The Golazo Show: Your Smartest Guide to UEFA Champions League

Nico Cantor, the charismatic host of Paramount+`s “The Golazo Show,” has redefined the way fans experience UEFA Champions League matches. For him, every goal is a journey, and each matchday is an opportunity to learn about the world. He doesn`t just narrate the action; he elevates it by interweaving captivating cultural and historical facts, enriching viewers` understanding without ever slowing down the pace. By the end of a matchday, you`ll not only know who scored but also why a goal in Almaty, Kazakhstan`s largest city, can hold as much significance as one in Madrid.

“The Golazo Show” promises a lightning-fast, comprehensive experience: no goal goes unseen across the Champions League, Europa League, or Conference League during Europe`s chaotic match afternoons. The broadcast is designed for seamless viewing, though its unpredictability presents a constant challenge for Cantor and his dedicated production crew. In the early stages of the competition, a goal might trigger a fascinating reminder that Audrey Hepburn was born in Brussels—a detail more relevant than one might initially expect.

Cantor notes the show`s adaptability: “We`re a pretty malleable show at the front and back end, but we adapt to everything that happens in between, and it could be anything from a crazy goalfest to, I don`t know, a pretty boring show with lulls galore.” Even amidst the most intense action, Cantor always finds a moment to set the scene, providing context each time the screen transitions to a new stadium for a new goal.

“I think just being on the continent of Europe, we`d be doing a disservice if we wouldn`t be dialing into that history, because it`s not only about the soccer,” he explains. “You`re bouncing around, so instead of just bouncing around from one football game to another, let`s understand exactly where we`re going.”

Like People Flying the Enterprise

Six seasons into his role, Cantor acknowledges that no two days are alike on “The Golazo Show”; the rhythm of the broadcast is dictated entirely by the teams playing. While the production team has found its groove after years of collaboration, preparing for such an unpredictable show is a multi-day process.

“I`m in constant communication with my statistician and the production team throughout the day,” Cantor reveals. “When I sit down, it`s running through starting 11s with our statistician and research team, and then it`s going through the motions of the intro of the show, bouncing around the grounds, and then, afterwards, we`re ready to go. We go to our main game and then we wait and react. It`s on the fly. You do all the prep from the weekend before to sit in the chair in this moment, and when you go, you go. You kind of just let the energy take you a little bit.”

While “The Golazo Show” simplifies following the action for viewers, it requires a transatlantic team to keep up with goals as they happen—a monumental task during the league phase with up to 18 games per week. Cantor emphasizes, “I think for the fans, it`s an awesome tool. It`s an awesome add-on to their Champions League experience that I don`t think we had before, and it`s a privilege to do it and kind of be the conducting voice to all of that.” He adds, “It wouldn`t be possible without the incredible production team that we have in London. They`re so dialed-in and they`re so sharp… I feel like there`s people flying the Enterprise behind me when the show gets up and running because the control room in London is full of people. It`s all hands on deck. It`s pretty incredible.”

What Do Audrey Hepburn, Giorgio Armani, and the Silk Road Have in Common?

“The Golazo Show” is the perfect way to stay updated on a busy Champions League day, but Cantor’s true skill lies in providing context as the action unfolds. His daily notes contain standard broadcaster information—key players, recent form—but he injects unique fun facts that make “The Golazo Show” an unparalleled viewing experience. References to Roman Empire capitals blend seamlessly with details about Hepburn and Giorgio Armani’s birthplaces, allowing Cantor to tell the unique story of each Champions League season.

A self-proclaimed “culture vulture,” Cantor meticulously curates and deploys his trivia. “I didn`t get funky with my fun facts until maybe two seasons ago,” he admits. “Once I really got a hang for the prep and I could spend some time making my rabbit holes in my research worth it, I started adding the fun facts, and they`ll get quirkier as the season goes on.” He explains that during the league phase, with so much action, he reserves some facts, preferring to weave them meaningfully into the narrative rather than using them just for the sake of it.

The trivia evolves with the season, much like the challenge teams face in advancing through the rounds. “The reason why they get a little bit quirkier towards the end of the season is because we`re so familiar with these teams, even if they`re new teams,” Cantor says. “We spend an entire season diving into the cultures of these clubs—who they are, what it means—and I try to do a really good job of that, to paint the picture at the beginning of the season, to understand the nuances of every club and what it means for them to be in the Champions League, for it to resonate in the broadcast if there`s an upset or a player scores a really important goal that for us, might seem like any other random goal on a Champions League night.”

“I do a lot of this research to meet the moment, but sometimes I catch myself going down these crazy rabbit holes about the city that they`re in, and when was the last time they were in Champions League football, or how much football`s consumed in that country, and you learn a lot in the prep process.”

The eight-game league phase offers ample opportunity for Cantor to share insights, even for teams unlikely to reach the knockout stages. This includes newcomers like Cyprus`s Pafos and Kazakhstan`s Kairat, for whom Cantor has a wealth of information. He covered Pafos during their UEFA Conference League run last year, and Kairat`s home city of Almaty hosted fellow Kazakh side Astana in last season`s Conference League. However, Cantor faces a logistical challenge.

“My only fear… is that because it`s so far east, I doubt that any of [Kairat`s] games at home are going to be on The Golazo Show,” Cantor conceded. Kairat will play all their home matches before “The Golazo Show`s” usual 3 p.m. ET slot, including an unusually early 10:30 a.m. ET kickoff on Matchday 6 against Olympiacos in December. Nevertheless, no good fun fact is forgotten. Cantor may have something prepared for this week:

“I think I`ll be able to drop something in on Matchday 1 against Sporting, the amount of distance they covered,” he noted. “The furthest away trip in European competition proper history, FC Kairat will travel from Almaty, Kazakhstan—the easternmost city to have a team in European [competition] proper—to Lisbon, Portugal, to face Sporting CP. That`s 4,291 miles… and that`ll be Matchday 1. It`ll be the furthest away trip.”

Champions League Matchday 1 Schedule