How is the world reacting to America's World Cup? Did Trump's red card interference ruin all the fun? And will the U.S. men's national team ever be good? Gary Lineker, host of The Rest Is Football and English soccer legend, joins Tommy to talk about the excitement, anxiety, and geopolitics surrounding the 2026 World Cup. Gary offers some advice to America on how to become a true soccer nation, discusses the successes and failures of this World Cup, and reminisces about his time playing in the 1986 World Cup — where he won the Golden Boot and played in the historic "Hand of God" match. CHECK OUT OUR SPONSORS ZBIOTICS: https://www.zbiotics.com/crooked Code: CROOKED SUNDAYS FOR DOGS: https://www.sundaysfordogs.com/CROOKED Code: CROOKED HELIX: https://www.helixsleep.com/crooked SMALLS: https://www.smalls.com/CROOKED Chapters: 00:00 Opening 02:40 Tommy Talks World Cup With Gary Lineker 04:13 The Anxieties Around The World Cup And The Joy 07:54 What Is It Like Playing In The World Cup? 10:30 Trump And The Red Card 12:15k Is The USMNT Good? 17:06 Ad Break 19:54 What Does The U.S. Need To Do To Be Better At Soccer? 22:18 Can FIFA Corruption Be Reformed? 25:20 The Impact Of Sports Betting On Soccer 28:07 How Did You Decide To Speak Out On Issues? 32:34 Racism In International Soccer 34:45 Ad Break 36:47 Who Will Win The World Cup? 38:43 World Cup Fans 40:44 Never Gotten A Yellow Card 42:50 The “Hand Of God Game” 46:02 Politics And Count Binface 47:18 Everton F.C. 48:47 Playing In Barcelona Join this channel to get access to perks like ad-free episodes and exclusive videos: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKRoXz3hHAu2XL_k3Ef4vJQ/join For a transcript of an episode of Pod Save America, please email transcripts@crooked.com. Subscribe to our channel! https://www.youtube.com/crookedmedia?sub_confirmation=1 Photos courtesy of AP Photo Archive Crooked believes that we need a better conversation about politics, culture, and the world around us—one that doesn’t just focus on what’s broken, but what we can do to fix it. At a time when it’s increasingly easy to feel cynical or hopeless, former Obama staffers Jon Favreau, Jon Lovett, and Tommy Vietor have created a place where people can have sane conversations that inform, entertain, and inspire action. In 2017 they started Crooked with Pod Save America—a no-bullshit conversation about politics. Since then, we continue to add shows, voices, and opportunities for activism, because it’s up to all of us to do our part to build a better world. That’s it. End of mission. Learn more about Crooked at http://www.crooked.com Follow the pod on Twitter https://twitter.com/podsaveamerica Follow Crooked on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/CrookedMedia/ Follow Crooked on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/crookedmedia/