51 Spanish words and expressions to talk about football
The World Cup 2018 is here. Will you follow all the matches? Or maybe you will watch only some of them? Did you know that watching a match in Spanish can be a really nice experience? Spaniards love the football and when they support or comment a match they do it with such passion that you feel like if you were one of them. But to do this you have to know the football vocabulary in Spanish, which is why I have gathered 51 words and expressions that have to do with football in Spanish. I hope they will help you!
Football team in Spanish
Many Spaniards have their own favourite football club they are extremely loyal to. Normally, you follow the team that your parents, cousins or siblings do, however it's not always the case. And also if you support one team, you don't like (because I don't want to use the verb "to hate" which seems too strong to me) their major opponent. The best example I can think of is the case of Real Madrid and FC Barcelona. Curiously enough though, when it comes to the national team, everybody loves each other and wants the Spanish team to win.
| In Spanish | In English |
|---|---|
| El equipo | Team |
| El equipo nacional | National team |
| Los jugadores | Players |
| El entrenador | Coach / Manager |
| El árbitro | Referee |
| El linier | Linesman |
| El fichaje | Signing |
Football players in Spanish
El portero in Spanish not only means goalkeeper, but also doorman. This is not the only name used however. When talking about goalkeeper in Spanish you can also use the word cancerbero, which seems a little bit odd. When I first saw it, I thought about the word cancer (which can be one of the Zodiac signs in Spanish) and then about Cerberus, the mythological dog from the Greek underworld. I was right with the second guess, indeed in Spanish Cerberus is called either Can Cerbero, Cancerbero or Cerbero which makes a direct connection to the goalkeeper duties.
On the other hand, we also have the word ariete, which in football describes a striker, when it comes to war vocabulary however it means battering ram. You can read more about this linguistic curiosity in this article.
| In Spanish | In English |
|---|---|
| El portero | Goalkeeper |
| El delantero / el ariete | Forward / striker |
| El delantero centro | Centre forward |
| El segundo delantero | Second striker |
| El lateral izquierdo | Left back |
| El lateral derecho | Right back |
| El libero | Sweeper |
| El defensa | Defender |
| El centrocampista | Midfielder |
| El centrocampista defensivo | Defensive midfield |
| El centrocampista ofensivo | Attacking midfield |
| El suplente | Substitute |
Stadium and football pitch in Spanish
One important thought. La portería is a place where we score a goal (in Spanish gol). So easy-peasy that one forgets it quickly.
| In Spanish | In English |
|---|---|
| El banquillo | Bench |
| La portería | Goal |
| El balón / el esférico | Ball |
| El larguero | Crossbar |
| La red | Net |
| El estadio | Stadium |
| El campo | Football pitch |
| Las tribunas | The stands |
| El entrenamiento | Training |
Match in Spanish, step by step
Passes (los pases) are an important part of every football match. Careful here, because un pase is not the same as un paso, which means a step (hence step by step in Spanish is paso a paso). Then we also have the word la parada, which means a save when talking about football. In everyday life however we see a lot of paradas when walking down the street. How is that possible? Well, una parada de autobús means a bus stop.
Both el penalti and el córner are anglicism which proves that after all, maybe it is not true that Spanish people don't like English words.
| In Spanish | In English |
|---|---|
| El partido | Match / game / competition |
| El córner / el saque de esquina | Corner |
| El saque de banda | Throw-in |
| El penalti | Penalty |
| El saque de puerta | Goal kick |
| El pase | Pass |
| La parada | Save |
| El autogol | Own goal |
| Fuera de juego | Offside |
| El regate | Dribbling |
| La falta | Foul |
| La tarjeta amarilla | Yellow card |
| La tarjeta roja | Red card |
| El resultado | Score |
| El empate | Draw |
| Meter un gol / Marcar un gol | To score a goal |
World Cup phases in Spanish
If there weren't any phases, matches won't be interesting at all. And if you plan to watch some of the matches in Spanish, knowing their names is never a bad idea. Especially because there might be some confusion when it comes to the articles.
| In Spanish | In English |
|---|---|
| Fase de grupos | Group stage |
| Los octavos | Round of 16 |
| Los cuartos | Quarter - finals |
| La semifinal | Semi-finals |
| La final | Final |
| La copa | Cup |
| Los Campeones del Mundo | World Champions |
Who will win the World Cup 2018 in Russia?
Do you think it might be Spain? Or Germany as always? Who do you support and why? Leave a comment and let me know! And of course if there is any word, verb or expression that I might have missed, don't hesitate to mention it as well.