Is North Korea 1966 the most astonishing World Cup underdog run of all time?

In this Mid-Season Break Seasonal Special, super guest Phil Craig takes us down one of football history’s most improbable rabbit holes: North Korea at the 1966 World Cup. Set against the shadow of the Cold War, we unpack how politics, perception, and FIFA power dynamics shaped their path to England — and why their story still lands like a grenade in the “Table of Greatness” conversation.

From a chaotic, obstacle-strewn qualification journey, to the shockwave win over Italy, to that jaw-dropping quarter-final with Portugal (yes, that first-half scoreline…), this is the episode where sport collides with history — and somehow ends up getting adopted by Middlesbrough along the way.

Takeaways

• How the Cold War shaped the way the world viewed North Korea’s team
• Why FIFA allowing participation wasn’t as straightforward as it sounds
• The night North Korea stunned Italy and flipped the tournament on its head
• What the Portugal quarter-final revealed about their ceiling — and their tragedy
• The cultural clash (and warmth) of North Korea living in England, Boro-style

If you love World Cup lore, sports politics, and proper football-history weirdness, this one’s for you. Listen now, and then tell us: where does North Korea 1966 belong in the Table of Greatness?

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As our mid-season winter break continues, By Far The Greatest Team keeps the spotlight firmly on teams whose greatness deserves revisiting — even if they don’t always get the full episode treatment.

This time, Graham and Jamie hand the mic to Declan Clark, who takes on the task of making the case for one of English football’s most stylish and complete sides: Manchester City, 1968–1970.

In just three remarkable seasons, City assembled a team that could do everything. League champions, FA Cup winners, League Cup winners, and European Cup Winners’ Cup holders — all achieved with flair, intelligence, and a swagger that set them apart from their domestic rivals.

This was the City of Colin Bell’s relentless brilliance, Francis Lee’s fire, Mike Summerbee’s wing play, and Joe Mercer and Malcolm Allison’s iconic management partnership — a side that married tactical innovation with attacking joy at a time when English football was evolving fast.

In this short seasonal special, Declan revisits the trophies, the personalities, and the cultural footprint of a Manchester City team that didn’t just win — they entertained, influenced, and left a lasting imprint on the English game.

🏆 Takeaways

• Why Manchester City 1968–70 may be the club’s greatest ever side
• How Joe Mercer and Malcolm Allison reshaped English football thinking
• The trophies that confirmed City as a domestic and European force
• The role of flair, personality, and tactical freedom in their success
• Why this team still matters in the context of modern Manchester City

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As we head into our traditional mid-season winter break, By Far The Greatest Team is doing things a little differently.

Instead of stepping away entirely, Graham and Jamie have put together a special run of bite-sized mini-episodes, each shining a spotlight on a truly great football team that might not normally receive the full podcast treatment.

First up in the series is one of the most extraordinary FA Cup stories of the modern era.

In 1997, Chesterfield, a third-tier English side, went on an improbable FA Cup run that carried them all the way to the semi-finals — and to within a goal-line whisker of one of the greatest upsets in English football history. What followed was chaos, controversy, and one of the competition’s most enduring images: manager John Duncan losing his glasses in utterly unspectacular fashion as the drama unfolded.

This short episode revisits the magic, the madness, and the moments that made Chesterfield 1997 a team forever etched into FA Cup folklore — proof that greatness doesn’t always come with medals, but sometimes with mud, disbelief, and broken spectacles.

🏆 Takeaways

• Why Chesterfield’s 1997 FA Cup run remains one of the competition’s most romantic stories
• How a third-tier side pushed English football history to its absolute limits
• The controversial moments that still spark debate decades later
• John Duncan, touchline chaos, and the most famous lost glasses in FA Cup history
• Why some teams don’t need trophies to earn a place in football folklore

🎧 Enjoy this winter-break special — and join us as we uncover great teams, great stories, and great moments that deserve to be remembered.

If you enjoy these podcasts, please don't forget to subscribe and give us a rating and also tell everyone about them!