EPILOGUE

WHY FOUNDING FUTBOL

When Founding Futbol began, over a year ago, it was intended to be a year-long project exploring 52 key moments that helped soccer become popular in America. There was, by definition, a beginning, middle and end to the the series. The vision was to research those moments and present a point of view on their relevance, alongside interviews from people involved. It quickly evolved to become more ambitious, with Extra Time episodes featuring additional conversations with key figured in American soccer history. 

The end result was a 126 episode run that helps document modern soccer history in the United States — spanning from 1950 through 2023. Chapters include an exploration of national teams, professional leagues, technologies, writers and more. 

While that’s the design of the series, the backstory is more personal. Maybe even more relatable. It was conceived by asking the question, “how did we get here?” In a country that shunned soccer for so long something must have changed. Many things, in fact, had to change. Host Kent Malmros asked that question, then examined his own evolution as a soccer fan and realized his story — falling in love with the game by watching his daughter start playing at four years old and continue all the way to college — was common. And that model was a key factor in the American soccer stories. Families fell in love with the game and became fans because of their kids. 

Kendall Malmros is Kent’s daughter. She joined the show to reminisce about her soccer journey and reflect on how the game helped bring them closer together. Kendall also shares how playing has impacted her fandom, and what she’s observed with her friends and teammates. 

The balance of the episode summarizes some key themes of the season and reveals what is next for Founding Futbol.