Pablo Torre Finds Out

Recent episodes

1. How FIFA Tried (and Failed) to Sell the Soul of Football from Pablo Torre Finds Out

   Aug 4, 202640 min

   The World Cup was a $15 billion jackpot. Then FIFA president Gianni Infantino overplayed his hand, with a secret plot to allegedly enrich the extended Trump family — and himself. The Athletic's Adam Crafton explains the NFL-inspired motives, political naïveté and potential downfall of the man who would be king of sport. • More from The Athletic: Inside the Week That Shook Gianni Infantino, FIFA and the Football World • Previously on PTFO: America Signed Up for the World Cup. FIFA Stuck You with the Tab. • Subscribe to "The Athletic FC Podcast" with Adam Crafton • Subscribe to The Athletic Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2. Searching for a "Good" Sports Billionaire, with Henry Abbott from Pablo Torre Finds Out

   Jul 31, 202639 min

   Fans want a "smoking gun" with Kawhi Leonard. Portland doesn't want its new owner to move the team. Even Vegas is looking to fill a C-suite. TrueHoop's Henry Abbott — the skeptic-in-chief of NBA insiders — stops by for a reality check on the state of truth, big money and basketball scandal: Should you believe Adam Silver and his lawyers, who all answer to the 1 percent? Who gets to be in the most exclusive club in sports? And did an owner really have a threesome with the Larry O'Brien trophy? • Subscribe to TrueHoop by Henry Abbott • Previously on PTFO: RIFC, the Impossible Deal and Life After Aspiration (Pablo Torre Finds Out is independently produced by Meadowlark Media and distributed by The Athletic. The views, research and reporting expressed in this episode are solely those of Pablo Torre Finds Out and do not reflect the work or editorial input of The Athletic or its journalists.) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

3. RIFC, the Impossible Deal and Life After Aspiration: Kawhi-Gate, Part XII from Pablo Torre Finds Out

   Jul 30, 20261 hr 16 min

   Just when you thought the Kawhi Leonard scandal was almost over, Pablo peels off another branch of the saga, with stacks of new documents and a group of reporters in tow. Amin Elhassan and David Samson reunite to trust the process of local journalism, meet another benevolent entrepreneur... and follow the public money, straight to the top — and back to The House That Ballmer Built. • Support The Kyra Fund • Read much more about RIFC at WPRI Previously on PTFO: • Part I: The Silent Superstar and the Rotten Apple Tree • Part II: An Argument with Mark Cuban • Part III: The Mystery Investor, the No-Show Payday and the "Smoking Gun" • Part IV: Steve Ballmer, the Other Cuban and the $118 Million Infusion • Part V: Steve Ballmer's "Inconceivable" Donation, the $20 Million Guarantee and a Head on a Spike • Part VI: An IRL Showdown with Mark Cuban • Part VII: The Briefcase, Ballmer's Social Network and Aspiration's House of Cards • Part VIII: Uncle Dennis, Ballmer's $50 Million Sprint and the Side Deal That Wouldn't Die • Part IX: Ballmer's Tree Money, the Whistle-Blowers and the Document You've Been Waiting For • Part X: Steve Ballmer's Victim Impact, the Man Who Prosecuted Aspiration and the Abacus of Incarceration • Part XI: Ballmer's Secret I.O.U., Aspiration's "Web of Lies" and the Zenith of Fraud (Pablo Torre Finds Out is independently produced by Meadowlark Media and distributed by The Athletic. The views, research and reporting expressed in this episode are solely those of Pablo Torre Finds Out and WPRI-TV and do not reflect the work or editorial input of The Athletic or its journalists.) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

4. Share & Call the President & Tell with Brace Belden and Liz Franczak from Pablo Torre Finds Out

   Jul 28, 202639 min

   The hosts of TrueAnon and Pablo Torre obtain Trump’s personal cell number and debate what to ask him. Plus: “FreddyLA7,” Nicholas Adamopoulos, special presidential envoys, America 250, Woke 2, Tom Brady vs. Logan Paul, Zohran Mamdani vs. The Internet, Lori Lightfoot vs. The Fridge... and whether you should autograph a bomb. • Subscribe to "TrueAnon" • Previously on PTFO: Six Degrees of Jeffrey Epstein, with the the Experts of TrueAnon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

5. How "The Odyssey" Outsmarts Itself, with Wesley Morris from Pablo Torre Finds Out

   Jul 24, 202649 min

   A three-hour puzzle in IMAX makes for great storytelling, but does Christopher Nolan make going to the movies feel like homework? The New York Times critic at large joins Pablo for a (relatively spoiler-free) cinematic sparring session: What goes wrong when an auteur plays with too many Hollywood toys? What goes right when Homeric text aligns with classic Damon? Is the casting really so "woke" after all? And why were those Greek islands so... neutered? • Subscribe to "Cannonball with Wesley Morris" • Subscribe to PTFO on YouTube • Subscribe to The Athletic Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

6. We Go Deep with the Unlikeliest of Performance-Enhancing Drugs: Smooth Jazz from Pablo Torre Finds Out

   Jul 23, 202646 min

   Forget hold music and Kenny G. Move over Michael Jordan and HGH. Smooth jazz — yes, smooth jazz — is the "stimulax" you've been sleeping on. From geriatric hotel ballrooms to the moneymaker-shaking high seas, correspondent Mickey Duzyj fights off the jazz police to report on the communal power of a comeback genre... then outs a closeted, world-champion super-fan. • Learn more about "Smooth World" • Subscribe to PTFO on YouTube • Previously on PTFO: "Bird-Watching Will Blow Your Mind" ("A New Day," "Give It Up," "Honey-Dipped," and "Side by Side" by Dave Koz and "Doctor's Orders" by Phillip Doc Martin licensed with permission. Additional music by Jon Natchez for "Smooth World.") Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

7. "Play, Don't Pay": Meet the College-Football YouTuber Who Led a Gaming Revolt from Pablo Torre Finds Out

   Jul 21, 202636 min

   James Bordeaux was a 23-year-old in Kentucky, playing EA Sports College Football 27 for a living. Then Electronic Arts — the $50-billion mega-developer backed by the Saudis and Jared Kushner's private-equity firm — tried to extract so-called "microtransactions" from inside his beloved video game. So the furious creator put his mouth where his money is: leading the type of organic, populist revolt that has become all too uncommon in American life. Bordeaux explains to Pablo how fans won a battle... but why consumers may never win the war. • Previously on PTFO: The "Pay-to-Play" Scheme That (Almost) Ruined Video Games, with Dan Soder Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

8. He Funded Jeffrey Epstein. Why Is This Billionaire's Name All Over College Campuses? from Pablo Torre Finds Out

   Jul 17, 202642 min

   Victoria's Secret mogul turned mega-donor Leslie Wexner introduced Epstein to Harvard. Now, a growing protest movement to strip his name from university buildings is getting shut down. What did Epstein's money man know? When did he know it? And who really calls the shots in higher education? The Harvard Crimson's Dhruv Patel returns for Part 3 in our series on America's most prestigious school and most notorious predator, to examine Wexner and Epstein's "friendship," plus an exclusive interview and a new tranche of internal fundraising transactions that reveals $100 million in publicly unaccounted donations. • Part 1: "The Jeffrey E. Epstein Fund for Women's Athletics" • Part 2: How Harvard Whitewashed Jeffrey Epstein's Millions (Pablo Torre Finds Out is independently produced by Meadowlark Media and distributed by The Athletic. The views, research and reporting expressed in this episode are solely those of Pablo Torre Finds Out and The Harvard Crimson and do not reflect the work or editorial input of The Athletic or its journalists.) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

9. Decoding the Kawhi Leonard Investigation, with DeMaurice Smith from Pablo Torre Finds Out

   Jul 16, 202643 min

   A superstar held up by the salary cap. A billionaire under the microscope. A league inquiry hidden from public view. De Smith has seen this playbook for punishment before. The former NFL union boss — and white-shoe law-firm investigator — returns to answer questions the NBA still won't: Who is "independent" when the league (and Steve Ballmer, in particular) pays the legal bill? Why would witnesses participate if they face potential criminal exposure? How do unions play the long game? And what obligation does a league have to its fans, if cheating can be the baseline? • Read "Turf Wars" by DeMaurice Smith • Subscribe to PTFO on YouTube for breaking-news updates on Kawhi-Gate • Previously on PTFO: The Man Who (Relentlessly) Sued the NFL Has Receipts (Pablo Torre Finds Out is independently produced by Meadowlark Media and distributed by The Athletic. The views, research and reporting expressed in this episode are solely those of Pablo Torre Finds Out and do not reflect the work or editorial input of The Athletic or its journalists.) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

10. The "Pay-to-Play" Scheme That (Almost) Ruined Video Games, with Dan Soder from Pablo Torre Finds Out

    Jul 14, 202650 min

    Virtual currency is a new cheat code. But when EA Sports tried to squeeze extra cash out of sports fans with so-called "microtransactions" inside its latest-college football title, gamers revolted... and won? Comedian Dan Soder, who's been playing video games with a future NFL coach since childhood, takes Pablo on a journey to the seventh circle of nerddom: What does this phenomenon say about private equity turning fun into an asset? How do we stop sacrificing community for convenience? And is shame still possible? • Subscribe to "Soder" Previously on PTFO: • Share & Madden & Tell with Katie Nolan and Dan Soder • We Smoked All the Athlete-Branded Weed We Could Find Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

11. The Best, Worst and Sexiest Trophies in Sports, with Legendary Art Critic Jerry Saltz from Pablo Torre Finds Out

    Jul 10, 202652 min

    The Heisman? "An American classic." The World Cup? "Uncircumcised." A white-gloved Pablo welcomes back New York magazine's unfiltered, Pulitzer Prize-winning arbiter of taste to evaluate the history of competitive hardware as sculpture — with a curated tour of shiny balls, stolen chalices and one gigantic mystery box. • Previously on PTFO: Athlete Statues, Reviewed by Pulitzer-Winning Art Critic Jerry Saltz • Subscribe to New York magazine for more Jerry Saltz • Subscribe to The Athletic Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

12. Share & Risk & Tell with Jay Jurden and Katie Nolan from Pablo Torre Finds Out

    Jul 9, 202647 min

    Why were Taylor Swift's wedding guests and celebrity Knicks fans assigned "risk" scores inside Madison Square Garden's secret VIP database? Who was the karaoke MVP at the wedding afterparty? And would you rather test-drive the "most potent weed beverage known to man" ... or Bill Simmons' colonoscopy? Plus: Guy Fieri, Shaboozey, Polyp George, The Mike Vrabel Sliding Scale of Chivalry, The Blandino Tier and fogging the glass of exclusivity. • Read the follow-up story at WIRED • Previously on PTFO: We Got Inside Knicks Surveillance — and MSG's Deep State Is Stranger Than You Think • Watch Jay Jurden's "Yes Ma'am" • Subscribe to "Casuals with Katie Nolan" (Pablo Torre Finds Out is independently produced by Meadowlark Media and distributed by The Athletic. The views, research and reporting expressed in this episode are solely those of Pablo Torre Finds Out and do not reflect the work or editorial input of The Athletic or its journalists.) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

13. We Visited Death Row for the Super Bowl. You Can Help Save This Fan's Life. (PTFO Vault) from Pablo Torre Finds Out

    Jul 7, 20261 hr 3 min

    The reason for this re-air is dire: A wrongfully convicted football fan is running out of time — and legal avenues to pursue. When Pablo sat down with Cowboys superfan Charles Flores in January, Flores’ legal team was working on a Hail Mary: petitioning the U.S. Supreme Court to review his case — and to consider whether the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals had violated his right to due process. On June 15, that effort failed. Public pressure is all that remains. Which means that the power of Charles’ story is more important than ever. As is the urgency to sign the petition to encourage the Dallas County DA to stop his execution. • Sign the petition to stop the execution of Charles Flores • Previously on PTFO: Watching the Dallas Cowboys on Death Row "The Road Goes On Forever" written and performed by Robert Earl Keen, with permissions from Songs of Universal, Inc., and Keen Productions. (Pablo Torre Finds Out is independently produced by Meadowlark Media and distributed by The Athletic. The views, research and reporting expressed in this episode are solely those of Pablo Torre Finds Out and do not reflect the work or editorial input of The Athletic or its journalists.) (edited) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

14. Uncovering Phil Mickelson's Misconduct Allegations, with Alan Shipnuck from Pablo Torre Finds Out

    Jul 3, 202652 min

    After months of rumors, journalist Alan Shipnuck investigates why Phil Mickelson has basically vanished from the LIV Golf Tour — and social media. Leading us down a rabbit hole of hidden misconduct claims and exits from three different golf clubs. Not to mention 19 sources, an off-shore oil pipeline and an ex-friend's ex-wife: Ashley Perez. Read Alan Shipnuck’s reporting at Skratch Golf: https://www.skratch.golf/news/pro-golf/phil-mickelson-misconduct-women-madison-club-bridges-farms-exits Read Phil Mickelson’s spokesperson’s statement: https://x.com/_davidrumsey/status/2072655169792225420?s=46 Read Skratch’s response: https://x.com/_davidrumsey/status/2072696394997981241?s=46 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

15. The Sporting Class: Hydration Breaks, FIFA Trials and a Condo Full of Cats from Pablo Torre Finds Out

    Jul 2, 202649 min

    Ex-ESPN president John Skipper was once the most important soccer fan in America. But then he lost the World Cup to FOX — and became a federal witness. So we wanted to know what it’s been like to watch America fall in love with the very tournament Skipper wasn’t allowed to win. And whether federal corruption trials, nine figures worth of commercials and a Trump Tower apartment full of cats can slow the spread of the world’s favorite game. • Donate to the Kyra Fund, which will support research on Glioblastoma, one of the deadliest cancers Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

16. “Please Enjoy It Or You Are Fired”: Inside PTFO, with Dan Le Batard from Pablo Torre Finds Out

    Jun 30, 202642 min

    PTFO keeps winning awards. But what do we do for an encore? How do you make something special without losing our standards — or our minds? Do you guys even enjoy this? Pablo visits Miami to see his friend/boss, Dan Le Batard, and Dan’s producer, Chris Cote. They discuss balancing real life; perspective in the face of grief; Oprah; and figuring out how to serve an audience without missing the point. • Donate to the Kyra Fund, which will support research on Glioblastoma, one of the deadliest cancers Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

17. The Missing Ambassador of the World Cup from Pablo Torre Finds Out

    Jun 26, 202649 min

    He covered soccer before it was cool, promised to go WikiLeaks on FIFA, then got detained and mysteriously collapsed in Qatar. If there was ever someone we needed to hear from, as a global conduit during this corrupt World Cup on American soil, it's Grant Wahl. So his former co-host, Chris Wittyngham — along with his family and one of the many stars he inspired — helps Pablo listen back to Wahl's lost tapes, re-live his fearless run for office and the rainbow target on his chest... then put the conspiracies to rest. • Previously on PTFO: America Signed Up for the World Cup. FIFA Stuck You with the Tab. • Listen to Le Batard & Friends re-live Grant Wahl's LeBron cover story • Subscribe to The Athletic Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

18. What the World Cup Can Teach the American Fan, with John Green and Daniel Alarcón from Pablo Torre Finds Out

    Jun 25, 202640 min

    We are numb, as Americans, to the attention of the globe and the power structures of our sports leagues. But what if love of country could be simple again? And what if fans had more power than we thought? Pablo feels the football osmosis from the (banned) bestselling author and his old friend turned MacArthur Genius, as they offer a liberal-arts education in the beautiful game — from the fault in our superstar interviews to the damage wrought by Alexi Lalas upon our would-be Neymars and Messis. Plus: a pump-up speech that Ted Lasso would never, ever fantasize about. • Subscribe to "The Away End with Daniel Alarcón and John Green" • Previously on PTFO: How John Green Turned Celebrity into Obsessive Optimism • Subscribe to The Athletic Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

19. Sarah Jessica Parker on the Seductive Power of Sports and the City from Pablo Torre Finds Out

    Jun 23, 202646 min

    New York is palpably horny right now. And happy. So we invited the patron saint of sex and this town to chase euphoria, appreciate the romance of the American idea, advise these young Knicks, remember the halcyon days of HBO... and make the case for reading books in the crowd. • Previously on PTFO: Celebrating These Knicks Title Vibes, with Desus Nice • Subscribe to The Athletic Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

20. USMNT's Tim Weah on World Cup Dreams, the American Idea... and Wu-Tang from Pablo Torre Finds Out

    Jun 19, 202641 min

    He is the realest member of Team USA — an activist athlete, from Brooklyn and the African diaspora, choosing to represent a divisive nation as it tries bringing the globe a little closer together. In a rare sit-down ahead of the U.S. men's national team match against Australia, Timothy Weah explains the pressure of this moment, the power of soccer over politics... and why the Knicks' good-luck charm might need to strike again. • Listen to The Athletic FC Podcast • Listen to Tifo Football Podcast • Subscribe to The Athletic Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.