World Wars & World Cups

We're bringing you an episode of a podcast we think you'll love: Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford. At the height of World War Two, British intelligence began receiving reports that the enemy was developing a rocket weapon. The idea seemed fantastical — resources in Nazi Germany ...  Show more

The Second World War officially ended on September 2nd 1945 - and it's estimated that around 3% of the Earth's population perished during the conflict. But what ultimately bought WW2 to an end - and how vital a role did the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki play in obtaining a J ...  Show more

With the 2022 FIFA World Cup well underway, the phenomenon of sportswashing is once again in everybody's minds. Autocracies and democracies alike have long relied on major sporting events to shore up their legitimacy and project their presence on the world stage. But why is sp ...

Welcome to The Rest Is History's definitive guide to the history of the FIFA World Cup, which looks past the football and uncovers the personalities, geopolitics, and drama behind the tournament. In the first of three episodes, Tom and Dominic debate whether the global game is a ...  Show more

In their last episode on the World Cup, Tom and Dominic are joined by the face of football, Gary Lineker. They discuss England playing Argentina in the 1986 World Cup in the wake of the Falklands War, the globalisation of the competition that began with USA 1994, and the corrupti ...  Show more

As global tensions grew to a breaking point in the lead-up to World War II, European nations used every available avenue to pursue their goals, including the propagandistic power of sporting events. Join Ben and Noel as they explore the strange geopolitical policy of appeasement ...  Show more