Happy holidays everyone!

Have you ever thought the FA are a bit bah-humbug? We have.

In this episode, we discuss how the FA’s refusal to implement a proper winter break in favour of a packed footballing schedule over the festive period is, as Louis van Gaal once said, ‘the most evil thing about this culture’.

We think that holidays are of real philosophical importance:they invigorate us, let us see friends and family, and, if you’re in old Ukraine, roll around in fields with your partner. Recreation is important, and football needs to take notice.

The debate over the winter break is an ancient matter asimportant as light and dark, life and death. It’s a question about whether or not we have an Ebenezer FA, or one that represents the Ghost of World Cup Futures.

Just like Financial Fair Play, we here at FFP have designedthis podcast to be educational. Whether it works is a different matter entirely.

Today we look at the *English* hero Harry Kane, and thesecret to how he has become England’s top goalscorer. Jack and I discuss stoicism, the Greek and Roman philosophy all about how to achieve the best life and age like the fine wine Ronaldo certainly doesn’t drink.

Stoicism accounts for all of the great footballers’ nous:knowing when to track that runner, knowing when to switch the play, and, if you’re Ryan Giggs, knowing when your brother’s not in the house.

Stoicism tells us that the most active of us are those of uswho exercise our brains. They do say the first 3 yards are in your head, after all!

Here at FFP, we've designed this podcast to be educational — though, much like Financial Fair Play, whether it actually works is another matter entirely.

In today's (late) episode, Jack and I discuss hypercollectivity and how it is an indescribable 'thing'. It's like seeing your crush dance with the boy who can actually play football, it's the taste of your first after-work pint, and the delirium of winning the Lincoln Sunday League Division 2 title. Experiencing football is experiencing these things we call 'qualia': its the 'supra-feeling' you get from doing something - why is that first sip of a pint the best? Why did you just *have* to be there for that funny event? This is qualia - the atmosphere, the feeling, the joy, the agony and the hypercollectivity that encompasses the beautiful game.

For good or for bad, some footballing experiences will last a lifetime. They're timeless, they're with us forever. Jack tells us this is kairotic; the Greeks called what we call 'deep-time' Kairos, the opportune time to do something, the feeling of living in the event, that timeless feeling where it seems like time stands still.

So what happens when you put the first sip of beer and the feeling of timelessness together? You get football, it's a simple equation. Listen to us show our working.

Here at FFP, we've designed this podcast to be educational — though, much like Financial Fair Play, whether it actually works is another matter entirely.