Podbit · The Bill Simmons Podcast
After Croatia had a goal disallowed by VAR in the final seconds of their World Cup exit, Zach Lowe declared war on replay technology across all sports. He doesn't want to watch NBA refs huddle anymore, he doesn't want soccer's VAR hair-follicle offside checks — he wants results to stand on the field, full stop.
Where this was said
At 11:10 · chapter starts 1:15
The hosts immediately dive into the England-Mexico match, with both agreeing there is simply nothing in sport that matches the weight of a World Cup knockout game. Zach Lowe articulates why: the every-four-years format makes every missed opportunity feel like a lost lifetime. Bill Simmons sets the scene at Azteca — an arena he visited in 2009 for a USA-Mexico qualifier — recalling how close the stands are to the pitch, the projectiles thrown at corner kicks, and the nerve-racking business of getting out safely after Mexico loses. England went up 2-0, Mexico clawed back via penalty kicks, England played a man down for the final stretch, and Jordan Pickford made several crucial saves to preserve the win. Simmons likens Jude Bellingham's role to Jaylen Brown playing second fiddle to Jayson Tatum — a joke that immediately gets called 'too soon.' Lowe also mourns Croatia's VAR-disallowed last-second equalizer against Portugal, declares he's throwing his allegiance to Norway, and goes full nuclear on replay technology across all sports: he wants VAR thrown into the ocean and NBA ref huddles abolished entirely. The pair debate whether offside rules should require millimeter precision or just a distinct lead, and Lowe drops his two main World Cup reform takes — no automatic tier-1 status for host nations, and reseed the bracket after the group stage.
England defeated Mexico 3-2 in the World Cup Round of 16, playing a man down for a significant stretch in a wildly dramatic match at Estadio Azteca.
England defeated Mexico 3-2 at Azteca in the World Cup Round of 16, going up 2-0 before Mexico clawed back to tie via penalty kicks — all with England playing a man down. Azteca's atmosphere is unlike anything in sports: fans throw things at corner kicks, try to find the opposing team's hotel, and shoot fireworks at their buses.
Mexico had not lost a real international game at Azteca in approximately 13 years before England's Round of 16 victory.
US striker Balogun shot 49% from three and averaged 16 points per game in the World Cup playoffs before his red card, which was later intervened upon and overturned.
Thomas's wife deferred her CrossFit career — she's in the global top 1% of athletes — to put him through law school debt-free. He wants her to chase the dream now; she wants the emergency fund and house down payment first. On a $200K lawyer income with no debt, the opportunity cost is just a few months of slower saving.
Underground calisthenics battles are exactly like UFC meets a rap battle — 150 people crowded around a circle, fighters walking out with masks and chains, nicknames like 'Extra Money' vs 'Calisthenics the Prince,' and people throwing money and betting. The battle set: 100 burpees, 50 muscle-ups, 75 dips, 75 squats with a 65-pound dumbbell. This is the next big spectator sport.
Rico Verhoeven controlled the undisputed heavyweight boxing champion for approximately 10 rounds — and had his appeal upheld when officials admitted the fight was stopped after the bell. The result was never overturned. Rogan calls it either incompetence or corruption, and argues the money behind Usyk made an upset politically inconvenient.
Rogan lays out a blunt case: boxing's 3-judge system is structurally broken, and the judges know who the promoter wants to win. Glory's 5-judge format is the right model. Corruption doesn't have to be conscious — just knowing Usyk is the cash cow is enough to tilt the scales.
With the Usyk-Wilder fight stalling and Fury-Joshua coming too late, the real fight the world wants is the rematch. Rico is a free agent. Usyk vacated his belts. The story is unfinished and both Rogan and Rico know it. His Excellency Turki Alasheikh already called for it ringside — the question is money.
Rico texted Jason Statham during the Canelo-Crawford fight. Statham showed Rico's highlight videos to promoters. Two days later, Rico was on a call about fighting Anthony Joshua. When Joshua pulled out, Rico pitched Usyk himself — Undisputed vs. Undisputed. Usyk said yes in two weeks. The whole thing started with one text.
Every heavyweight who faced Usyk tried to move to the right — straight into his power hand. Rico and Peter Fury identified the obvious solution: move left, away from the left hand, and smother him with size. It sounds simple. Nobody had done it. That one adjustment was the foundation of 10 dominant rounds.
MMA fans boo when fights go to the ground. They love stand-up. Kickboxing is pure stand-up. Yet it barely exists in America while boxing and MMA are enormous. Rogan's diagnosis: no promotion machine. If the UFC got behind kickboxing the way they've built MMA, it would explode. The talent is there — the storytelling machine is not.
A nation of 17 million people gave the world Ramon Deckers, Peter Aerts, Badr Hari, Melvin Manhoef, Rob Kamen, Ernesto Hoost, and Rico Verhoeven. Rico's theory: the country is so small that every gym shares knowledge freely. In the US, you need a flight. In Holland, you drive 40 minutes and spar the national champion.
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