In 2016, Iceland stunned the footballing world with its performance in the European Championship Finals. The nation of 340,000 reached the quarter-finals of their first-ever major tournament, claiming the scalps of England and Austria along the way.

In this episode, Vidar Halldorsson joins us to discuss Iceland's position as a ‘Black Swan’ in modern elite sport: because of their extraordinary performances

In Iceland, there is no distinction between ‘participation sports’ and ‘performance sports’ as there is in many other countries, and resources tend to be channelled into youth sports rather than elite sports. Regarding Iceland’s success at elite football level, Vidar argues that ‘the key characteristics of the Icelandic national teams, such as players’ enthusiasm, character, sacrifice, friendships and agency, are in part a result of their socialization in the youth sport system.’ He also notes that countries who once adopted the customary international sports model are now turning to the Icelandic model as a way of organising and playing sports.

• To what extent have Icelandic coaches been asked to advise other countries?
  
• Is Iceland's community-oriented success due to its small size?
  
• Are there other nations who may emerge as a ‘black swan’ in the near future and what is behind this being a possibility?

…all this and more in the 32nd episode of the Football and Society podcast. 

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Follow Vidar on Twitter: www.twitter.com/VidarHalldrsson

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Each week, Ash, Chris and Norman explore societal issues through the lens of the beautiful game. From the ethics of gambling sponsorship to what a stadium move means for fans, we’ll be covering it all each week with expert guests from the worlds of sports journalism and sociology.