Welcome to the Zeus Files!
This is the new platform for the work of Duncan Mackay, who has been one of the most influential Olympic journalists in the world for more than 30 years.
He is a well-known figure in the Olympic Movement having founded insidethegames.biz in 2005 shortly after London were awarded the 2012 Olympics. it grew into the world’s leading independent website covering the multi-billion dollar multi-sport industry with more than one million unique visitors per month.
insidethegames broke a number of major stories, including the positive drugs test involving Russian skater Kamila Valieva at Beijing 2022 - leading to several death threats - and that Brisbane had been awarded the 2032 Olympics without a formal bid process.
It was also the publication of a series of exclusive articles by insidethegames shortly before Mackay left the publication in October 2023 about how the Russian Olympic Committee had incorporated the occupied Ukrainian territories into its organisation that finally led to the International Olympic Committee suspending it.
It is no wonder that former director of marketing at the IOC described Mackay as the “journalist who sets the Olympic media agenda”.
In 2010, Mackay also founded insideworldfootball.com, the leading web-based publication for the business and politics of football. It has developed to become a “must read” for football administrators, journalists and sponsors
Before setting up insidethegames, Mackay worked for The Guardian and The Observer newspapers in London for 17 years where he earned a reputation for breaking big exclusive stories, particularly in the fields of bidding and anti-doping.
Mackay’s finest moment came in July 2005 before the vote to decide which city would host the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games when he was the only British print journalist to predict London would beat Paris.
In 2008, Mackay was the first journalist to reveal that Qatar planned to bid for FIFA World Cup, a plan that came to fruition when they hosted the 2022 tournament.
Other major scoops included that British sprinter Dwain Chambers had tested positive for banned drugs and Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand had dropped by the England national team because he was being investigated for missing out-of-competition tests.
Mackay was the first journalist to report that Greek sprinters Kostas Kederis and Ekaterina Thanou were under suspicion of using drugs and deliberately avoiding doping tests on the eve of the 2004 Olympics in Athens. Mackay's reporting was recognised when in 2004 he was voted British Sports Journalist of the Year and won British Sports News Story of the Year. Mackay was also awarded the UK Internet Sports Journalist of the Year in 2009.
Overall, Mackay has covered 16 Olympics since his first one, the Winter Games at Albertville in 1992. He has also covered seven Commonwealth Games, numerous Asian Games and World Championships in a variety of sports.
As well, as his journalism, Mackay has written six books, including co-authoring Running Scared: How Athletics Lost Its Innocence. It was voted one of the 20 best books about the sport by Athletics Weekly magazine and chosen as “Book of the Week” by The Independent, who praised it for “an impressive depth of detailed research”.
Other books have included Linford Christie, The History of the Olympics, The Daily Telegraph Gold Medal Legends - The Olympic Games 100 Years in Pictures and China Gold: China's Quest for Global Power and Olympic Glory.
His most recent book, They Came From A Land Down Under: The birth of the Socceroos and how they qualified for the 1974 FIFA World Cup finals, was an intensely personal project. It told the story of how his uncle, professional footballer Jimmy Mackay, emigrated from Scotland in 1965 to carve out a new career for himself which culminated in representing Australia in their first World Cup appearance.
It was published in November 2024 to critical acclaim with the Sports’ Journalists Association in Britain calling it “a supremely well-researched volume”.
Why is it called the Zeus Files?
Zeus is the sky and thunder god in ancient Greek religion and mythology, who rules as king of the gods on Mount Olympus, home of the twelve Olympians. The Ancient Olympics were held in the honour of Zeus. Much of the revival of the modern Olympic Games at Athens in 1896 was based on these stories and traditions and continue to this day. Many current sports leaders have come to believe that, like Zeus, they are gods who are beyond scrutiny and reproach and can act as they want. It is vitally important that there are independent publications like this to hold them to account, hence the Zeus Files.
Why subscribe?
Paid subscribers will receive a guaranteed two posts per week, but will probably get a lot more than that. There will be special editions during key industry events such as International Olympic Committee Sessions, Association of National Olympic Committees Congress General Assemblies, SportAccord and major championships. There will also be a weekly calendar listing all the most important dates taking place in the Olympic Movement. There are also plans to launch chats, Q&As and other initiatives to help keep subscribers in touch with what is happening. The Olympics is unique as it is the only event where 206 countries and territories gather together in the same city for 17 days. It is far from perfect but the one thing that everyone agrees on is that you cannot ignore it.
Never miss an update - every new post is sent directly to your email inbox. For a spam-free, ad-free reading experience, plus audio and community features, get the Substack app.
