Brussels Playbook Podcast

POLITICO’s daily audio briefing on what’s moving Brussels — and why it matters.

The Brussels Playbook Podcast is the audio extension of the Brussels Playbook newsletter. Hosted by POLITICO's chief EU correspondent, Zoya Sheftalovich, the podcast runs Monday through Thursday, offering a clear, reporting-driven guide to EU politics in under 15 minutes. It’s a perfect companion for your morning coffee.

Each episode takes listeners inside the decisions, power shifts and debates shaping the day in Brussels — and explains how they connect to national capitals across Europe.

Clear, conversational and shaped by reporting from the heart of the EU, the Brussels Playbook Podcast brings context to EU politics as your day begins.

On Fridays, the same feed features a longer episode that goes deeper into the week’s biggest themes, offering context and analysis beyond the daily news cycle — with Sarah Wheaton behind the mic. 


News
Politics
News Commentary
51
Europe’s awkward embrace of Turkey
Three very senior EU heavyweights are on the ground in Turkey today.
14 min
52
Europe’s foreign policy turf war
The EU’s diplomatic service is losing power, people and influence to Ursula von der Leyen’s Commission.
15 min
53
Can Europe help repair the invisible scars of war?
Ukraine’s psychological damage, displacement and loss is hard to measure, but important to repair.
39 min
54
Rebuilding Ukraine under the shadow of a presid...
Ukraine’s allies are gathering in Gdańsk to talk about rebuilding the country.
15 min
55
Can Europe’s big five get their act together in...
Europe’s biggest military powers are meeting today.
14 min
56
The Visegrád Four is back from the dead
The leaders of Poland, Czechia, Slovakia and Hungary are gathering for the first proper Visegrád Group summit in more than two years.
15 min
57
Why tensions are high between Poland and Ukraine
When Ireland takes over the presidency of the Council of the EU, they'll have a lot of hot-button issues to deal with.
15 min
58
Who should negotiate with Putin?
33 min
59
Europe’s budget war starts now
EU leaders arrive in Brussels for a summit dominated by two major debates.
14 min
60
Von der Leyen won't run for a third term. Or wi...
Ursula von der Leyen is only a year and a half into her second term, but Brussels is already whispering about a third.
14 min
61
The end of Brussels’ most important dinner party
The fight over the EU’s next seven-year budget is heating up.
14 min
62
Bardella warns Brussels he won’t moderate
French presidential hopeful Jordan Bardella wants Brussels to know that if he reaches the Élysée, he won’t follow Italian PM Giorgia Meloni’s path from insurgent outsider to pragmatic EU power broker.
15 min
63
Are voters hopelessly divided or universally an...
Across Europe, political instability and polarization are increasingly becoming the norm
38 min
64
The US embassy's divisive birthday bash
The U.S. embassy’s mega 250th birthday bash in Brussels is drawing ire.
14 min
65
When K-pop diplomacy hits Brussels
South Korea’s president is in Brussels for the first EU-South Korea summit in three years.
15 min
66
Can Ireland defend its trade with Russia?
The EU’s top diplomat heads to Dublin today with awkward questions for Ireland.
14 min
67
Albania's 'flamingo revolution' comes to Brussels
The EU is struggling to land a new deal on consumer protections for airline passengers.
15 min
68
Can Europe quit American Big Tech?
The European Commission has finally unveiled its long-awaited tech sovereignty package
37 min
69
Is Italy's Giorgia Meloni in trouble?
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni faces an uphill battle in next year’s Italian election.
14 min
70
The jobs squeeze facing Europe
Today the Commission will publish a report that checks up on EU countries’ economies. But the news isn’t too good.
14 min
71
Who keeps the Russian shadow fleet afloat?
As the EU prepares to target Russia’s shadow fleet in the 21st sanctions package, we’re looking at the system that keeps these ships in business.
15 min
72
Europe’s toughest migration plan yet
The EU is edging closer to one of its most controversial migration policies yet: sending failed asylum seekers to return hubs outside the bloc.
15 min
73
China: the 'abusive' partner the EU just can’t ...
Is the EU finally ready to get serious about China?
38 min
74
The ban threat facing Europe's far right
Europe’s far right is yet again under the microscope.
14 min
75
Kallas, von der Leyen and the rivalry over EU i...
Brussels is beefing up its intelligence machinery.
14 min