European cup qualification rounds 1 are behind us and the highlight is RFS breaking the 15-year long curse of Latvian clubs not progressing past QR1 of the Champions League by convincingly beating Northern Irish Champions Larne FC 7-0 on aggregate! FK Auda also made history by winning their first ever European game and by progressing through a European qualification round for the first time, beating Faroese B36 Torshavn 3-0 on aggregate. Liepaja didn't make it (unsurprisingly) and Riga FC only start their Conference League campaign from QR2.

In this episode, we are first joined by Peter Cinnamond of the Kicking Match: An Irish League Podcast to reflect on RFS - Larne FC tie as well as to learn more about Auda's QR2 opponents - Northern Irish Cup winners Cliftonville FC. We are then joined by a Norwegian sports journalist - Jonas Adnan Giæver - to learn more about RFS's Champions League QR2 opponents - FK Bodø/Glimt.

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Champions of Northern Ireland - Larne FC - have been drawn as Champions League Qualification Round 1 opponents of Latvian Champions FC RFS. But who are this red and white team from just north of Belfast and what are they all about? We are joined by Brian Haveron, a Larne FC supporter of more than 50 years, to introduce us to his club, it's history, and it's role in the local community of just under 20000 residents. For a more analytical approach, check out this analysis by our friend at Latvian Footy in English: https://latvianfooty.substack.com/p/larne-fc-from-lower-league-struggles #championsleague #northernireland #latvia #larnefc #larne #rfs #latvianfootball #football #soccer #nifl #virsliga2024 #teammanscaped With summer being in full swing, make sure to hook yourself (or your very best friend) up with some amazing gear from our friends at manscaped.com. Promo code LFP20 will not only get you 20% off your purchase and free shipping, but will also show appreciation for the podcast and for the work that we do! Make this summer your best one yet with MANSCAPED!

Baltic Cup - contested every two years by Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia - is the second (or third) oldest international competition in the world, and the oldest one still running. Older than the FIFA World Cup by 2 years and than UEFA EUROs by 30 years, the Baltic Cup is a fascinating event that not only mirrors the histories of the three Baltic states, but also features some of the most hilarious controversies you'll find in international football. To learn more about all this, we are joined by amateur historian of Latvian football - Raimonds Kaže. Also check out Raimonds's archival project (in Latvian) here: https://kazhe.lv/futbols/ Aside from the Baltic Cup, another cool thing about the Baltics in general, and Latvia in particular, are the endless white sand beaches (Latvia has 240km of sandy beaches!). When you hit that beach, make sure to look your best with products from our friends at manscaped.com. To help you out, they are offering listeners of the podcast 20% off + free shipping with the promo code LFP20 !