The history of the FIFA World Cup

Every four years, something huge happens. And we’re not talking about a presidential election, or the Winter Olympics, or the Summer Olympics, or a new trailer for, like, Final Fantasy 7 Remake.

This week on The History of Fun, we’re talking about the FIFA World Cup, baby. For several weeks every few years, we’re all consumed by soccer — nay, football. So in honor of the upcoming finals (and Chris Plante taking a vacation, lucky guy), we brought in Polygon’s footie expert Colin Campbell to teach us about the long history of the World Cup.

Here’s what else to expect going into this episode, below: a dog named Pickles, highly specific sports games knowledge and lots of pride for team England.

Special thanks to everyone who participated in our segment, Reader Only Memories, wherein we share listener stories about the topic at hand. Here is the full thread of responses:

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New to The History of Fun? Every Monday, Russ Frushtick, Allegra Frank and Chris Plante explore the hidden backstories behind the things we love to do. Ever wonder where dodgeball came from? Or the origins of the creepy Chuck E. Cheese robots? Or how about why Beanie Babies exploded and then vanished into the sands of time? We’ll seek to answer those questions and have some fun along the way! Subscribe and join us — we’d love to have you.