This week’s What The Footie Podcast is with Matt Bonass, Partner at Bird & Bird, one of the leading legal advisers in sport, investment and complex ownership deals (who recently worked on the Snoop Dogg x Luka Modric x Swansea City deal)

Bird & Bird have just partnered with our Athlete Investor Summit, and ahead of the third edition and ahead of Matt's panel at the event, Paul and Matt discuss the growing rise of athlete and celebrity investment into sport, why football is increasingly being seen as an asset class, what’s driving the boom in club ownership interest, and how these deals are actually structured behind the scenes.

They also get into the wider trend of athletes and public figures moving from endorsement into equity, what clubs are really looking for from high-profile investors, and what the future of investment in football could look like.

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What The Footie is the football and business podcast that goes behind the scenes.

Please remember to support the pod with a follow & a 5 star review.

This week’s What The Footie Podcast is with Keith Lasley, Chief Operating Officer at St Mirren FC.

In this exclusive, Paul & Keith dive into St Mirren’s journey in Scottish football, what it takes to run a modern club day-to-day, and how you build a sustainable model that still competes on the pitch. They explore leadership behind the scenes, balancing football tradition with operational innovation, and making long-term decisions in a results-driven environment — from club strategy and budgeting to recruitment alignment, culture, and community.

They also discuss the wider challenges facing the game right now — financial sustainability, governance and ownership structures, commercial growth, and how clubs can future-proof themselves while staying connected to their supporters.

What The Footie is the football and business podcast that goes behind the scenes.

Please remember to support the pod with a follow & a 5-star review.

In this exclusive, Paul & Luke dive into Toulouse’s journey in Ligue 1, building a sustainable club model, balancing football tradition with innovation, and leading with a long-term vision. As well as Toulouse’s rise through smart recruitment and data-informed strategy, how Ligue 1 is evolving as a talent factory, lessons from running a modern European club, and the big-picture challenges facing football — from ownership models and financial sustainability to the future of analytics in the game.

What The Footie is the football and business podcast that goes behind the scenes.

Please remember to support the pod with a follow & a 5-star review.