The High Performance Podcast

Steve McClaren has lived the full arc of elite football, from the immense pressure of managing England to lifting trophies in Europe and standing alongside Sir Alex Ferguson during Manchester United’s historic Treble campaign.

In this episode, Steve takes us inside the uniquely brutal world of the England job and World Cup expectation, describing the psychological weight of carrying 70 million people on your shoulders and breaking down the volatile mix of camp chemistry, player fitness, and sheer luck required to win the 2026 World Cup.

The conversation shifts to the blueprint of a modern rebuild, analysing the early signs of structural alignment at Manchester United under INEOS. Drawing from a lifetime of experience, Steve explains why tactics and staff are fundamentally useless unless the entire hierarchy of a football club is pulling in the exact same direction.

He also shares what he learned inside Ferguson’s machine, from total trust in his staff to a relentless hunger that reset the standard the morning after the Treble. This is a conversation about pressure, standards and what it really takes to build sustained success at the very top of the game.

Steve McClaren has joined Rotherham FC as Head of Football https://www.themillers.co.uk/

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We packed up the studio in the Vauxhall Combo electric van and travelled to the Crystal Palace National Sports Centre for a deeply reflective conversation with Team GB athlete Georgia Hunter-Bell.

Away from the heat of competition, Georgia opens up for the first time about a chapter of her life she has never publicly revealed before. She shares her experience going through dark times after walking away from the sport that had defined her identity for so many years.

Georgia also explains how navigating that dark period allowed her to return as "version 2.0," armed with a powerful new perspective on what it truly takes to be an elite athlete as she looks ahead to the LA 2028 Olympic Games.

This episode explores the mental battles of elite performance, reflecting on Georgia’s resilience through her darkest chapter and how she rebuilt her identity.

In Partnership with Vauxhall. This special episode was made possible by our partner, Vauxhall, the official automotive partner for Team GB through to the 2028 LA Olympics.

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Trust is the single most important currency in sport, business, and life - and in the age of AI, it's becoming scarcer by the day. This week Jake Humphrey is joined by producer Will to dig into why.

Drawing on some of the most powerful conversations in the High Performance archive, they explore what trust really is, how it breaks down, and whether it can ever truly be rebuilt.

Featuring:
Rachel Botsman — Oxford lecturer and world expert on trust — on the three stages of how trust collapses.
James Timpson on why the most successful culture he ever built ran on just two rules.
Stuart Broad on the quiet act of leadership that holds a team together when everything falls apart.
And Martin Lewis — widely regarded as the most trusted person in Britain — on why you cannot market trust: you can only earn it.

Plus: why Southampton's Spygate is just the catalyst for a much bigger conversation, what the rise of AI means for human credibility, and the difference between performative trust and the real thing.

🔗 Rachel Botsman: https://pod.fo/e/1179ff
🔗 James Timpson: https://pod.fo/e/c4dbd
🔗 Stuart Broad: https://pod.fo/e/2093a6
🔗 Martin Lewis: https://pod.fo/e/22a519
🔗 Damian's habit series — Why Building Trust Beats Being Liked: https://pod.fo/e/323b0d

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Better Help 👉 Join Jake in Saying It Louder with 10% off Betterhelp Therapy. Click here: https://highpfrmc.com/hpp-betterhelp-au

AG1 👉Head to http://drinkag1.com/highperformance to save £20 on your first month, plus a free welcome kit, Vitamin D3 + K2 and five travel packs

XTB 👉🏻 To find out more and make your money work, use code HPP at: https://highpfrmc.com/XTB-hpp-au

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Justin Cochrane is one of elite football’s most respected coaches and a vital part of the England Men's backroom team. Justin’s leadership focuses on reading a squad’s emotional temperature and providing players the freedom to be themselves.

In this episode, Justin shares the moving story of losing his wife Leeanne to cancer and how her selfless approach to her final days redefined his perspective. He discusses the "medicine" of football, explaining how returning to coaching weeks after her death provided the stability needed to carry immense grief while operating at the highest level.

Justin also speaks to Jake and Damian about how personal trauma made him a better leader by shortening the gap between disappointment and recovery. From raising his three sons alone to preparing for a World Cup, Justin offers a masterclass in resilience, guided by Leeanne’s final gift: the reminder to always have "someone to love, something to do, and something to look forward to."

Postcode Lottery 👉 Discover how Postcode Lottery players are Powering Hope Together. Click here to find out more: https://highpfrmc.com/hpp-postcode-au

Better Help 👉 Join Jake in Saying It Louder with 10% off Betterhelp Therapy. Click here: https://highpfrmc.com/hpp-betterhelp-au

AG1 👉Head to http://drinkag1.com/highperformance to save £20 on your first month, plus a free welcome kit, Vitamin D3 + K2 and five travel packs

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Ronda Rousey is back in the spotlight on Netflix this weekend — and it felt like the perfect moment to revisit this conversation we had with her in Hollywood - one of the most funny and honest conversations we've ever had on this show.

Sitting down with Jake and Damian in Hollywood, Ronda reveals the secret she hid from everyone: that she fought the final chapter of her UFC career already concussed, shutting herself in dark locker rooms between rounds to hide the damage. She talks about losing her dad at eight years old, the coaches who dislocated her jaw, the 14-second armbar she invented on the spot that's still the fastest title submission in UFC history, and the moment after her defeat to Holly Holm where she genuinely thought dying would be preferable.

Postcode Lottery 👉 Discover how Postcode Lottery players are Powering Hope Together. Click here to find out more: https://highpfrmc.com/hpp-postcode-au

Better Help 👉 Join Jake in Saying It Louder with 10% off Betterhelp Therapy. Click here: https://highpfrmc.com/hpp-betterhelp-au

AG1 👉 head to drinkag1.com/highperformance to save £20 on your first month, plus a free welcome kit, Vitamin D3 + K2 and five travel packs.

XTB 👉 To find out more and make your money work, use code HPP at: https://highpfrmc.com/XTB-hpp-au

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