Why Have Bosnia Made The World Cup Twice... But Never The EUROs?

Video Podcast: Exploring why Bosnia have made it to World Cup 2026 under the guidance of a former poker player. Plus, Iraq and DR Congo's long-awaited successes, Ceuta's coach's bizarre pledge and a new initiative on the only island in the world yet to play a football match. A former poker player has coached Bosnia to the World Cup! Sergej Barberez has guided the Balkan country to the tournament in his first head coach role – at the expense of four-time champions Italy. So how did he go from the casino for the dugout? Why has qualification cost his striker Ermedin Demirovic €300,000? And how are Bosnia at a second World Cup without ever making the EUROs? In this episode, we explore brilliant Bosnia’s incredible journey and reflect on Iraq and DR Congo’s play-offs successes too. Plus, the Ceuta coach pledges to walk to Rome and Nauru launch their one child, one ball initiative. Nutmeg Magazine (You can buy the magazine for a special Sweeper discount rate of £10 by using the code 'sweeper' at checkout): https://www.nutmegmagazine.co.uk/prod... Nauru's 1 Child 1 Ball Initiative: https://stingz.co/pages/nauru-soccer-... Chapters: 00:00 – Intro 01:26 – Bosnia’s poker-playing coach 15:20 – Iraq’s 21-match qualifying campaign 19:32 – DR Congo and the legend of Zaire 23:39 – Nutmeg magazine’s World Cup issue 26:24 – Ceuta coach’s pledge to walk to Rome 31:40 – Nauru’s 1 child 1 ball initiative Listen to The Sweeper: • Apple Podcasts: bit.ly/AppleSweeper • Spotify: bit.ly/SpotifySweeper Follow The Sweeper: • Twitter: x.com/SweeperPod • Instagram: instagram.com/sweeperpod • Facebook: facebook.com/SweeperPod Support The Sweeper • Join The Sweeper on⁠ Patreon⁠ • Support The Sweeper on ⁠Buy Me A Coffee⁠ The Sweeper team • Hosts: Lee Wingate and Paul Watson • Editor: Ralph Foster