In his final month as the United States’ chief diplomat, Secretary of State Antony Blinken raced around the globe, responding to conflicts in the Middle East and the latest developments in the war in Ukraine.

During a stop in New York, he sat down with host David Gura to talk about how he is preparing to hand over the country’s sprawling foreign policy portfolio to the incoming Trump administration.

In his final month as the United States&rsquo; chief diplomat, Secretary of State Antony Blinken&nbsp;raced&nbsp;around the globe, responding to conflicts in the Middle East and the latest developments in the war in Ukraine.
During a stop in New York, he sat down with host David Gura to talk about how he is preparing to hand over the country&rsquo;s sprawling foreign policy portfolio to the incoming Trump administration.

The Big Take from Bloomberg News brings you inside what’s shaping the world's economies with the smartest and most informed business reporters around the world. The context you need on the stories that can move markets. Every afternoon.

The Big Take from Bloomberg News brings you inside what’s shaping the world's economies with the smartest and most informed business reporters around the world. The context you need on the stories that can move markets. Every afternoon.

Big Take

Antony Blinken: The Exit Interview

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/69497acd-1ba6-4c7e-a782-b26801558716/transcript

China’s men’s soccer team has qualified for the World Cup just once, despite millions in investment and a personal push from President Xi Jinping to turn the nation into a footballing powerhouse.

On today’s Big Take Asia podcast, host Oanh Ha speaks with Eric Zhu of Bloomberg Economics and Mark Dreyer, sports writer and author of Sporting Superpower, about why the country’s top-down engineering approach fails to capture the grassroots magic of the game and how academic pressure continues to push many young players off the field.

We have a special Bloomberg subscription offer for podcast listeners at Bloomberg.com/podcastoffer.

Hosted by Oanh Ha; Produced by Yang Yang and Naomi Ng; Edited by Patrick Hirsch, Julia Weaver; Fact-checking by Julia Press; Engineering by Taka Yasuzawa Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

China&rsquo;s men&rsquo;s soccer team has qualified for the World Cup just once, despite millions in investment and a personal push from President Xi Jinping to turn the nation into a footballing powerhouse.
On today&rsquo;s Big Take Asia podcast, host Oanh Ha speaks with Eric Zhu of Bloomberg Economics and Mark Dreyer, sports writer and author of Sporting Superpower, about why the country&rsquo;s top-down engineering approach fails to capture the grassroots magic of the game and how academic pressure continues to push many young players off the field.
We have a special Bloomberg subscription offer for podcast listeners at <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/subscriptions/podcasts">Bloomberg.com/podcastoffer.</a>
Hosted by Oanh Ha; Produced by Yang Yang and Naomi Ng; Edited by Patrick Hirsch, Julia Weaver; Fact-checking by Julia Press; Engineering by Taka Yasuzawa Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

Xi Jinping Loves Soccer. Why Is China’s Team So Bad?

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/bc7e697f-79c7-41e6-a2a3-b48701510895/transcript

The last few days have brought a flurry of developments in the Iran war.

As armed hostilities between the US and Iran resumed over the weekend, news broke that US Senator Lindsey Graham had died. Graham was a staunch supporter of Israel and of the war in Iran. And on Monday, President Trump declared US control over the Strait of Hormuz and demanded a 20% reimbursement rate for all cargo that moves through the waterway.

It’s not clear when the war with Iran will end. But when it does, the balance of power in the Middle East will look very different than it did before Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023. On today’s Big Take podcast, Bloomberg’s Peter Martin joins host David Gura to discuss the new alliances, revised trade routes and expanded battlefields that are reshaping the Middle East.

We have a special Bloomberg subscription offer for podcast listeners at Bloomberg.com/podcastoffer.

Hosted by David Gura; Produced by Laura Newcombe; Reported by Peter Martin; Edited by Nicole Beemsterboer.

Fact-checking by Victor Swezey; Engineering by Alex Suguira.

Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

The last few days have brought a flurry of developments in the Iran war.
As armed hostilities between the US and Iran resumed over the weekend, news broke that US Senator Lindsey Graham had died. Graham was a staunch supporter of Israel and of the war in Iran. And on Monday, President Trump declared US control over the Strait of Hormuz and demanded a 20% reimbursement rate for all cargo that moves through the waterway.
It&rsquo;s not clear when the war with Iran will end. But when it does, the balance of power in the Middle East will look very different than it did before Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023. On today&rsquo;s Big Take podcast, Bloomberg&rsquo;s Peter Martin joins host David Gura to discuss the new alliances, revised trade routes and expanded battlefields that are reshaping the Middle East.
We have a special Bloomberg subscription offer for podcast listeners at&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/subscriptions/podcasts">Bloomberg.com/podcastoffer.</a>
Hosted by David Gura; Produced by Laura Newcombe; Reported by Peter Martin; Edited by Nicole Beemsterboer.
Fact-checking by Victor Swezey; Engineering by Alex Suguira.
Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

A New Middle East Is Emerging From the Iran War 

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/ddade724-0f4e-469f-8926-b4860149132b/transcript

The great famine of the 1870s killed 50 million people – and El Niño was a key driver. Another El Niño phase has just begun and it’s expected to be among the strongest. There are five times as many people in 2026 as there were in the 1870s and the planet is 1.4C hotter. So are we better prepared? 

In this weekend's listen, Bloomberg’s Akshat Rathi speaks with Mingfang Ting, professor of climate at Columbia University, about the natural phenomenon and its interaction with human-caused climate change.

Read more:
Bloomberg Green's deep dive on extreme heat

Thoughts or suggestions? Email zeropod@bloomberg.net. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit https://www.bloomberg.com/green.

The great famine of the 1870s killed 50 million people &ndash; and El Ni&ntilde;o was a key driver. Another El Ni&ntilde;o phase has just begun and it&rsquo;s expected to be among the strongest. There are five times as many people in 2026 as there were in the 1870s and the planet is 1.4C hotter. So are we better prepared? In this weekend's listen, Bloomberg&rsquo;s Akshat Rathi speaks with Mingfang Ting, professor of climate at Columbia University, about the natural phenomenon and its interaction with human-caused climate change.
Read more:
<ul>
<li>Bloomberg Green's deep dive on&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2026-extreme-heat-climate-change-data/">extreme heat</a></li>
</ul>
Thoughts or suggestions? Email zeropod@bloomberg.net. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/green">https://www.bloomberg.com/green</a>.

Weekend Listen: Is the world prepared for a 'super' El Niño?

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/efd87dcf-03ae-4ab8-ba33-b484013bcae0/transcript

Antony Blinken: The Exit Interview

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