Since launching in 2018, Undr the Cosh has established itself as one of the most popular football podcasts in the UK. In a crowded market featuring many big names, it has built a loyal audience by offering something slightly different. Rather than focusing exclusively on elite football, the podcast regularly shines a spotlight on the players, managers, and personalities who have spent much of their careers outside of England’s top tier.
The show combines football insight, humour, and storytelling in a format that feels relaxed and authentic. Guests are given the time to discuss their careers in depth, often sharing stories that would never make it into traditional television interviews. The result is a football podcast that appeals to supporters who enjoy hearing about the realities of professional football, both recent and in the past.
The Hosts
Undr the Cosh was launched early in 2018 by former strikers Jon Parkin and Chris ‘Browny’ Brown, plus broadcaster Chris J Brown. Having two of your three hosts share the same name is admittedly not ideal, but it never ends up being an issue.
Parkin was something of a journeyman, spending time at 14 different clubs (often more than once) and including eight loan spells. While he spent most of his time playing across the EFL, he also made over 150 non-league appearances. Chris Brown was rather less prolific but still carved out a decent career, largely playing in English football’s second tier. The pair played together at Preston North End between 2008 and 2011, where they formed a solid partnership.
At the time of their first podcast, Brown was fairly recently retired after a less-than-ideal end to his career. After failing to score a single goal for Blackburn across two seasons, he moved to Bury but never made an appearance for the club due to a serious knee injury. Parkin, meanwhile, was playing for York City in the National League North and even hit 25 goals that season. After being released by the club at the end of the 2018/19 season following a sharp drop-off in goals, he announced his retirement.
Football Beyond the Premier League Spotlight
One of the biggest reasons behind Undr the Cosh’s popularity is its focus on football experiences that many other podcasts overlook. Most podcast discussions tend to focus on competitions like the Premier League and Champions League, and the players involved at that level, but Undr the Cosh often shines a light on those who spent much of their careers outside the top tier.
Many guests have played in the Championship, League One, League Two, or non-league football. Others enjoyed spells in the Premier League but at clubs that rarely received the same attention as England’s biggest teams. Some exceptions apply, but even so, it gives the podcast a very different feel. Guests often discuss life on shorter contracts, lower wages, long away trips, dressing-room pranks, unusual teammates, and big fallouts.
For many listeners, these stories feel more authentic and relatable than the managed interviews often associated with modern superstar footballers. Players are generally more willing to discuss mistakes, setbacks, and controversial moments, resulting in conversations that feel refreshingly honest. Additionally, compared to the Premier League’s highly polished setup, lower-league football, with its less controlled environment, can produce more interesting and raw content.
Long-Form Interviews Create Better Stories
Another major strength of Undr the Cosh is its commitment to long-form interviews. While some football podcasts aim for quick episodes lasting less than an hour, Undr the Cosh often gives guests significantly more time to tell their stories. Most interview episodes last from 90 to 120 minutes, which is long for a podcast.
This extended format allows listeners to gain a much deeper understanding of a guest’s career. Rather than rushing through key moments, interviews often cover everything that the guest wants to share, and the hosts do a great job facilitating this. Rather than constantly interrupting or steering discussions back to predetermined talking points, the hosts let the conversation flow naturally.
A Huge Range of Guests
Over the years, Undr the Cosh has welcomed a wide range of football personalities. Former players remain the backbone of the podcast, but the guest list extends well beyond that. Recent former player guests include the likes of Chris Samba, Dean Holdsworth, Perry Groves, Paul Huntington, Jack Colback, Dean Saunders, and Pascal Chimbonda. This means the podcast features not only recently retired and long-retired players, but it also offers representation from across the English football ladder.
Although guests are predominantly former players, the podcast has also featured referees, commentators, pundits, and managers. The variety of guests means listeners are exposed to experiences from different eras, leagues, and perspectives.
The Friday Club Offers Something Different
Although interviews remain the main attraction, Undr the Cosh has long boosted its offering through “The Friday Club” series. Unlike the interview episodes, The Friday Club is not particularly football-focused. Instead, it gives the hosts an opportunity to discuss whatever happens to be on their minds that week.
One recent episode featured discussions about “goat-human hybrids, desert island choices, nosebleeds by the bins, chunky midriffs, and Hugo Ekitike’s Achilles heel”. Topics often change rapidly, and football frequently takes a back seat. This format allows listeners to enjoy the personalities behind the podcast rather than simply the football content.
Just be aware that The Friday Club episodes are not available on YouTube and are only available on music streaming platforms. This is why, at the time of writing, there are 253 episodes on YouTube, but 401 on Apple Podcasts.
Strong Social Media Presence
Like many successful modern podcasts, Undr the Cosh has embraced social media as a key part of its growth strategy. Clips from interviews regularly circulate across TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, X, and YouTube Shorts.
The format lends itself perfectly to short-form content. Funny dressing-room stories, controversial opinions, transfer tales, and outrageous football anecdotes often attract hundreds of thousands of views. The most popular short is a clip of Mark Crossley telling the story of Brian Clough trying to sell unwanted striker Justin Fashanu.
As a result, the podcast has built a substantial social media following across its various platforms. Across Instagram and Facebook, the podcast has over 500,000 followers. Over on YouTube, they have over 150,000 subscribers, which is a great return given that neither Parkin nor Brown was a high-profile player.
How to Access Undr the Cosh
Undr the Cosh is available through all major podcast platforms, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Amazon Music. New content is usually released a couple of times a week, although it can vary. At a minimum, there is a fresh Friday Club episode every week. Fans who prefer video content can watch full episodes of interviews on YouTube via the Under The Cosh channel. For some reason, they go by ‘Under The Cosh’ rather than ‘Undr the Cosh’ on YouTube.
As well as this, Undr the Cosh occasionally hosts live shows, normally across the UK. So, if you are a fan of the lads, keep a look-out for these.