Rory Smith

Football Correspondent

Rory Smith is The Observer‘s Football Correspondent, covering the forces, trends and ideas shaping the world‘s most popular sport. He previously worked for The New York Times, and can also be found on Men In Blazers, Libero and BBC Radio 5 Live’s Monday Night Club. He is the author of two books — Mister and Expected Goals — both of which almost won awards. He has one dog and two children, none of whom are in the slightest bit impressed by any of the above.

Rory Smith

Football Correspondent

Rory Smith is The Observer‘s Football Correspondent, covering the forces, trends and ideas shaping the world‘s most popular sport. He previously worked for The New York Times, and can also be found on Men In Blazers, Libero and BBC Radio 5 Live’s Monday Night Club. He is the author of two books — Mister and Expected Goals — both of which almost won awards. He has one dog and two children, none of whom are in the slightest bit impressed by any of the above.

Good? Bad? Manchester United are the perfect avatar in Schrödinger’s league

The Premier League’s top three and the bottom two apart, almost every team now exists in a state of permanent flux

Sat, 27 Dec 2025

My boy Gianni: Infantino and Trump

Gianni Infantino is the most powerful man in world football but in the run up to the 2026 men's World Cup, his relationship with US president Donald Trump has grown very friendly. It's led to questions whether Infantino still has football's best interests at heart. Read more of Ada and Rory's investigation here 

32 min • S1, E336

Viktor Gyökeres calms the faithful to make Arsenal the Christmas No 1

Sweden striker’s penalty lifts Gunners back above Man City in a gift for anxious supporters

Sat, 20 Dec 2025

X’s transfer window whisperer

What does influencer Indykaila tell us about the growing power of digital natives and our relationship with the truth?

9 min • S1, E1177

Wilfried Nancy’s green shoes tell the story as Celtic lurch into crisis

The Bhoys are one of many clubs caught in European great lacuna, unable to settle on an identity

Sat, 20 Dec 2025

Inside the world of Superbikes

Two deaths a fortnight ago haven’t dimmed the high-octane appeal of motorsport. So when tragedy hits a high-risk sport like this, what keeps riders coming back?

7 min • S1, E1112

‘Shakhtar Donetsk isn't just a football team, but the face of a country at war’

The Ukrainian club’s chief executive on how they have survived a decade in exile

Sat, 13 Dec 2025

Final lap of honour? Mo Salah’s cliffhanger drags on at Anfield

“The Premier League is not actually a soap opera. It is real life, and real life is chaotic and messy and compromised.”

Sat, 13 Dec 2025

Sunderland’s Kyril Louis-Dreyfus: The making of a modern football owner

Low profile no more, the 28-year-old is fast becoming a fan favourite and has management success in his genes

Sat, 13 Dec 2025

Majestic Messi leads Inter Miami to MLS glory

Inter Miami 3 Vancouver Whitecaps 1: David Beckham watches Messi shine as his team become champions for the first time

Sun, 7 Dec 2025

Power of dreams on biggest stage will thrive despite Fifa posturing

The World Cup’s power lies in the football itself, no matter how much the game’s authorities contrive to demean it

Sat, 6 Dec 2025

All eyes will be on Infantino and Trump at the World Cup draw

The pair’s relationship doesn’t so much blur the line between football and politics as obliterate it

Fri, 5 Dec 2025

When Donny met Gianni: how the 2026 World Cup sparked an unlikely bromance

The US president has little interest in football other than the global prestige the tournament can give him. In the Fifa chief he has found a more than willing partner

Fri, 5 Dec 2025