In just three seasons, a small-town club from central Luxembourg have gone from third-tier obscurity to challenging for the top-flight title.

At the heart of their rise is president Carlos Teixeira, a construction entrepreneur who literally built the club’s stadium himself before reluctantly taking over the reins.

On this episode, we tell Atert Bissen's story – before heading to the Netherlands, where an amateur club in the KNVB Beker are guaranteed to lift a trophy whether they win the competition or not.

To complete the Benelux trio we finish off in Belgium, where an angry father, a potential Iraqi investor and a revolving door of coaches have allegedly turned Olympic Charleroi into a hot mess.

Chapters

00:00 – Intro

00:45 – Atert Bissen’s remarkable rise

06:35 – Rapid risers across the globe

08:40 – De Treffers & the Blue Pine Cone

14:40 – Amateur rewards worldwide

18:00 – Chaos at Olympic Charleroi

22:20 – Special Sweeper announcement

In Part 1, Lee and Paul preview the inaugural OFC Pro League – the first fully professional football competition in Oceania’s history – which kicks off in New Zealand on Saturday 17 January. What matches will take place in the first circuit series in Auckland – and where can you watch them? Which team will have to travel the furthest and cross the International Date Line for their fixtures? Who are the standout players to watch out for? And what does the new tournament mean for the future of the OFC Champions League?In Part 2, there are stories from Europe, Africa and Asia. In Germany, a former Bundesliga coach is managing two McDonald’s restaurants – but what other unusual careers have footballers had after hanging up their boots? At AFCON, Mali have turned to a fetish priest to tip fate in their favour for their game against Tunisia. What on earth is one of those, we hear you ask?! And finally, Japan prepares for its transition to an autumn-spring league. But which J-League club have been royally screwed over by the switch?

Chapters

00:00 – Intro

04:11 – OFC Pro League: Format & fixtures

08:58 – OFC Pro League: Distances & date lines

13:24 – OFC Pro League: Intriguing individuals

23:23 – OFC Pro League: Concurrent competitions

27:54 – The German ex-coach working at McDonald's

31:32 – Strangest former footballer careers

38:53 – Mali's fetish priest & Gabon's letter

46:03 – Japan's schedule switch & Fukushima United

In Part 1, Lee and Paul are joined by Asia correspondent John Duerden to cast a look at some huge stories across the continent – in India, Malaysia and South Korea. What on earth happened on Lionel Messi’s GOAT Tour of Kolkata? And why is the world’s largest country still without a top-flight league months after the season should have gotten under way? What has the fallout been from Malaysia’s attempt to illegally naturalise seven players? And why did Gus Poyet resign in protest after winning the double with Jeonbuk in South Korea?

In Part 2, Africa correspondent Ali Howorth drops in before flying to Morocco to give us the lowdown on AFCON 2025 and help us decide which team to support at the tournament. Then it’s over to Europe to put the Ekstraklasa under the microscope. But what unique situation that we have never seen before has occurred in Poland’s top flight? And finally, to mark the festive season, there is a mention for Christmas Island – an Australian overseas territory that is known for its red crabs and its football rivalry with the nearby Cocos Islands.

World Soccer magazine special offer: shop.kelsey.co.uk/sweeperxmas25

John Duerden’s Substack newsletter: https://howfootballexplainsasia.substack.com

Ali Howarth’s AFCON flow chart: https://x.com/ahoworth97/status/2001293214012014953

Chapters

00:00 – Intro

00:35 – India’s Super League crisis

08:56 – Other leagues in limbo worldwide

11:29 – Malaysia’s naturalisation scandal

21:47 – Gus Poyet’s Jeonbuk departure

27:17 – AFCON 2025 in Morocco

39:55 – The crazy Polish Ekstraklasa

44:25 – Mayhem & chaos across UEFA

48:00 – Christmas Island and red crabs

53:45 – On The Spot - The Apertura crown