Jonathan Wilson’s World Cup Diary
A day in the life of a reporter on the road, growing his Substack, and contending with the Americanization of the world’s game
Substack promotes Jonathan Wilson's World Cup Diary, a behind-the-scenes look at a reporter's experience covering the tournament. The diary details Wilson's travels and Substack strategy, including a 40% increase in subscribers during the tournament. Wilson shares his observations on the World Cup atmosphere and Americanization of the game.
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Jonathan Wilson’s World Cup Diary
A day in the life of a reporter on the road, growing his Substack, and contending with the Americanization of the world’s game
Arielle Swedback and Jonathan Wilson
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We caught up with veteran British soccer writer, podcaster, and historian of the game Jonathan Wilson on the eve of his sixth World Cup final. Over the past six weeks, he’s been all over the map, filing from Mexico City, Guadalajara, Houston, and Boston for The Guardian, Bloomberg, the Paris Review, and more, while bringing literary dispatches and wry analysis to his own newsletter Wilson’s World (of football). We asked him to document the day he covered the Spain-France semifinal in Dallas and chatted with him about his Substack strategy, how he expanded his subscriber base by 40% over the course of the tournament, and his reckoning with the strange atmosphere at World Cup 2026.
Your sixth world cup! How many matches did you get to this time around?
Fifteen, I think. Maybe 16. I did three in Mexico City, three in Guadalajara, two in Monterrey, so that’s eight. I did four in Dallas, two in Houston, one in Boston. So 15 total!
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