Ignacio Lopez: Spain’s World Cup Glory & The Greatest Player Ever?

Spanish-Welsh comedian Ignacio Lopez joins Leroy Brito for a World Cup-themed trip down memory lane.

From growing up in football-mad Spain to watching the country’s golden generation finally conquer the world, Ignacio shares his favourite World Cup memories, the players who shaped his love of the game, and the tournaments that defined a nation.

He also makes his case for the greatest World Cup player of all time, debates heroes and villains from football’s biggest stage, and reveals his collection of unique World Cup football souvenirs gathered over the years.

A funny, passionate and distinctly Spanish perspective on the greatest tournament in sport.

🎧 Subscribe for new episodes throughout the World Cup as comedians, broadcasters and football fans answer one simple question:

Who is the GOAT of the World Cup?

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Welcome back. This is Who's the Goat World Cup edition. And today I've got one of my best friends in the world. I've really wanted to speak to him for a few days now, but we haven't had the opportunity to speak yet. I've been screening your clothes. He's been blanking me. You haven't liked any of my Cape Verde posts. This is Ignacio Lopez. If you don't know Ignacio Lopez, he's one of the best comics on the circuit. Um, one of my closest friends in the world, and he is from Mallorca, so he's Spanish, and I, my family, are from Cape Verde. So yeah. What's your thoughts?

SPEAKER_01 0:34

No thoughts, man. Um thoughts. I think no, it was just uh to be fair to Cape Verde, like absolutely incredible holding Spain back. I mean, typical Spanish style held possession. I I've they could have had about six or seven goals and they really gave it their role, but Cape Verde really held the held the wall um and defended incredibly well. So, and to be honest, that heather thought I thought Kate Verdi were gonna have it uh towards the end of the game as well. So oof, fair play, don't want to talk about it anymore.

SPEAKER_00 1:06

No, which is we'll just discuss, obviously, we'll discuss that it wasn't just the keeper, but it was a great performance from everybody. But we're gonna give a shout out to the keeper. I need to give a shout-out to him as well because his social media has gone ridiculous. So he's gone from like 20,000 followers to like 11 million, and they've noticed that he's followed 2,000 women in the last few days. So I've got a prediction that he's not gonna have a good game next game. He's gonna be enjoying the fruits of America.

SPEAKER_01 1:36

But also, I think he's gonna be thinking, is he does he have a relationship at home? Is he gonna be thinking about that the entire time? What's happening when he gets back?

SPEAKER_00 1:44

His wife is just texting him, like, you've done well, but who is this girl? Who is this Instagram?

SPEAKER_01 1:48

Yeah, yeah, just scrolling through. Yeah.

unknown 1:50

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:51

Okay, good, good. So, how are you enjoying the World Cup at the moment? Because it was I think everyone I've spoken to has been like, well, I'm not really fussed. But then once it starts getting going, and obviously Messi's play, the big guns are starting playing now. Yeah, I'm I'm I've been enjoying the highlights.

SPEAKER_01 2:06

I haven't had much of a chance to catch, I didn't even watch the whole um uh Spain game, the opening game, because you know what it's like here, then everywhere. I don't know what day of the week it is. I think I'm not used to watching football at 5 p.m. either. That's quite a strange one. It's a 5 p.m. kickoff. So by the time I kind of got into the game, it was it was wrapping up. Um but uh yeah, as of next couple of weeks, I've got some time off and I'm I'm looking to get stuck in. I like watching the you know the games between teams you never expect to make it to the World Cup as well. So that'll be a bit fun.

SPEAKER_00 2:40

Yeah, it's good. And I it's been really interesting for me because you're seeing a lot of teams who, you know, not traditional powerhouses, but the fans are so happy to be there that it's just pushing the team on, it feels like. It's lovely to see see that. So I think fingers crossed, it's gonna be a good World Cup, apart from just like the American side of it and the nonsense in America. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 3:01

I can't, I mean, I think I was to be fair, I was expecting more drama. I was expecting to stop more people at the airport. You know, I think we're lucky that the Spain team got through, considering Trump's comments about Spain over the last year or so.

SPEAKER_00 3:14

Of course.

SPEAKER_01 3:15

So, you know, and if Spain do go the distance, what's it gonna be like with the Spanish diplomats and stuff? I mean, obviously, Pedro Sanchez is gonna have to go over there, probably have a meeting with Trump. Uh, that awkward handshake where Trump tries to yank a person off a podium.

SPEAKER_00 3:32

Yeah, he tries to do it's almost like he tries to do a little bit of like a Hulk Hogan pull on you, doesn't he? Um and Sanchez is the only person in the world who stood up to Trump.

SPEAKER_01 3:44

Yeah, yeah, so that will be an interesting one. It would be nice to see Spain go the whole distance. I don't know if they will, but historically, I mean, we've got form for it. We lost our opening game in the 2010. We're the only team in history to lose their opening game of the World Cup and go on to win it. So that's a nice statistic.

SPEAKER_00 4:02

Argentina, Saudi Arabia last World Cup.

SPEAKER_01 4:06

Okay, we were until that one. I don't consider the Saudi Arabian World Cup a World Cup.

SPEAKER_00 4:13

But yeah, so it was Argentina lost against Saudi Arabia, um, I remember correctly. Um who do you who do you think's gonna win the World Cup this year, then? Because it's an open field at the moment. I mean, England played last night and demolished um uh Croatia.

SPEAKER_01 4:29

It's I mean, it's just a shame to see, isn't it? I like Croatia. Um uh I think it could be anyone's game. I think France have got a really good shot at it. I think they've got the players and the the depth of the squad, but we yeah, we just have to wait and see. Of course, you know, it always just goes a bit crazy in the opening. Everyone's got to find their feet as well. Like we don't know what we're doing as well.

SPEAKER_00 4:51

It's a long tournament. So you've got three obviously qualifiers, and then it goes down to 32 teams, I think, which is ridiculous. So I think it ends like the end of July.

SPEAKER_01 5:00

I think it should be uh knockouts from the start. Bang. Straight away, straight away. I don't none of this, none of this group stage bullshit, just get straight in, knockouts from the very very beginning. Yeah, man, let's make it exciting again. Let's make the World Cup great again.

SPEAKER_00 5:23

Make the world so let's go back to great World Cup. So let's talk about your first World Cup experience. What's your first memories of the World Cup?

SPEAKER_01 5:34

I mean, the first one doesn't really count. I was four years of age, but I do have a vague memory of Italian 1900. It does it. I've got I've got a very much the first World Cup I remember watching and knowing what was happening was 1994. But 1990, I just remember loads of people coming around to my parents' house in Mallorca and uh everyone getting very angry. Yeah, yeah. Just being very and just moaning about all kinds of stuff. Uh but yeah, that's I so I don't remember much about Italian 90. I remember people wearing football shirts in in my parents' house, but I don't remember any of the games really.

SPEAKER_00 6:13

Vaguely, I kind of was Spain in the World Cup in 1990.

SPEAKER_01 6:17

But how how dare you? Where was KP? I don't know.

SPEAKER_00 6:20

I don't were you? I don't know, because I remember Italian 90 was my World Cup, but I was like nine years old.

SPEAKER_01 6:26

Yeah, we got we lost to we lost to Yugoslavia. Um I do remember I I remember vaguely us sitting there as a fan with everybody like you know, 20 people around or whatever watching watching the game on Italian television. Um but yeah, we lost to Yugoslavia. But I don't I just remember people being pissed off. I didn't I wasn't really following the game. Yeah, I was very young.

SPEAKER_00 6:49

So it was like Zuba Zerata, was he playing back then?

SPEAKER_01 6:52

Yeah, yeah, he was. Um, but the the the one I remember, and he was playing in that as well, was uh was 94, man. Yeah, so World Cup 94, that was the big one. I think that's the first one I remember, all of the hype around Spain at home as well. So like 94 was just scarves everywhere, flags, just you know, I was excited. I think I remember having the I remember having the the white away kit, which I thought was cool as hell. And like if we're talking goats, goat kit for me is that white '94 kit with the almost like uh red and and yellow pattern down the side. But then, you know, we got we got knocked out against uh by Italy, um, who were I think one of the biggest enemies of Spanish football for the longest time, and that was the first time I recognized the rivalry as well. Yes, like Roberto Baggio, I like I hated that guy. Did you take the ponytail off that day? I was like going short hair immediately, man. None of that rat tail nonsense. Yeah, it's a rat tail more than the ponytail, isn't it?

SPEAKER_00 7:58

Yeah, it was a mullet, wasn't it? He was because he was, I'm sure it was short on top. Yeah, it was um, but it was almost like a wavy mullet at the front as well. And yeah, it it was I couldn't respect him as a footballer after seeing that. It's you know what?

SPEAKER_01 8:13

It's it's the type of style you don't, you literally have never seen anyone else with that hairstyle. It's not quite a mullet, it's not a ponytail, it's the Roberto Baggio. And fair play to him for rocking that for so long and making it work under his own terms, but he was thinking two steps ahead.

SPEAKER_00 8:27

He wasn't that confident in his penalty taking ability, so you thought if I just have a shit haircut, everybody will remember the shit haircut instead of actually skying it in the World Cup. Dagana Ross at least got it wrong target. Come on, Roberto.

SPEAKER_01 8:41

Yeah, he I mean, he had he had uh the season '94 was his was his year for sure. He he was an incredible player that that year, knocking out Spain. Um it was a big one. Spain went into it a much better team, I think. Italy had kind of coasted for a while in that tournament, got been very lucky to reach that point. Um, I do remember actually, so obviously not famous for being Rafa Nadal's uncle at the time, but Rafa's uncle, Miguel, uh, Barcelona. Yeah, he was sent off in that tournament against South Korea. Okay. Um for to be honest, man, I'm still reeling about that one. I don't think he was ascending off a fence. Oh, wow. He crowded into a South Korean player. He basically just ran into him. You know, it should have just been a yellow uh and that was it. But they they red carded him. I don't think it was it was purposeful. So if I ever meet him, I'll have to ask him what he thinks.

SPEAKER_00 9:35

Oh, wow. About that. Speaking of a little tangent as well, did you did you finally get to watch the Rafa documentary? We've got one episode left to go, man.

SPEAKER_01 9:42

It's heartbreaking, it's really difficult to write.

SPEAKER_00 9:44

It's incredible, though, isn't it? It's like you got so much respect for just nothing's given to you. And yeah, even at his peak, he's suffering so much for the sport, and for it's just it's incredible.

SPEAKER_01 10:00

I found myself tearing up for quite a lot of it because he was just under in constant pain, like his whole, and everyone was saying he's kind of built his personality around suffering. And obviously, he's so happy and fun and things to be around, and such a great player. But I I did find myself arrogantly kind of comparing myself to that as well, just being like all the shit I've been through and all of the stuff behind the scenes people don't know. I haven't got a congenital problem with my with my foot or anything, but I feel like I've been through some some significant pain in my career.

SPEAKER_00 10:32

That's the thing about sports, though you can actually relate and empathize with him because yeah, you can see yourself, and as well, without like jumping to conclusions, you're from the same place as him. So you've got an affinity with him already since the the day you probably saw him for the first time playing tennis. Because he did find myself, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 10:50

I found myself being very um nostalgic as soon as anytime they're cutting back to him sort of being in Mallorca, even though I don't think I ever went to Manacor um until I was an adult. But like just him on the boat and and him with the family and stuff, it felt very yeah, it felt very authentic and unreal to what my life was like. We had less money, but we didn't have any, we didn't have any famous sports people in the family. Yeah, boat had a couple of holes in it. Yeah, it was a pedalo. We had a pedalo, all right?

SPEAKER_00 11:27

So so going back to his uncle and that red card, do you remember another red card in that World Cup? And it was the nicest guy ever, and he just had a flash moment, which was this in 94. Leonardo for Brazil. Oh, yes, when he just elbowed, he just dropped the people's elbow on a player.

SPEAKER_01 11:46

Yeah, I mean, tensions mount. I think the one thing I do remember about '94 as well, which I think we're gonna see this World Cup, everyone in my family in Spain, everyone, I don't know if it was in the Spanish press, everyone just complaining about the heat in America, everyone just saying how hot it was. And it just like it makes tensions, everyone becomes a bit more ratty. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, they do, they do. You know, the I think we're gonna see some interesting fouls and and people losing their temper. The big one for me, which should have been a red card, um, was when Spain got knocked out by Italy in '94. Louis, Luis Enrique Enrique got elbowed in the face. Do you remember this? Yeah, the famous image of him absolutely plastered with blood, but the ref didn't see it. And um, everyone, we were all screaming our heads off. I was like nine. So I'm like, you know, yeah, yeah, yeah. You know, it's just it looked like a wrestling movie. So it was such a dirty tactic. I can't remember who's the player who did it. Um Italian player just I think this whole stereotype about you know certain teams and stuff being dirty, I don't think it holds true. But Tasotti, Tasotti, Tasotti, uh, the Italian player who did that elbow, he knew exactly what he was doing. He was disgusted. It was such a vicious um move, but the referee didn't catch it. But that should have been a straight red off. That would have changed the whole course of the World Cup in '94.

SPEAKER_00 13:10

You know what I'm I miss in this World Cup in the last few World Cups? I miss teams playing up to their stereotypes. It's like it's like the same, it's like the same now. Every team plays the same. I wanted Italy, I want Italy to be like proper dark arts. I want you know Brazil just to be flagging, no defenders. Yeah. Argentina cheating.

SPEAKER_01 13:31

Absolutely. I think they should, yeah, Brazil should feel, I mean, they pretty much do, but they should feel the team just pure attacking players.

SPEAKER_00 13:39

Attacking players, no, and they keep arguing, arguing on the bus and shit, just like just complaining. Um, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 13:47

We um spend, I mean, we didn't win a world cup for a very long time. And um we kept winning like fair play awards. Okay. So maybe we should have like elbowed somebody in the face. I think we had the like the fair play like three times in the run up to uh the world cup that we won. I think I think in I don't know if we won it in '94, the world, the fair play award or whatever it's whatever it's called. I mean, we'd all rather be taking home a different trophy. Do you know what I mean? Like just kick someone for fuck's sakes. Yeah, so it's the it's 90, it's 94 World Cup.

SPEAKER_00 14:22

They've won the fair play awards, but they've said to Rafa Nadal's uncle, just stay in the hotel for this one. You're not really welcome for this one. Yeah. So so with 94, it was a great World Cup from I I loved world, you know, I loved Brazil back then. And it was just my magical watching trans world sport in the morning and seeing them, you know, and everything. Um, what was your like most iconic moment of of that World Cup? 94.

SPEAKER_01 14:51

Um, I it's a bad one, but I think um do you know Julio Salinas? No, uh striker. He was Spain's I wouldn't say he was, I think, the main striker at that point. He had a he missed um an absolute sitter of a chance against Italy. That that game for me was that that's the main memory I have from '94 was Spain getting knocked out, which is quite heartbreaking because they had a great run before that. I think they'd beaten the Swiss um quite convincingly. Uh, but yes, Salinas had an absolute sitter pretty much in front of the goal and just fluffed it. It was just him and the keeper. And um, and that was the heartbreak. That along with Enrique getting elbowed in the face, the blood, and you know, just losing his mind and having the to be held back because he was going to attack.

SPEAKER_00 15:43

Um, yeah. He seems like he's got that that in him as well. He's always he's all yeah, I love him. I love him. I loved him as a player. Um, what was the what was the feeling? Because obviously you're a Madrid fan. So he he went across, wasn't he? He's Madrid and Barcelona as a player.

SPEAKER_01 15:58

I think um, I mean, yeah, obviously the Real Madrid fans weren't happy about that, but nobody threw a pig's head onto the pitch. You know what I mean? Yeah, I feel like that's more of a a Barza um that's more of a Barça uh reaction, I think, to lose their minds a bit more over stuff like that. Uh he wasn't a staple of the realm of British, he hadn't performed incredibly, but it was still seen as a bit of a betrayal, as it would be, I think.

SPEAKER_00 16:30

Jumping ship. Interesting. So speak speaking about this now, what what's it like in Spain when you were a kid when the national teams played? Is everything like united in terms of everyone going behind, or you still got some people like that? We're supporting our own region.

SPEAKER_01 16:46

What's it like? I think the good thing about Spain is we do we do come together when it comes to the national team. I think that's the reason we managed to win those three tournaments on the on the rounds, you know, um, is because it was a perfect melding of Barcelona and Real Madrid players and the the also the rest of the depth of the of the Spain squad from from other teams. But it was, you know, people say tiki taca, like that's what brought it. But you you can't as we saw against um Cape Verde, like you can't do anything unless you're putting goals away at the end of it.

SPEAKER_00 17:20

Yeah. So yeah, I did enjoy that last banish team. I loved it actually. Yeah, it was great. You know, they got it.

SPEAKER_01 17:28

You need a yeah, but you need a David Via or you know Torres or somebody to just run it through straight into that goal and try to just smash it into the back of the net. Uh so we'll see now if these players who I think like Jamal is obviously a phenomenal player, we'll see if he if he I'd love to see him deliver on the on the World Cup stage. Um hopefully put his whole effort into the World Cup and then not do so well in the season.

SPEAKER_00 17:55

Yeah, but the thing the thing is with him as well, he must have been just couldn't wait to get on the pitch the other day. Because when he came on, he did change the game. Um if he's looking if he's looking at people who he sees as his you know as his equals, you know, Messi scoring a hat trick the other day, you know, um Harry Kane scored two. Um who else has scored? Ronaldo didn't score, did he? No. He's that is this is gonna be a tough one for him, I think. It's gonna be a hundred World Cup for him in terms of just like that reality check.

SPEAKER_01 18:25

Yeah, I mean, similar to, I mean, it's what I thought about watching the the Nadal um documentary as well. Is like you know your best days are behind you, you know, you know that. Like you just you've got the mentality there, but your your body can't go the distance, it's it's gonna let you down. Uh, and it's about being strategic.

SPEAKER_00 18:45

Obviously, Ronaldo's still gonna bring a a ton of stuff to the gravity, yeah, as well.

SPEAKER_01 18:52

Yeah, the players are gonna be looking out for him, yeah. Yes, yes, and I wouldn't put he's he's gonna put one away, I think. And that that would make him he yeah, I mean he's gonna break some kind of record or something like that.

SPEAKER_00 19:04

I think he's scoring in six World Cups, I think that's the thing. Right Messi's uh equal, I think, with um closer for World Cup goals, so he'll probably he'll break that. Um and for me, um, and I'm not sure where you stand on this, but if Messi wins this World Cup now, I think the debate just is like just moves even further. I really don't want Argentina to win this. Yeah, I know, neither do I. Who who do you want to win apart from Spain? It's Spanish, so you've got you've got you got, you know, a thought in the rest, haven't you?

SPEAKER_01 19:36

Yeah, I guess so. I mean, if if not Spain, I do think um I've got no problem with France winning it, or even Brazil. Um yeah, I think you know, I don't I don't mind any of the big teams winning it really, but I don't I don't want Argentina to win it. I'm not a fan. Yeah, that's I that's fair enough.

SPEAKER_00 19:56

That's fair enough.

SPEAKER_01 19:57

Or England. I don't think I could live with England on protein. Do you know this is the thing, yeah?

SPEAKER_00 20:03

This is the thing. Yesterday I tried to be as positive as possible. I was like, oh go on, England, yeah, yeah. I woke up this morning and just the whole websites of the news, everybody on Facebook, it's just like chill out. You conceded two goals and you scored four.

SPEAKER_01 20:19

I think if I if I was if I was back in Spain, I don't think I'd give as much of a shit if England did well. But the fact that here I am in Wales and I work so much in England, I don't think I could live with that.

SPEAKER_00 20:33

Yeah, well I'm on a cruise I'm on a cruise next week with English people, so this would be it's gonna be and I I mean I'm going to the I'm going to the bar on one of the ships, and one guy, Villa, we're playing, and the guy is in a full Man United kit. I'm talking official kit, so he's bought the kit, Beckham on the back, he's got the um the triangle here and everything, full kit, shin pads, everything. And I'm just thinking, why? I'm holding it. What's the first kit you remember having? Did you ever used to have did you have a kit when you were a kid? Um my brothers had a kit, so I would have had a probably handy down, which probably would have been the Crown Paint Liverpool kit. Oh, okay, cool. And then my story is that my brothers supported Liverpool, they forced Liverpool on me, so then I rebelled and went to Aston Villa. And then the first kit that I actually had would have been the Muller Yogurts. I remember buying it from a sports shop and it was on offer, and it was like five sizes too big for me. But it was the black, green, and red, a horrible kit. But I bought it because Dean Saunders was in the shop that day. I remember I remember going there to buy that kit. Um, I think then I would have bought a Brazil kit for like 98. Um, yeah, I would have had that Brazil kit. It's weird now because I remember going to like 2012 World Cup. I remember working in an office and we all made a deal. We're going to work on the First day of the World Cup in full kit, and we all turned up to the office in full kit because everyone was so excited for it. It's um, yeah, it's weird, isn't it? Like I couldn't, I wouldn't do that now. I work for myself, but yeah, I couldn't just turn up to my house, walk around the house in full kit.

SPEAKER_01 22:17

Did you cut? Did you catch um what's his name? The uh is it Alexis Lalas, the American Alexis? Did you catch him saying full kit wanker?

SPEAKER_00 22:28

Yes, about James Gordon. Yes, yeah, and he's he's got like Thierry Henry and Zatlam next to him, just looking at him like, what are you doing? Who are you? Who are you?

SPEAKER_01 22:38

I'm loving Thierry Henry's reactions to most stuff, which is just a soon as he knows something bad's been said, he's like, Oh no, because he's got more like TV experience, especially in the UK as well, so he knows the words.

SPEAKER_00 22:52

I'm I'm loving the Thierry Henry shade at the moment towards Ronaldo because they've had a shot beef for years, haven't they? But he said, like on he said last night, like you don't need to score, the team needs to score, and it was just like a cut-in thing to Ronaldo. I'm enjoying it. But if anyone can say it, Thierry is is that striker who can have that beef.

SPEAKER_01 23:13

Yeah, he was. I mean, yeah, he's a historically great player, and they they they've had that it's it's nice little like sassy, bitchy Thierry Henry, just not letting shit go. But it's the same with Ronaldo, like if you say one negative thing about Ronaldo, he's gonna hold on to that forever, you know, he won't let that go.

SPEAKER_00 23:29

But it's I think that's the elite level sportsman, and then it shows when they retire, they've still got that mentality. They, you know, they're still and going back to Rafa Nadal, it's that mentality of like I can still squeeze out a few more.

SPEAKER_01 23:40

I can still I think the risk, the risk is that Ronaldo's not going to retire, he's gonna be playing like Twitter.

SPEAKER_00 23:52

But yeah, for sure. He shouldn't like one of the things with England, they brought Tony over because he might be able to handle the heat over there and like the rehydration and everything. So I think that's one of the reasons they've done that. But um, yeah, it'll be interesting to see how the heat actually affects everyone.

SPEAKER_01 24:06

Yeah, I think it's gonna that hydration um breaks, people aren't enjoying those, but I think the players need them, and it looks it looks green out there, it looks hot. You can see the steam coming off some of the cameras.

SPEAKER_00 24:20

Yeah, yeah, it is it is hot. So let's go back to World Cups now. So, greatest World Cup performance or player. Who is the World Cup GOAT for you?

SPEAKER_01 24:31

I mean, I think it would be easy to watch Spain's great run, um, Euros, World Cup, Euros back to back, and think of some of the players like Iniesta, yeah, obviously David Via banging goals in, um, all of these phenomenal players. But for me, it's an easy one. Iker Casillas, you know, it's gotta be gotta be Casillas. I think you know, he had the the most clean sheets in the World Cup 2010. Um you know, he scored some really decisive uh opportunities. He stopped um the Netherlands, you know, from potentially winning the World Cup again. Yeah, yeah. For me, Casillas is just the the number one of all time.

SPEAKER_00 25:17

Great keeper, longevity as well. Started 16 when he came at the Madrid side, wasn't he?

SPEAKER_01 25:22

Yeah, that Champions League final, he kind of like broke into the squad through an injury of the player um before him. And um yeah, just just held held the whole thing. And as a as a captain, you know, and everything later on, just yeah, held the whole team together. He was and he held that defensive line, he managed it all. Look at all the penalties he saved. He saved the a penalty in 2010 as well in the World Cup. Yeah, for me, greatest of all time, easy.

SPEAKER_00 25:50

And he's not a traditional huge stature goalkeeper.

SPEAKER_01 25:55

No, I think he's got a lot of people.

SPEAKER_00 25:55

He's just a little dude, isn't he?

SPEAKER_01 25:57

Yeah, I think I don't even, I think maybe he's like 5'10, 5'9, 5'10, maybe. Wow, yeah, short guy. When you look at him next to like um Buffon or something, and like Buffon is a is a tall, classic kind of you know, what you think of as the model of a keeper. Yeah, and uh then you look at Garcias next to him, but yeah, the cat they call him, El Gato, he's um he pounces on that ball, man, he's not getting past him to keep. I think weirdly, he only conceded, I think, two goals in that whole World Cup. One of them was in that opening game where we lost against uh Switzerland. And uh man, I was sat in a beer garden in Swansea watching that opening game in 2010, and I was just furious. I was there in my Spain kit. Um you know, I it was quite empty. It was like obviously during the day. Uh glorious sunny day. I'm watching the game, and like for Switzerland to to beat Spain, it was a shock, it was a wake-up game. Of course it was, yeah. But you know, we held the nerve and we we kept it going. And Casillas pulled off some of the greatest saves, I think, in in World Cup history in that tournament.

SPEAKER_00 27:07

I can just imagine Rafa Nadal watching that game and then just going straight to the court and just battering the ball and then going to Wimbledon and hammering Federal. Did he win in 2012?

SPEAKER_01 27:20

I think he I think he managed the World Cup in 2012. That was that was the year for Spain, man, for sure. That was you know, that's why I started writing jokes about because we were always like the underachievers in everything. Yeah, yeah. Um, and then it it over a period of time, we just we had a great decade in sports. It happened in my lifetime as well, when everybody in my family was obviously complaining, and uh it was a it was a good feeling, good time to be a Spain fan. Was that and a real Madrid fan as well, because you obviously won a number of Champions Leagues. The decimal fans, yeah. We had uh we had a great run, man. So yeah, I'm I'm very lucky. I think my what's funny is like when I grew up in Mallorca, my dad was a Real Madrid fan, so I'm a Real Madrid fan, but my dad had um all sisters, so you know, to have five sisters, and they all married um, you know, not non-Real Madrid fans, and we lived in Mallorca, so I was surrounded by either Barcelona or Mallorca fans, so I was the only Real Madrid fan. But that's why you asked earlier when you said, you know, how how people with the the international team and like we all kind of pound together, which was quite fun. But I I did feel like a bit of a rebel through the course of the being the one Real Madrid fan in the in the family.

SPEAKER_00 28:39

Because a lot of people might not know this, but the relationship between the Balearics and like Catalonia is quite close, isn't it?

SPEAKER_01 28:44

In terms of you know, I mean, it's a it's a short boat ride across to to Barcelona, so lots of yeah, it's it's kind of considered the Barcelona side. Uh predominantly they would support Barcelona in that competition. But at the same time, you've got a lot of people there who are like, we're not we're not Catalan, we're you know, we're Mallorquin or Melorquin or whatever. So yeah.

SPEAKER_00 29:05

Yeah. And why does Real Real Mallorca fit into this thing? Does anyone who supports them?

SPEAKER_01 29:11

I mean, they have fans. I've been I've been to see games, I've been to see games their stuff, but they just they they just have zero consistency, you know, they're up and down, relegated, back up, they'll get sort of mid-table. Uh I think in Spain, it's it's strange, unlike England, for instance, English football, um, where everybody has like a second, not I won't say a second club, but everyone has teams they like to see do well other than other teams in terms of it's mainly fueled by hate, it's who they don't want to see win, I guess, which is very similar. But in Spain, it it doesn't really matter who you support for the most part. I find also people are like, right, we know we're not going to win it, and then they have an opinion about whether they want Real Madrid or or Barcelona to win it.

SPEAKER_00 30:02

I've got you, I've got you. Okay, going back to the World Cup, um let's get a little bit negative. Shit players of the World Cup, catfish of the World Cup. And just to just to caveat this as well now, there's no shit players playing at the World Cup, but there's the shittest player of the tournaments, or the players who were great during the tournament for four weeks, and then they get their big move and they're absolutely garbage.

SPEAKER_01 30:28

Oh, okay. All right, I think I've got a few of these. I thought something I'll say. I mean, had I think he was um I think he had the he was like the golden boot and everything of the World Cup. And I don't I think he is an incredible striker, but James Rodriguez, absolutely, you know, one of the greatest players just didn't work at Real Madrid. It wasn't click, it was it didn't click. It was it's it's Perez is just obsessed with buying he. I think that's yeah, he bought I think he bought like you know, four of the best players at the World Cup and brought them to Real Madrid. And he was like, What are you doing? We have we've got a full squad. Where are these guys gonna fit in? Yeah, like Hammes just wasn't getting game time either. It wasn't fair on him, but so it was very disappointing to see him.

SPEAKER_00 31:22

Um, you know, he did incredible those goals in the World Cup were just volleys, beautiful, beautiful.

SPEAKER_01 31:29

Long range, you know, great. He was a he was a multifaceted, like great striker, brought him to Real Madrid, and he there just wasn't a place for him in the squad. So he's not a shit player, but he just didn't do the business for Real Madrid. It was so disappointing to see him going out there, yeah. Yeah, I agree.

SPEAKER_00 31:46

He's he is the reason I've yeah, he's the reason I actually invented that little segment, really. Really just think think thinking of him because you know there's no there's no shit players, but it's it's a shame when you know he wasn't an unknown because he was playing for Monaco, but at the same time he just went to another level, and then it just didn't click for them for a number of reasons. Sometimes, you know, it didn't really click for clack for Kaca at Madrid in terms of and so it just doesn't sometimes just doesn't work.

SPEAKER_01 32:15

I think yeah, there's there's a kind of a bit of a curse where, like, if somebody wins the balanced or you know has an incredible World Cup, and then you know the Galactical project snaps them up and Perez is like, come to Real Madrid. They're not going to deliver. How are they gonna live up to that hype? You know, you you're going into the most successful club of all time, um, surrounded by other superstar players who've been doing it and have melded with that with that club. You know, it just it was a recipe for disaster, and I think it could have gone a lot worse, but it it could have gone infinitely better. It was it was a real disappointment to watch James uh not fitting into the Royal Madrid team. And that's no shade on him as a player. He just there just wasn't a place for him there. Exactly, exactly.

SPEAKER_00 33:02

Okay, villain of the World Cup. Apart from the guys who who I think it's Tasuti, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 33:09

I think it's I'd say he's the villain. Like that was a it was a vicious man. And the fact that the you know that the um uh the the fact that the the referee missed it as well. So I think Tasuti, I think is uh I don't know if it's Tassuti or Tassoti, Tasuti, I think it is, yeah. I think him massive villain of the World Cup, he got away with that and then went through to the final, you know.

SPEAKER_00 33:32

Thankfully they lost to Brazil, I think. Yeah. 94, yeah, they lost to Brazil. Um what a team that was in terms of like just Romario, Bebeto up front. You know, it was even like Bebeto had a kid, so they'd done the Rock the Baby um celebration. It was just it was just around the world, wasn't it? Just in terms of I remember that team. Cafu, up and down, three World Cup finals in a row.

SPEAKER_01 33:56

Yeah, I appreciate that. Like, obviously, there's rivalries, and people some people obviously, especially if you're an Argentina fan, you don't want to see Brazil win, they're the two big biggest rivalries over that uh side of the world. But like I just Brazil is just fun to watch. Yeah you know what I mean? Yeah, I appreciate like we watch the goals and the highlights, and we've got an inflated opinion of like what the Brazil squad was like, but but you know the games aren't always that interesting, but like yeah, I just I just enjoy watching Brazil, man. They're just a fun, fun team to play. It's kind of like uh it's more like watching a five-aside team. Everyone's just trying to score goals.

SPEAKER_00 34:34

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Exactly. That's that's what it was. And it's I think it's just that uh some I think with this World Cup, but maybe I'm just getting older, so I'm just more used to football and jaded. There's been a hell of a lot of football on. But back then it was just like these players I've never seen. This kit bright yellow, you know, even the opening game, the crowd sounded like an old school crowd, it sounded analog than that's the sound, and I just miss, you know, I think it was the Azteca Stadium as well, because that's just a ridiculous stadium, and um, it's the nostalgia of the World Cup. That's what gets me going.

SPEAKER_01 35:07

Yeah. I've got uh I've got a quick story to tell you that's not within the remit, but I brought, I think, I don't know if I've told you this before, but um that World Cup that Spain won in 2010, a friend of mine wanted to buy me a vintage Spanish kit. Um so he decided to buy me the kit from the 1960s because they'd won, they'd won in 1964, the European uh cup, and then they they didn't play, I don't think, in the 1966, the one that England won. And um England's won. I never knew that.

SPEAKER_00 35:48

Have they mentioned it before?

SPEAKER_01 35:49

They never bring it up. No, I think they've moved on.

SPEAKER_00 35:52

Okay, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 35:54

But my friend wanted to get me a vintage kit, so he he brought bought this like you know, because they were like sweaters back then, the the kids. He buys this kit and he puts gets my name on the back of it and he gives it to me. And I have worn it a few times, but I'm just gonna show it to you now and I'm gonna explain why why it's problematic. Okay, so this is you got the name Lopez on the back of there. There was actually Lopez in the squad, I think, in in the 1960s. But so on the the crest back then is uh is this bad boy because um this was Franco Spain, man. This is the fascist. That's what I was just thinking. Is that a few eagles on there? Like uh this is a big ass eagle with the wings and stuff. So he bought me the. I don't know what, like, I mean, obviously, it's a part of history, it's not quite like wearing a swastika, but like I was like, Oh, thanks so much, man. That's um it would get some looks in Spain.

SPEAKER_00 36:45

Did he buy it from like a um some guy in a basement in Alabama or something? Do you know those guys who are like hoard Nazi material? Like this is this is Hitler's bone, not Hitler's tooth, or something.

SPEAKER_01 36:58

Yeah, I think that might might be the case. He came with a couple of grenades for some reason as well. Um wow. No, man. So I I mean I have one. People over here don't know what it is, and I think a lot of people in Spain wouldn't give a shit anymore either. No, uh frustrating is probably people who like to see it, but um yeah, I yeah, I was I was kind of like, oh, thanks so much, man. And it is a beautiful, it's a nice gift for him to have got me because it's the the shirt, the same shirt they wore for like six years, which is what they won the European Cup in in 1964. Uh you can't really wear it in the Basque region, can you?

SPEAKER_00 37:34

It was really yeah. Oh man, good. Well, anyway, brother, it's been great speaking to you on this. Thank you for taking your time to speak about your World Cup coats, and we're gonna leave it on General Franco's kit. I think that's a brilliant place to leave it at. Um, before we go, what have you got coming up? Um, what's where can people see you? How can people follow you? All that type of stuff.

SPEAKER_01 38:01

So everything is really easy to find me. Comedylopez.com has got all my socials and links, video clips. If it's just the one-stop shop for everything, Ignathy Lopez, comedy Lopez.com. But I'm heading out on tour from September. I'm doing the Edinburgh Fringe as well with a completely different show. So if you come, if anyone's coming to see me there, don't worry, it's not the show I'm doing on tour from September. So you can come see two full-length shows uh with zero crossover. Come along to either one of them. So the show is called The Four of Us Are Dying Up Here at the Edinburgh Fringe.

SPEAKER_00 38:31

Yes, yes. I'm looking forward to seeing this one.

SPEAKER_01 38:33

It's gonna be fun, man. And the the show I'm doing in Edinburgh, uh sorry, the show I'm doing on tour is called Nala, which means nothing, but you're definitely getting something. It's not it's not like a brilliant show.

SPEAKER_00 38:44

I've seen I've seen you build that show up, but it's brilliant. So um yes, y'all are gonna see that on tour as well.

SPEAKER_01 38:51

Yeah, so come on out. Um, and yeah, you'll probably see me around Cardiff with Leroy promoting England getting further in the World Cup. Yes, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 39:00

If you do, if you do see him in his Franco kit, just know I do not condone fascist regimes and never have.

SPEAKER_01 39:11

Yeah, man, it's not uh what what they say. Um uh I'm I I can't get away with wearing it around, I don't think. I have done a few times, but I'm not I'm not gonna redo that again. I'm not I'm not I'm not showing my support for for the regime. I just uh I was very happy to see a Spanish success at uh an international tournament in history. 100%.

SPEAKER_00 39:33

And that is Ignacio Lopez. I'm Leroy Brito. If you do like my stuff, you can go on Leroy Brito.co.uk. Everything's there, like Ignacio's website in terms of I got a link to my comedy special, which funny enough, Ignacio directed. So if you want to have a look at that, um just sign up to the mailing list. Other than that, we will catch you next week with more World Cup GOATs, and I'll see you then.