women's side were just kind of scattered out around the U.S.,
• 50:08
  Speaker 2: I don't know, collegially or something like that. Being the
• 50:11
  Speaker 2: exact same players that they are, you know, would they
• 50:14
  Speaker 2: be identified as something that the U.S. national team could use?
• 50:19
  Speaker 2: I say that because unlike the men's team, yeah, there is,
• 50:24
  Speaker 2: you know, people ask, you know, what's our style of play?
• 50:28
  Speaker 2: And you mentioned, you know, for a long time, it
• 50:29
  Speaker 2: was kind of, raw and rudimentary. I'm not saying that
• 50:32
  Speaker 2: we weren't good. I'm not saying we didn't have past
• 50:34
  Speaker 2: the ball, but you know, there was a, an ethos
• 50:37
  Speaker 2: that was relative to, you know, the physical nature of
• 50:39
  Speaker 2: the game and, and that kind of stuff, Ben, but don't, don't,
• 50:42
  Speaker 2: don't break. And we've kind of moved on for that,
• 50:45
  Speaker 2: but the U S women, you've always kind of expected
• 50:49
  Speaker 2: the way that they play. And I'm not saying you
• 50:51
  Speaker 2: can't evolve. And a lot of it is tied to winning.
• 50:54
  Speaker 2: You know, you win, people don't care how you play
• 50:56
  Speaker 2: as long as you win. And for women decades after
• 50:59
  Speaker 2: decades of, uh, of winning, but Spain understands exactly. This
• 51:05
  Speaker 2: is who we are. This is how we play. And
• 51:07
  Speaker 2: these are the types of players that fit into that,
• 51:10
  Speaker 2: to that system. And I just, it's, it's hard. I
• 51:14
  Speaker 2: mentioned it on the men's side. It's probably hard on
• 51:16
  Speaker 2: the women's side too, to say, well, this is all
• 51:19
  Speaker 2: we are because you're so in doing so you get
• 51:21
  Speaker 2: so worried about unrealized talent. And especially in the U
• 51:25
  Speaker 2: S of this size. Oh my God, people are falling
• 51:27
  Speaker 2: through the cracks or they're not getting their opportunities. So,
• 51:30
  Speaker 2: There is a fear and a danger in doing something
• 51:34
  Speaker 2: like that. But I think Emma's done a really good
• 51:37
  Speaker 2: job of recognizing what we are, what we aren't. Ultimately,
• 51:43
  Speaker 2: the judgment when it comes to on her side is
• 51:45
  Speaker 2: going to be in the World Cup. I know Olympics
• 51:47
  Speaker 2: were great and all that, but it's going to be
• 51:49
  Speaker 2: bringing us back to the top when it comes to
• 51:51
  Speaker 2: the World Cup, which is where from Carly on down,
• 51:54
  Speaker 2: these teams and these players on the women's side are
• 51:58
  Speaker 2: going to be judged. But I'm here for it. And
• 52:02
  Speaker 2: I think she's done all the right things. I think
• 52:04
  Speaker 2: she's said all the right things. I think she's incorporated
• 52:06
  Speaker 2: a whole new group of young players that hopefully will
• 52:10
  Speaker 2: have learned from the good and bad that has come,
• 52:13
  Speaker 2: especially over the last couple of cycles here, and that
• 52:16
  Speaker 2: will bring us back to being proud and ultimately winning,
• 52:20
  Speaker 2: because that's what the women's side has been built on,
• 52:23
  Speaker 2: is winning, winning consistently.
• 52:25
  Speaker 1: I would agree. Yeah, the true test is going to
• 52:26
  Speaker 1: be next summer. Do you think... the U.S. men are
• 52:31
  Speaker 1: going to integrate some more younger players? Do you think
• 52:34
  Speaker 1: they've done a good enough job of doing that? I mean,
• 52:37
  Speaker 1: I think Gio's kind of missed his window, in my opinion.
• 52:41
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, Mauricio Pochettino is going to, to your point, Jenny,
• 52:46
  Speaker 2: start off his next campaign. He's going to name his
• 52:49
  Speaker 2: next group of players. And I fully want and expect
• 52:54
  Speaker 2: a whole new crop of young players to be named.
• 52:59
  Speaker 2: I think if not now, when and why not? I
• 53:04
  Speaker 2: think that we're moving on from some players, but I
• 53:06
  Speaker 2: also think there's a recognition that there's a bunch of
• 53:08
  Speaker 2: young players that will have watched this World Cup that
• 53:11
  Speaker 2: are good. You know, you look at the Kevin Sullivans
• 53:13
  Speaker 2: and these types of players that are already kind of
• 53:15
  Speaker 2: lighting it up right now. And yeah, let's bring them in.
• 53:19
  Speaker 2: Let's see what they are. The results for me, for
• 53:25
  Speaker 2: certainly the foreseeable future here, they're not irrelevant. But I'm
• 53:30
  Speaker 2: much more concerned of seeing a new group of players
• 53:34
  Speaker 2: that fit into what you said, Jenny, of Mauricio Pochettino's
• 53:38
  Speaker 2: now much more experienced and much more, I guess, mature
• 53:43
  Speaker 2: as an international coach perspective that he has right now.
• 53:47
  Speaker 2: And I think Mauricio Pochettino, like Emma, is looking to
• 53:50
  Speaker 2: make some big changes in the the culture of the
• 53:55
  Speaker 2: way that he goes about with the, with the team.
• 53:57
  Speaker 2: And I think that can be reflected in some of
• 53:59
  Speaker 2: the young talent that comes up.
• 54:00
  Speaker 1: It's exciting.
• 54:01
  Speaker 2: It is exciting.
• 54:02
  Speaker 3: I'm hoping to get to one of the friendly matches.
• 54:05
  Speaker 3: They're playing in Minnesota in October. I'm hoping to go
• 54:08
  Speaker 3: and just get the vibe.
• 54:11
  Speaker 1: Culture check. So I'll keep you guys posted. You just
• 54:13
  Speaker 1: want to travel again. You just, you just, you just
• 54:15
  Speaker 1: love travel.
• 54:16
  Speaker 4: It is Minnesota though. So again, I would honestly bring Gigi.
• 54:19
  Speaker 3: I'd go see my parents, but I, The weirdest part
• 54:22
  Speaker 3: about the World Cup, we've gone through stories, it is
• 54:26
  Speaker 3: the abrupt ending of it all for the U.S.
• 54:29
  Speaker 2: Team, right?
• 54:29
  Speaker 3: Like, I had been with them every day for multiple hours, players, coaches,
• 54:32
  Speaker 3: equipment staff, medical staff, and then, of course, when you lose,
• 54:36
  Speaker 3: and you guys know this feeling, but, like, it's just done.
• 54:39
  Speaker 3: And everyone goes, and I know people say, like, that's
• 54:42
  Speaker 3: the joy of it, too, but I almost want to
• 54:44
  Speaker 3: see them and get a debriefing on how they've been
• 54:48
  Speaker 3: since it all ended. So it's it's weird because it's
• 54:51
  Speaker 3: it ends so abruptly and there's no like follow up. Like,
• 54:54
  Speaker 3: let's all get together and talk about pros and cons.
• 54:57
  Speaker 3: So in my mind, I'm going to try to go.
• 54:59
  Speaker 4: But yes, Carly, I do like traveling, but I also
• 55:01
  Speaker 4: it's my job.
• 55:02
  Speaker 1: It's not just a fun trip to Minnesota.
• 55:04
  Speaker 4: It's research for the pod.
• 55:06
  Speaker 1: Very true. Lex, you going to the game? You going
• 55:09
  Speaker 1: to any games in person?
• 55:10
  Speaker 2: I'm going to... So they've merged all of these windows together.
• 55:13
  Speaker 2: So there's like four games. I am going to the
• 55:15
  Speaker 2: one that's in, I think, Glendale, Arizona against Mexico. So
• 55:18
  Speaker 2: I'll be at the U.S.-Mexico game. And, you know, to
• 55:21
  Speaker 2: your point, Jenny, yeah, it abruptly ends. But there's always
• 55:25
  Speaker 2: somebody kicking a ball. And, you know, hope springs anew.
• 55:30
  Speaker 2: And I know the disappointment of the end of the
• 55:34
  Speaker 2: World Cup for the U.S. team, you know, that leaves
• 55:37
  Speaker 2: a bad taste for... But now we look forward. And
• 55:41
  Speaker 2: as important, as wonderful as this summer was, and I
• 55:44
  Speaker 2: think as memorable and historic it will be as we
• 55:47
  Speaker 2: get further and further from it, there are other games,
• 55:49
  Speaker 2: there are other players, there are other tournaments, there are
• 55:52
  Speaker 2: other world cups that are coming. And so I, I get,
• 55:55
  Speaker 2: I get excited. There was to your point, you know,
• 55:59
  Speaker 2: this ending and this letdown, but now I've rejuvenated and
• 56:04
  Speaker 2: I'm ready to go and I'm ready to believe again. I,
• 56:08
  Speaker 2: I can be grouchy. I can be, as you said,
• 56:10
  Speaker 2: you know, critical. Um, But at my core, I'm a
• 56:15
  Speaker 2: romantic and I believe in American soccer. I believe in
• 56:18
  Speaker 2: American soccer players, both men and women, because I think
• 56:22
  Speaker 2: it's rooted in my belief that, you know, whether it's
• 56:25
  Speaker 2: American exceptionalism or anything else out there, that we can
• 56:28
  Speaker 2: do things and we can do things that people say
• 56:30
  Speaker 2: can't be done. And so ultimately, I'm excited about the
• 56:34
  Speaker 2: future of soccer on the field, men's, women's, co-ed, naked,
• 56:37
  Speaker 2: doesn't matter, and off the field as we continue to grow.
• 56:41
  Speaker 1: I love that.
• 56:42
  Speaker 3: Well, Lex, you just mentioned before we started recording, you
• 56:46
  Speaker 3: took some college trips with your son. It had me
• 56:49
  Speaker 3: thinking about you as a dad and any advice you'd
• 56:52
  Speaker 3: want to give Carly and I, because something you do
• 56:55
  Speaker 3: value so much is your family, your wife, Anne, Carly
• 56:58
  Speaker 3: and I both know, and your kids.
• 56:59
  Speaker 4: And they've come around, they've been around us. And so
• 57:01
  Speaker 4: just any advice?
• 57:03
  Speaker 2: Oh, look, I mean, I, you know, everybody's different. Every
• 57:11
  Speaker 2: family is different. I now have kids now that are,
• 57:14
  Speaker 2: you know, one of them's in college and one of
• 57:15
  Speaker 2: them's going to college. These are, you know, figuring out
• 57:18
  Speaker 2: what's going to happen here. Yeah, I've never been asked
• 57:23
  Speaker 2: this question before, to be quite honest with you. Yeah,
• 57:27
  Speaker 2: I don't know why I've never been asked. Well, probably
• 57:29
  Speaker 2: people don't take any of his advice when it comes
• 57:32
  Speaker 2: to it. I mean, kids are.
• 57:37
  Speaker 2: As you guys know, especially at a young age, you
• 57:40
  Speaker 2: figure it out. They're much more resilient than you give
• 57:44
  Speaker 2: them credit for. They're much smarter than you might realize.
• 57:49
  Speaker 2: Even in this day and age, especially with this generation
• 57:52
  Speaker 2: that we kind of like to crap on. And believe me,
• 57:54
  Speaker 2: there's plenty of times where I can grumpy old man
• 57:56
  Speaker 2: the situation, whether it's social media or phones or all
• 58:00
  Speaker 2: that kind of stuff. But they're Like I said, I
• 58:03
  Speaker 2: think that they're smarter than we give them credit for.
• 58:06
  Speaker 2: Doesn't mean that they don't need direction and don't just
• 58:13
  Speaker 2: assume that they know things. You know, trying to be
• 58:20
  Speaker 2: their friend, I know, is a kind of natural human response.
• 58:25
  Speaker 2: And at times they need a friend, but at times
• 58:27
  Speaker 2: they need a dad or a mom. And those are
• 58:30
  Speaker 2: very different things. dynamics. And while in that moment, it
• 58:34
  Speaker 2: might even be painful for you, it is essential, I think. But,
• 58:40
  Speaker 2: you know, part of the trick, I guess, is recognizing
• 58:43
  Speaker 2: those moments, when to, you know, when to play the
• 58:46
  Speaker 2: front and when to be, in my case, the dad.
• 58:50
  Speaker 2: And also, you know, like a lot of things we've
• 58:53
  Speaker 2: talked about here today, it is a work in progress,
• 58:56
  Speaker 2: and you're going to screw up And you are going
• 58:59
  Speaker 2: to make mistakes. It's certainly okay. But, you know, being
• 59:06
  Speaker 2: there and even just being present isn't, important but the
• 59:13
  Speaker 2: time that you spend being present and maximizing that time
• 59:16
  Speaker 2: I think is crucial because we all have different jobs
• 59:19
  Speaker 2: and things that take us different places and while we
• 59:22
  Speaker 2: would all want to be there for each and every
• 59:24
  Speaker 2: moment it's quality over quantity. So I know those are
• 59:30
  Speaker 2: kind of big picture types of stuff. And I don't know.
• 59:32
  Speaker 2: There's certainly not Ted talky type of details here, but
• 59:37
  Speaker 2: that's how I go about it. And I'm still making
• 59:40
  Speaker 2: it up and trying to figure it out, like I said,
• 59:42
  Speaker 2: in life. And part of that life is being a
• 59:45
  Speaker 2: good father and a good husband.
• 59:47
  Speaker 1: Well, you've got two terrific kids. I always enjoy being
• 59:49
  Speaker 1: around them.
• 59:50
  Speaker 2: Well, you caught them on a good day.
• 59:51
  Speaker 1: You guys have done well.
• 59:54
  Speaker 3: And the last thing, because we have to ask every guest,
• 59:58
  Speaker 3: we've had two. Their whatever it takes moment. You were
• 1:00:01
  Speaker 3: just going to do whatever it takes to, yeah, to
• 1:00:06
  Speaker 3: just be successful, right? Like there's a drive in all
• 1:00:08
  Speaker 3: of us and kind of a not taking no for
• 1:00:11
  Speaker 3: an answer moment that you can recall.
• 1:00:15
  Speaker 2: All right. For your listeners, you know, I grew up
• 1:00:20
  Speaker 2: in Detroit. I grew up in Michigan. And I grew
• 1:00:24
  Speaker 2: up at a time where, you know, soccer was... just
• 1:00:28
  Speaker 2: kind of coming of age, AYSO and all that kind
• 1:00:33
  Speaker 2: of stuff, mom and dad coaching and orange peels and
• 1:00:35
  Speaker 2: juice boxes at halftime and all of that. But I
• 1:00:37
  Speaker 2: did not grow up in an era where I had
• 1:00:41
  Speaker 2: soccer players that I watched or let alone emulated. I
• 1:00:47
  Speaker 2: recognized early on that this was something that I loved.
• 1:00:52
  Speaker 2: And if you can early on find something that you love,
• 1:00:56
  Speaker 2: grab it with both hands. And I loved the autonomy
• 1:01:00
  Speaker 2: that soccer gave me in that, that whistle blew and
• 1:01:04
  Speaker 2: for all the coaching and all that kind of stuff,
• 1:01:06
  Speaker 2: you were kind of left to your own devices to
• 1:01:07
  Speaker 2: do whatever you wanted. I loved that, uh, that feeling
• 1:01:11
  Speaker 2: of being able to control things. Um, and by my decisions,
• 1:01:15
  Speaker 2: good and bad, uh, I went and played in Carly's
• 1:01:21
  Speaker 2: neck of the woods. Um, you're talking to two Rutgers
• 1:01:23
  Speaker 2: people here. I had never been to, uh, exit nine
• 1:01:28
  Speaker 2: off the turnpike, let alone to New Jersey for that matter,
• 1:01:31
  Speaker 2: when my dad dropped my ass off in fall of 1988.
• 1:01:35
  Speaker 2: And it changed my life forever. Both on the field,
• 1:01:38
  Speaker 2: it was a great program, and off the field, I
• 1:01:42
  Speaker 2: was introduced and plopped into a situation that was very,
• 1:01:45
  Speaker 2: very different than anything that I had ever experienced. I
• 1:01:48
  Speaker 2: went to a small little prep school in Michigan, and
• 1:01:51
  Speaker 2: this was the state school of New Jersey. And there's
• 1:01:55
  Speaker 2: a lot of stuff that comes with New Jersey. And
• 1:01:57
  Speaker 2: I learned it very, very quickly. And I had a blast.
• 1:02:00
  Speaker 2: I met so many people, but more importantly, the experience
• 1:02:04
  Speaker 2: of getting out of your comfort zone, that's huge. And
• 1:02:09
  Speaker 2: it's scary at times, but I think it's important at
• 1:02:13
  Speaker 2: times to put yourself in these uncomfortable types of positions
• 1:02:17
  Speaker 2: because it's where you learn, it's where you grow. And
• 1:02:20
  Speaker 2: I guess maybe even more importantly, it's where you discover.
• 1:02:23
  Speaker 2: And discover things that you might not even know about yourself.
• 1:02:27
  Speaker 2: And so, you know, those types of situations, even though
• 1:02:33
  Speaker 2: I didn't necessarily put myself in it voluntarily, it was
• 1:02:36
  Speaker 2: just kind of the way things worked out. It, you know,
• 1:02:40
  Speaker 2: the road less traveled and it's made all the difference.
• 1:02:42
  Speaker 1: Love that. I do too.
• 1:02:44
  Speaker 3: Well, you're not giving Cranbrook enough credit. That school is
• 1:02:47
  Speaker 3: not a little, small, private school. It's like the most
• 1:02:50
  Speaker 3: beautiful school I've ever seen.
• 1:02:51
  Speaker 2: It's very different than Rutgers.
• 1:02:53
  Speaker 4: Than Rutgers.
• 1:02:54
  Speaker 2: That's for sure.
• 1:02:55
  Speaker 4: It could not be more different.
• 1:02:56
  Speaker 3: And I love that you're so modest about your Birmingham,
• 1:02:59
  Speaker 3: Michigan days, because I lived where Lex lived for two years,
• 1:03:02
  Speaker 3: and everyone knows Lex in Birmingham, Michigan.
• 1:03:05
  Speaker 2: I was very lucky. I had a really fun, fun,
• 1:03:09
  Speaker 2: interesting childhood. And soccer-wise, it was... Like I said, very,
• 1:03:15
  Speaker 2: very different. But I found something that I loved.
• 1:03:18
  Speaker 1: I love that. Thank you so much. Thank you, Lex. Thanks, Lex.
• 1:03:21
  Speaker 1: Really appreciate it.
• 1:03:22
  Speaker 2: Thanks, guys. Well, listen, good luck with this. I hope
• 1:03:25
  Speaker 2: you continue on with it. And I hope I can
• 1:03:29
  Speaker 2: listen and watch all of your guests coming forward. And
• 1:03:33
  Speaker 2: for your listeners out there, believe me, it gets better, okay?
• 1:03:36
  Speaker 2: This is kind of an arc, like an arc of
• 1:03:38
  Speaker 2: a show, okay? We're just starting out, introducing you to
• 1:03:41
  Speaker 2: the characters, all right? getting our feet wet, trying to
• 1:03:44
  Speaker 2: figure out what's going on.
• 1:03:46
  Speaker 1: I know.
• 1:03:46
  Speaker 2: I mean, you started out with Stewie. You got me now.
• 1:03:49
  Speaker 2: And then you're going to get to the real meat
• 1:03:51
  Speaker 2: of the podcast here. OK.
• 1:03:53
  Speaker 1: Oh, yeah.
• 1:03:54
  Speaker 2: So bear with us.
• 1:03:57
  Speaker 4: Thank you again. We so appreciate you. And I know
• 1:04:00
  Speaker 4: we'll see you soon.
• 1:04:01
  Speaker 2: Oh, I love you guys. Thank you so much.
• 1:04:03
  Speaker 3: Yeah.
• 1:04:03
  Speaker 1: Thanks, Lex.