Jessie and Megan are back to talk about the new sensation hitting the Twittersphere. Okay, it's just our twitter accounts. They team up to review "Challenge," a book that Jessie found involving football and romance. Be prepared for plot discussions, favorite quotes, and the cringeworthy reality of the novel (which is one of a five part series!). Make sure you have headphones in while listening to this one, because the book could get us an explicit rating. Learn more about your ad choices....

From a Special One's wink to a sweet encounter in a supermarket, our guests share stories of how fútbol, in its routine and normalcy, its community and joy, provided escape or romance, connection or courage. Sometimes, as October and Nikki agreed, even the sounds of boots hitting balls can be beautiful! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The trio talked about inequities in CONCACAF teams and their own conflicts over whether a team with the support and infrastructure like the USWNT should be playing friendlies (during a pandemic. With fans.) against Colombia, whose players are still fighting to be paid even a fraction of what their men's side makes. And before we even get to the match itself, we're still talking about the anthem, and the issue(s) with performative allyship on a USWNT whose players show remarkable strength and...

Jessie Loach, Megan Smith, and Kirsten Schlewitz talk about whether futbolers' lives should put at risk of COVID (hint: they shouldn't) and a new feud was created when neither Kirsten or Megan had seen Newsies so couldn't go with Jessie on her Aston Villa journey! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s Episode 36, but you won’t know that from Megan and Jessie’s introduction, which has our podcasters taking full advantage of their Home Alone status without the steadying hands of Kirsten and Sonja.  Megan and Jessie discuss the dizzying ups and downs- and more downs- of women’s football, starting with the unacceptable situation in Utah, where Dell Loy Hansen and his team deserved to be used as penalty kick practice targets, and ending with some positive news. The Brazilian Football...

Sonja, Jessie, and Megan come together to record the episode many have been waiting for since we covered 21 Thunder: Canadianism. We learn about tattoos, gangs, and prison systems while comparing our respective countries.

Sonja and Megan team up for the best podcast episode ever (we think)! Take a listen to learn why Sonja is pretty much Rihanna, what the cure for COVID-19 is, and our opinions on season restarts (or one out of the three). In this episode, we explore what the quarantine is doing to our mental health as well as what we think about season restarts. We ponder on how winning a championship this year feels versus a "normal" season.

Join Kirsten, Jessie and Megan as they choose a team of characters from their childhoods, to face Disney XI!

Jessie, Megan, and Kirsten got together a couple of weeks ago to discuss coronavirus and BLM, and their connections to football.

Oatmeal spoons: our own version of "spoon theory" as it applies to mental health. Kirsten, Jessie, & Sonja share their stories, mixing in a lot of laughter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jessie and Megan search for the happy moments in the difficult worldwide situation. We enjoy Sue Bird and Megan Rapinoe's #ATouchMore, our calendar reminder.

Kirsten, Jessie, and Megan are back with a serious episode of Unusual Ef'pod, focusing on chronic illness and how they impact us as fans as well as players.

For our first minisode, we could think of no better guest than having June team up with Bundesliga-loving/suffering fan Megan. This slightly extended minisode is a perfect snapshot of future exclusive episodes. It's unstructured, slightly scattered, but ultimately comes up with great talking points.

Jessie, Kirsten, and Megan are finale-ly covering the last episode of 21 Thunder ("Rock and a Hard Place"). They continue to explore the intricacies of match-fixing, shipping, and Junior's difficult situation.

Join Jessie, Kirsten, and Megan as they jump almost directly into commentary for this episode of 21 Thunder. Well, after a short detour about a picture of a cyclist with goats.

Jessie, Kirsten, and Megan are back for another round of 21 Thunder commentary. This time we are focusing on episode six ("War"). The bad decisions, punny team names, and questionable matchfixing are the focus of this episode. Queue up Netflix and join us as we approach the end of the first season!

We all agree that most people are dealing with anxiety and frustration with the current pandemic, so we hope that our continued 21 Thunder watch party provides a distraction, even if it is only for an hour. Whether this is prompting you to start watching the show or if you need some self-care tips for the apocalypse, we are here for you.

Join the crew as we recap this episode, in which Kirsten is disappointed with the match-fixing strategy, Jessie and Megan continue to gush over Alex, despite his poor decision making.

The gang starts off the episode by diving straight into the commentary, so fire up your Netflix and join us! We continue to be confused by Canadianisms, so we enlist the help of Twitter to make sense of a few references. Still searching for a sponsor for our Pan-Canada tour, we make sense as best we can in this fast-paced episode. There were a few pauses along the way, and a terrible chant at the end (send us your suggestions for a pod sign-off before our next episode!). Music:...

As Kirsten, Megan and Jessie prepared to continue their 21 Thunder watch party, news came in about Kobe Bryant's death. The team started this Ef'Pod by talking about something Unusual Efforts has addressed in the past: how do we talk about stars, role models, and newsmakers who have been accused of sexual assault? With deliberation and care, we address this complexity, touching on the feelings and experiences of family and survivors, reporters and fans. We finish with Episode Two, finally, of...

Megan and Jessie have finally convinced Kirsten to watch that gem of Canadian cinema, 21 Thunder. Our trio stream the pilot with a cameo from Jessie's mom (about weed- but not the one you think) with a lot of laughs, a lot of questions...and some apologies to our Canadian fans! Sign up to be part of our next watch party as we stream episode 2 and find out what happens to Junior, why does Nolan have that stomach tattoo, and how does an under 21 team fit in so much sex and crime when they...

In an Unusually Hogwarts Halloween Ef’Pod, Megan takes Kirsten, Sonja, and Jessie through the ins and outs of Potterland, as the team takes- and rejects- contributor suggestions for which players would be in Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff or Slytherin. Find out who’s Head Boy- and who’s a Death Eater. And as always, stick around for updates and laughs For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy

Megan, Kirsten, and Jessie are back after a hiatus, to explain the nature of aforementioned hiatus. The trio are candid and honest about the mental, physical, and emotional health issues that make regular podcasting- and regular life- a challenge, but throw in trademark humor thanks to some creative subtitles and the wonders of friendship. Listen for the community, for news on what's to come, and to give us your own takes on the messiness and wonders of real life. For information regarding...

In this episode of the @UnusualEfforts Ef'pod, Kirsten (@kdschlewitz), Megan (@themegansmith), and October (@OctoberAeowyn) discuss all things Bundesliga, from tifos to tattoos. Alcohol is imbibed and fun is had as we share brilliant listener love stories as well as our own. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy