Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
On the eve of the biggest football match in Iraq’s history, Graham Arnold and his players were trying to nap before a World Cup playoff in Mexico until thousands of Iraqi fans surrounded the team hotel with drums, chanting and singing.
In this unforgettable moment from The Howie Games, Arnold explains how passionate Iraqi supporters nearly derailed match-day preparation… and how a calm, respectful conversation turned chaos into belief.
🎧 The Howie Games is Australia's #1 Sports Podcast. Where the biggest names in the world of sport go one-on-one with sports journalist Mark Howard. From ultimate highs to tear-jerking lows, Howie lifts the lid on the real stories behind the headlines. He sits down with the biggest names in Australian & world sport, finding out how they started out, what makes them tick, how they deal with the big wins and the big losses, and how they take on sport and life from here.
Hear the full Howie Games episode on LiSTNR 👉 listnr.com/podcasts/the-howie-games
Stream full Howie Games episodes on Apple Podcasts & Spotify 👉 link.chtbl.com/HowieGameslisten
Stream full episodes on LiSTNR 👉 https://fal.cn/HowieGamesListnr
On the eve of the biggest football match in Iraq’s history, Graham Arnold and his players were trying to nap before a World Cup playoff in Mexico until thousands of Iraqi fans surrounded the team hotel with drums, chanting and singing.
In this unforgettable moment from The Howie Games, Arnold explains how passionate Iraqi supporters nearly derailed match-day preparation… and how a calm, respectful conversation turned chaos into belief.
🎧 The Howie Games is Australia's #1 Sports Podcast. Where the biggest names in the world of sport go one-on-one with sports journalist Mark Howard. From ultimate highs to tear-jerking lows, Howie lifts the lid on the real stories behind the headlines. He sits down with the biggest names in Australian & world sport, finding out how they started out, what makes them tick, how they deal with the big wins and the big losses, and how they take on sport and life from here.
Hear the full Howie Games episode on LiSTNR 👉 listnr.com/podcasts/the-howie-games
Stream full Howie Games episodes on Apple Podcasts & Spotify 👉 link.chtbl.com/HowieGameslisten
Stream full episodes on LiSTNR 👉 https://fal.cn/HowieGamesListnr
