You know Jimmy Bullard and John “Fenners” Fendley. They used to muck about with footballs on the telly and did so for some time. Well now they’re starting a football club, FC Bullard and they’re asking their guests to help them build it. They have no stadium, kit, badge, manager and a lot of decisions need to be made. Decisions like whether the players should be allowed to smoke at half time.
Of course, they’re not actually starting a football club, they’re starting a podcast. It’s an immersive concept that has potential to go far in the football-podcasts-that-aren’t-about-the-football genre (a personal favourite of mine currently dominated by Football Cliches).
It’s obviously very silly. Six minutes of Maisie Adam talking about WikiFeet (don’t ask) pass before Fenners suggests “shall we start?”
I never really warmed to Bullard and Fenners through their TV appearances but the aforementioned mucking about transfers exceptionally to podcasting. It’s not tight; it’s not meant to be. They do have a script which they regularly wander away from and it’s all the better for it. The freedom of podcasting allows Bullard and Fenners to make the most of their undoubted humour in a more natural way that might not come across in a Soccer AM sketch.
In addition to Leeds fan Adam, who co-hosts Big Kick Energy with Suzi Ruffell, episodes so far have included kit designer Rob Warner and Dorking Wanderers manager Marc White. One month after launch the show has seen wild success, peaking as the #1 sports podcast in the UK on Apple Podcasts and #12 in the overall chart.
With this many fans already, they’re going to need to build a pretty big stadium.
