‘The Sports Gossip Show' answers listeners' burning questions

New York Times

7 hours ago

Hey there, sports gossipers — it's Madeline Hill and Charlotte Wilder, hosts of 'The Sports Gossip Show.'
It's been a crazy few weeks in the SGS cinematic universe. First, we officially joined the great team here at The Athletic. Then, we put out an episode explaining how Jordon Hudson, Bill Belichick's girlfriend, called us out of the blue. Then, Taylor Swift announced her new album on her football-playing boyfriend's podcast, so we had to do an emergency episode about it (big shoutout to Travis and Jason Kelce on their burgeoning media empire).
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Some of you want — understandably — some answers about all of this. So we're providing a few here in a mailbag.
Please write to us with any questions, as we'll be doing mailbags from time to time. You can reach us at [e-mail] or send us a DM on Instagram @sportsgossip.
You can also follow us on Instagram and TikTok and subscribe to the show on YouTube and wherever you get your podcasts (Apple, Spotify).
Now, on to your questions …
What kind of flower arrangement do you think Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce might have at their potential wedding?
(For those who don't know, we have a running segment on the show where we talk about how all athlete weddings look the same. Most of the flowers are white and very tightly packed together, which we have decided to call 'compressed flowers,' even though florists tell us that isn't a real term.)
Hill: Oh, man. That's such a tough question. I feel like Taylor won't do compressed flowers. If I had to guess, the flowers will be over the top — but not shoved together. Maybe an ethereal vibe? I feel like Taylor would have a wedding with a fairy-tale theme.
Wilder: I could see them doing some elaborate centerpieces, but Taylor surprises us so often that I can't even begin to imagine what the wedding itself will be like. I'm thinking she could lean into wildflowers for some reason? It would make a lot of sense if it's an August wedding, given her song 'August,' and if they don't get married on the 13th, well … it will mean that my whole life has been a lie.
Thoughts on Violet (Vi), the new mascot of the Golden State Valkyries?
Wilder: I love the Golden State Valkyries' new mascot, Violet. She is a giant purple bird wearing a basketball uniform and glasses. As someone with deteriorating eyesight who recently realized that she needs to wear glasses to play recreational sports, I am thrilled to see more representation of glasses wearers in the mascot community. It does raise the question: Why don't more mascots wear glasses?
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I also appreciate that Violet's feathers appear to be quite feathery. Most of the bird mascots I can think of are made mostly of fabric or felt, and I appreciate some real texture.
However, it does seem like a tall task to be a new WNBA mascot when the New York Liberty's mascot, Ellie the Elephant, has become such a sensation. However, I'm eager to see if Violet can make her mark on the league. The Valkyries are seventh in the WNBA standings, which is good for an expansion team, so maybe Violet will be the bump they need to climb even higher.
I know Madeline is particularly fond of Ellie (I mean, who isn't), so I'm interested to hear how she feels about Violet.
Hill: Oh, as you know, I am Ellie's No. 1 fan, but that doesn't mean we can't have room for more fun mascots! As a glasses wearer, I am obsessed with Violet. She reminds me of a character on Sesame Street in the best way.
I will be curious to see whether Violet can generate the level of excitement at games that Ellie does at Liberty games.
What has been your favorite episode to film so far?
Wilder: Choosing a favorite episode would be like choosing a favorite Boston sports team — I love them all equally but differently (except for the Bruins; sorry, don't come for me, I only have so much bandwidth as a sports fan).
However, I do think the episode after we went to the Miss Maine pageant was special. We were still producing the show ourselves as an independent podcast, so we put our resources into attending an event we thought was important to cover. We went to the pageant for two days, set up microphones in a hotel conference room, recorded it, edited it until close to midnight and produced an episode that made us really proud. That was very rewarding and fun.
Hill: I have to agree. We felt like our reporting on Jordon Hudson would not be complete without seeing her in the pageant. We started covering the story in October and have always said it was a story about power. We knew we needed to see her compete to provide a holistic analysis of the entire situation. It was also wild to see Belichick sitting front row at the Miss Maine pageant. We didn't have that on our bingo cards when we started the show.
We also knew it was a risk attending the event. Would we get kicked out? Would people listen to the episode? Would people care at all? Sure enough, people did care, and I'm proud of that episode.
Anything about Aaron Rodgers' Brittani with an i?
Wilder: We don't have any updates about Brittani (the mystery woman to whom Aaron Rodgers says he is married). However, we are desperate for any information. If you have any, please email us at [e-mail]. Thank you.
What pop superstar will announce their next album on (former NFL tight end Rob Gronkowski's) podcast?
Hill: I would love for JoJo to announce another album on his podcast. She grew up in Foxborough, Massachusetts, which feels very on-brand.
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Wilder: I was thinking, JoJo, too! But for some reason, I'm going with Jesse McCartney. My fellow millennials out there — remember Beautiful Soul? What a banger.
If Taylor Swift wrote a song about Jordon Hudson, what would it be called?
Wilder: I think the only option is 'President of Your Universe.' If you don't know why, please refer to 'the Hudson episode.' Can you think of something else, Madeline?
Hill: Oh, that's definitely the only option.
I want to know how you two met!
Wilder: We shared our internet origin story on a previous mailbag episode — listen to it here! However, the TL;DR is that the universe brought us together because it knew that someday Taylor Swift would announce her new album on a football player's podcast, and the two of us would need to do an emergency podcast about said podcast. Call it divine podcast intervention.
Madeline Hill and Charlotte Wilder have partnered with The Athletic and are taking their game to the next level. You can find 'The Sports Gossip Show' every Tuesday and Thursday on YouTube and wherever you get your podcasts.
(Photo of Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift: Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)
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