This week, Colin sits down with Ollie Jenks of Hold My Gear to talk through what might be the most ambitious World Cup 2026 road trip anyone has fathomed: a 39-day, 10,000-mile journey through all 16 World Cup host cities across the United States, Canada, and Mexico, ending at the final at MetLife Stadium on July 19th. The vehicle of choice? A 1992 London black cab named Abby (the World Cup Cabby!) — which, at the time of recording, isn't even running yet!

In this episode:

• How Ollie and Seth met at the Mongol Rally — and how that led to Cape Town

• The Reliant Robin trip: a Guinness World Record & 14,500 miles

• Smuggling a gearbox into Ghana

• The full route through all 16 World Cup 2026 host cities

• Why Kansas City is the most annoying stop on the map

• Hot take: MLS needs promotion and relegation

• Why he loves the US — and what he wants American fans to do at this World Cup

• The MetLife Stadium "no walking" controversy

• His World Cup 2026 dark horse pick

Foot(y)notes...

Our guest:

• Follow Ollie & Seth's (@Hold.MyGear) WC26 trip across North America: https://linktr.ee/holdmygear.official
• Learn more about School in a Bag, the charity the trip supports: https://www.schoolinabag.org/

The Footy Travelers:

• Follow The Footy Travelers' "Chasing the World Cup Spirit" trip through Europe: https://linktr.ee/Footytravelers
• Join an upcoming group trip: footytravelers.com/trips
• Get our monthly newsletter: newsletter.footytravelers.com

This week, Colin sits down with Matt Walker—author of Europe United and the only person to attend a live football match in all 55 UEFA nations in a single season—to build the ultimate travel guide for the 16 European countries headed to World Cup 2026. Matt walks us through which European nations are most worth visiting, which to skip, where the football culture actually lives, and the best (and worst) reason to visit every single one of the 16. Plus: a definitive ranking of Europe's five most popular budget airlines!

In this episode:

• How Matt pulled off seeing a game in all 55 UEFA nations in the 2017–18 season

• How he forced his way into the worst match he saw

• Which World Cup 2026 European nation has the richest football culture (Turkey vs. Scotland)

• The surprising answer for least rich football culture in Europe — and why

• Brazil vs. Argentina for the best non-European football experience

• Whether Morocco belongs in our World Cup 2026 trip plans

• Where to eat in Europe when your matchday plans fall through

• Why you should avoid Barcelona and Bilbao for Spain national team matches

• Best and worst reason to visit all 16 European World Cup 2026 nations — Sweden, Norway, Scotland, England, Portugal, Spain, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Czechia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Turkey

• The best balance of dark history and modern travel in Europe today

• A definitive ranking of Europe's five biggest budget airlines: Ryanair, Wizz Air, EasyJet, Eurowings, and Vueling

Foot(y)notes...

Our guest:

Get your copy of Europe United by Matt Walker: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Europe-United-football-season-nations/dp/1787476138/

Follow Matt's ongoing footy travels at 55footballnations.com: https://www.55footballnations.com/

Follow Matt on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/55footballnations/

The Footy Travelers:

Follow The Footy Travelers' "Chasing the World Cup Spirit" trip through Europe: https://linktr.ee/Footytravelers

Join our upcoming group trips: https://footytravelers.com/trips

Get our monthly newsletter: https://newsletter.footytravelers.com

00:00 – Intro: A Soccer Bus Story

04:12 – Who Is ClubEleven?

11:20 – Why the Soccer Bus?

18:45 – Life on the Road: Challenges & Chaos

26:10 – US Open Cup Moments & Fan Encounters

35:22 – Creating the Magazine: The Soccer Odyssey

42:47 – The Culture of American Soccer, City by City

51:55 – What's Next for ClubEleven?