{"podcast":{"title":"It Was What It Was : The Football History Podcast","slug":"it-was-what-it-was-the-football-history-podcast-6903590","podcast_index_feed_id":6903590,"rss_url":"https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/6633aa7d28201200122f5638","website_url":"https://shows.acast.com/it-was-what-it-was","image_url":"https://assets.pippa.io/shows/6633aa7d28201200122f5638/1727688311940-b629b5f2-5b0c-4058-9540-42e310dbd6d0.jpeg","author":"The Overlap","episode_count":167,"summary":"Welcome to The Overlap's football history podcast, It Was What It Was. Each week Jonathan Wilson and Rob Draper will be talking about the key episodes in football history that have shaped the footballing world. The show will be discussing the best stories from football's past, giving insights to the personalities involved. the tales from behind the scenes and the impact they left. Join us at Football University! If you enjoy the podcast please hit subscribe to never miss an episode. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.","last_synced_at":"2026-06-09T14:22:37.386183+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/it-was-what-it-was-the-football-history-podcast-6903590"},"episode":{"title":"Clyde Best: Breaking Barriers in English Football","slug":"clyde-best-breaking-barriers-in-english-football","published_at":"2026-03-24T05:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/it-was-what-it-was-the-football-history-podcast-6903590/clyde-best-breaking-barriers-in-english-football","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/it-was-what-it-was-the-football-history-podcast-6903590","url":"https://shows.acast.com/it-was-what-it-was/episodes/clyde-best-breaking-barriers-in-english-football","audio_url":"https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/6633aa7d28201200122f5638/e/69b8175019edd9d9c9fc9b95/media.mp3","summary":"Welcome to It Was What It Was, the football history podcast. This week, co-hosts Jonathan Wilson and Rob Draper are joined by an extraudinary guest - Clyde Best. An absolute pioneer to the game, born in Bermuda, Clyde would become one of the first black players in First Division football in England. His new film, ‘Transforming the Beautiful Game: The Clyde Best Story’ will be shown for a week at Sadler’s Wells East from 25th March. In this episode, Clyde recounts arriving in England as a teenager, getting lost at West Ham station and being taken in by the Charles family. He reflects on his rise at West Ham, getting his debut against Arsenal under Ron Greenwood in 1969 and playing alongside the likes of Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst and Martin Peters. Clyde talks of the his Bermuda upbringing, national team breakthrough and the influence that his father had on him. Best reflects on being one of the first prominent black players in English football, enduring racist abuse and an acid-attack threat and playing against Pelé. He also discusses NASL moves to Tampa Bay and Portland Timbers and the inspiration he provided players such as Ian Wright. 01:29 Lost at Heathrow 03:23 The Charles Family 06:59 Bermuda Beginnings 10:20 West Ham Dream 13:20 Ron Greenwood Impact 15:22 Fast Track Debut 18:35 Breaking Barriers 24:06 Facing Racism 31:03 Scoring Against Pelé 35:20 Leaving West Ham for the NASL 37:17 American Soccer Showmanship 43:01 Legacy as a Pioneer 46:57 Honorary Doctorate 49:44 His love for West Ham Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.","meta_description":"Welcome to It Was What It Was, the football history podcast. This week, co-hosts Jonathan Wilson and Rob Draper are joined by an extraudinary guest - Clyd…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3122,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/it-was-what-it-was-the-football-history-podcast-6903590/episodes/clyde-best-breaking-barriers-in-english-football/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/it-was-what-it-was-the-football-history-podcast-6903590/clyde-best-breaking-barriers-in-english-football.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}