The English Disease | Legacy

Episode 4: The Mask Eats the Face

A WhatsApp group for football banter started as an escape from the real world. But it soon became a command centre for Britain’s culture war… Extraordinary sporting stories that really matter. From Stak, this is Legacy. Hosted on Acast. See <a href="https://acast.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color:grey;" target="_blank">acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

Football hooliganism is a dirty phrase in England. Say it and people will think of the 80s – the dark old days. Today, those terraces look very different. But the stories – of organised fights, of pub brawls, of banning orders – haven’t gone away. We see them everywhere on our social media timelines: a steady stream of violence swallowed by smartphones and regurgitated for hungry eyes online. This series digs deeper – beyond the stereotypes and tabloid headlines – to understand this violent subculture and why it’s forced its way back into our society in 2024. Embedded in our national sport, this is a story of class consciousness, rebellion, and adventure turning to embittered violence, tribalism, and greed. It is a story of what happens when society disenfranchises its people, dismantles its social structures, and pits them against one another. This is the untold story of The English Disease. From Stak, this is Season Two of the award-winning Legacy. Extraordinary sporting stories that really matter. Hosted on Acast. See <a href="https://acast.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color:grey;" target="_blank">acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.