The Next Big Sport with Bryan Curtis and Tate Frazier

Dave Chang hosts Bryan Curtis and Tate Frazier from The Ringer, along with Chris Ying, for a casual sports conversation over Korean fried chicken. Rather than discussing established sports, the group explores what criteria make a sport capable of becoming a global phenomenon. They then engage in a bracket-style discussion to identify which sport might be the next big thing to achieve mainstream success. The episode culminates in the group inventing or identifying a new sport they believe could potentially outcompete existing candidates for the next major global sport. The conversation blends food, casual banter, and sports analysis in Chang's signature conversational style, with guests who bring sports media expertise from their work at The Ringer across multiple shows and newsletters.

Verdict: A competent, well-structured sports conversation with knowledgeable guests that delivers on its premise, but the show notes suggest it stays within familiar sports media territory without clear evidence of breakthrough insights.

Society & Culture rubric

• Fresh perspective 3/5 20%

  The bracket format and focus on emerging sports rather than established ones offers a moderately novel angle, though the underlying question of 'what makes a sport global' is fairly standard sports media fare.

• Storytelling and voices 3/5 20%

  Multiple voices from sports media professionals create variety, and the casual food-centered setting suggests personal interaction, but the show notes provide no specific anecdotes or compelling narratives.

• Thoughtfulness 3/5 15%

  The episode frames a structured discussion around criteria for global sports success, suggesting some analytical depth, though the notes don't indicate whether the conversation achieves real nuance or stays at surface level.

• Substance 3/5 15%

  A bracket discussion with multiple sports candidates and criteria-setting provides solid content structure, but without knowing which sports are discussed or how deeply, it's hard to assess whether there's genuine insight or mostly speculat

• Delivers on its title 4/5 15%

  The title 'The Next Big Sport' is directly addressed through the bracket exercise and the group's identification of a candidate sport, fully matching the promised premise.

• Value for time 3/5 15%

  At 73 minutes with a structured bracket format and multiple expert voices, the pacing seems reasonable, though without hearing the episode it's unclear if there are tangents or padding.

How we score Society & Culture

Worth it if you enjoy casual sports media discussion, The Ringer's coverage, or Dave Chang's conversational format, and want to hear informed speculation about emerging sports.

Content flags

• Ad-heavy Vrbo sponsor read visible in show notes; typical for podcast of this length but notable relative to content.

Based on the episode description. AI-generated; it can be wrong.