Dating app dismissals, CONIFA anthem anxiety & a Sunday service with the Queen

The Premier League and the rest of Europe’s top five divisions totally dominate the football headlines, but have you ever wondered what other interesting news and stories the rest of European football and world football have to offer? If so, The Sweeper is the football podcast for you!

On this episode, Turkish footballer Emirhan Delibaş is sacked by his club Beşiktaş for his profile on the dating app Bumble and Irishman Dylan Connolly receives a Facebook invitation to play in the OFC Champions League preliminary round in Tonga, where he meets the Queen at church.

Elsewhere, the draw for this summer’s CONIFA World Football Cup in Kurdistan – a tournament for unrecognised nations, states and peoples – has thrown up some interesting groups and the Seychelles have mysteriously been ruled out of AFCON 2025 ahead of the start of qualifying in March.

To hear the bonus segment of this podcast all about our live experience at the 342nd Vienna Derby, the octogenarian Italian superfan who went viral and the Uzbek club that could soon be put out of business by former player Rivaldo, join us at patreon.com/sweeperpod.

RUNNING ORDER:

00:00 - Intro
01:24 - Beşiktaş dismiss Emirhan Delibaş for Bumble profile
04:55 - Funny footballer sackings
08:15 - Dylan Connolly invited to play in OFC Champions League via Facebook
13:10 - Round-up of the preliminary round action in Tonga
16:35 - The draw for the CONIFA World Football Cup in Kurdistan
24:22 - Eritrea & Seychelles already out of AFCON 2025
27:28 - Paul accused of butchering the Icelandic language
28:50 - Football groundhop recommendations across Europe
32:24 - Bonus pod teaser