Liechtenstein: Europe’s strangest national team – Plus Germany’s drug dealer striker & Italy’s coach turned priest

Liechtenstein have the strangest national football team in Europe.

They have no domestic league to develop players, sometimes take just one fan to away matches and, for years, had just one professional footballer.

So how do they make it work? Why is it so hard to generate support for the team? And what change to international football might improve their fortunes?

In this episode, we put the micro-state under the microscope and examine how Europe’s richest country is also home to its strangest national football team.

Plus, the German winger with a secret double life and the Italian coach who disguised himself as a priest.

Equator's World Cup 2026 course with David Goldblatt:

https://www.equator.org/courses/world-cup-2026

Stamping Grounds by Charlie Connelly: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Stamping-Grounds-Exploring-Liechtenstein-World/dp/0349114889

Chapters:

00:00 – Intro

01:03 – Liechtenstein at the FIFA Series

08:07 – Europe’s strangest national team

18:41 – Sudan’s bizarre 12th-tier call-up

20:21 – Puerto Rico’s tournament triumph

23:08 – Equator’s 2026 World Cup Masterclass

27:22 – The German winger with a double life

30:07 – Italy’s coach disguised as a priest