button in SafariMatt Berkey's Only Friends Poker Podcast Is Back From the Dead
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After signing off in April 2025 following 719 episodes, the popular Only Friends podcast is making its return, with Matt Berkey and the Solve For Why crew preparing to get back behind the microphones.
The Only Friends Podcast account confirmed the news with a short and sweet announcement on X.
The first episode is scheduled for Monday, November 9, at 11 a.m. PT, and Berkey confirmed to PokerNews that the podcast will air Monday through Thursday, with four shows planned each week.
Why Did Only Friends End?
Only Friends first launched in March 2022 and quickly became a regular fixture in the poker community, with Berkey joined by a rotating cast that included Landon Tice, Conrad Simpson, Melissa Schubert and Brian Lamanna.
The show covered just about everything, from high-stakes poker and cheating allegations to cryptocurrency, industry controversies and whatever else happened to be on the crew's minds that morning.
Its popularity was recognised at the 2023 Global Poker Awards, where Only Friends took home the award for Best Podcast.
However, after three years and 719 episodes, Berkey announced that the show would be coming to an end. The decision was partly due to the loss of the crew's Las Vegas studio space, while Berkey later acknowledged that YouTube's crackdown on certain gambling-related content had made the timing feel right.
The podcast signed off on April 25, 2025, with a four-hour farewell stream featuring guests including Nikki Limo, Jesse Sylvia, Jason Somerville, Ryan Depaulo and PokerNews Podcast co-host Mike Holtz.
At the time, the crew thanked viewers for their loyalty and support. Now, that farewell was just a 'see you later' instead of a full blown goodbye.
Will the WSOP Daily Shows Make a Comeback?
One of the things that made Only Friends particularly enjoyable was its coverage during the World Series of Poker (WSOP).
The daily broadcasts during the summer gave viewers a feel for what was happening in Las Vegas beyond the tournament results. Whether it was a controversial hand, a disagreement between players or a story doing the rounds at the tables, there was usually something to get stuck into.
Those shows also brought together different voices from across the poker community, giving players and fans a chance to hear what was happening around town.
With Only Friends returning to a regular weekday schedule, hopefully those WSOP broadcasts will make a comeback next summer, too. Thankfully, there's plenty for the crew to catch up on in the meantime after more than 18 months away.
Berkey and the PokerNews Podcast
The Only Friends crew also had a close relationship with the PokerNews Podcast, with members of both shows making appearances on each other's broadcasts over the years.
Following the announcement that Only Friends was ending, PokerNews Podcast co-host Chad Holloway spoke about how much the show had meant to the team.
"Matt Berkey had a lot of nice things to say about the PokerNews Podcast, which meant a lot as we took a lot of inspiration from them over the course of the last several years. Very sad to see it end," Holloway said.
Berkey himself appeared on Episode #965 of the PokerNews Podcast at the end of May 2025, just weeks after Only Friends had wrapped up.
During that appearance, Berkey, Holloway and Holtz discussed the WSOP "patch war" controversy, Charlie Carrel being banned from entering the United States, the return of poker at The Lodge and several other stories making headlines at the time.
Lead image credit: Only Friends Podcast w/Matt Berkey | Ep #576
