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football Glossary A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z A Back to top added time: the extra time that the referee allows at the end of the first or second halves to compensate for injuries, substitutions, etc. admission prices: the price you pay to get into a game (on) aggregate/aggregate score: the final over two legs in a knockout competition all-seater (adj): describing a stadium that has only seats and no section for standing all square: the two teams in a game having the same number of goals arch enemies: very intense enemies, perhaps because of local or historical differences area: the large rectangle in front of the goal, also know as ‘the penalty area’ away: when a team plays in the other team’s stadium, it plays ‘away’ (cf ‘at home’) away goal: in a cup tie that is decided over two legs, goals you score away from home are worth more than those you score at home away kit: the shirts, shorts and socks worn in away games (also ‘home kit’) B Back to top bar: the horizontal part of the goal be out: not playing because of injury beat (another team): to score more goals than the other team by the end of the game bet: an amount of money which you risk on the result of an event or a competition, such as a horse race. black-market ticket: a ticket sold through unofficial channels bookmaker: a company that accepts bets on the result of games, races, etc. brawl: a big fight break: the 15-minute interval at half time break away: after stopping an attack, the defending team runs quickly to the other end bring down: to foul a player so that he falls down C Back to top central defender: one of (normally) two players who play in front of their goalkeeper against the other team’s attackers. chairman: the person in charge of a football club. championship: a high-level sports competition to decide who is the best. changing room: the room where the players change their clothes before and after games, and go at half-time. chant: a repetitive song sung by fans in the stadium; to sing such a song clash: a battle clean sheet: when a goalkeeper/ a team does not concede a goal in a given match clear at the top: to be first in a league, with more points than the other teams clinch: to confirm a result or a title close-range: very near the goal club: everything (e.g. all the people, buildings, etc.) that go together to constitute a football team. coach: someone whose job is to teach people to improve at a sport. comeback: when a team is losing and recovers concede: to fail to stop the other team scoring a goal. cross: kick the ball from the side of the pitch into the middle (where the goal area is). cross the line: the ball passing over any of the four lines that contain the pitch crowd: the people that watch a football match D Back to top defeat: when a team loses a game. defender: someone in a football team whose main job is to try to prevent the other team from scoring goals. defensive wall: a line of defenders hoping to block a free-kick deflection: a shot that hits a player, the ball changing its trajectory diehard fan: a very devoted fan disallowed: when the referee cancels a goal because of a prior infraction display: a performance, the quality of a team’s play on a given day diving: falling over in order to get a free-kick or penalty division: group of teams which play against each other in a particular sport, e.g. first division, second division. double: winning both the domestic league and cup titles in the same season double: beating a team twice in the league in the same season down: to go/be down is when a team goes/is behind during a game draw: 1 when a game finishes with both teams having the same score. 2 the list of games in a cup competition, decided at random. dribble: to move the ball along the ground with repeated small kicks. drop points: fail to win a league game; if a team draws, it drops two points, if it loses, it drops three. drop zone: in the Barclays Premier League, the last three places in the table; if your club is there at the end of the season, it is relegated. dug-out: the place where the coach and substitutes stay during the game, sometimes lower the pitch dummy: deceiving a defender by pretending to go one way but going the other E Back to top edge of the box: the zone around the lines that delineate the penalty area equaliser: a goal that makes both team’s score the same, e.g. 1-1 or 2-2. even: when neither side is superior to the other in a given game extra-time: 30 minutes extra (2 x 15) played if the result is a draw at the end of 90 minutes (knockout competitions) F Back to top fans: supporters, people who follow a club or football itself. field: (verb) to put players on the pitch finalists: the two teams that reach the Final of a cup competition final whistle: the signal from the referee to end the game finish: score finishing: the skill of scoring first time: when you kick or head the ball without controlling it first fixtures: the list and dates of games to be played flick: to kick or head the ball with a subtle touch foot of the table: the bottom places in the league table form: describes how a player is playing at a particular point of time or over a period of time. foul: an illegal challenge on a player (also: ‘to foul’ and ‘to be fouled’) fourth official: the fourth person in charge of the game, after the referee and the linesmen freak goal: a goal scored in an unusual way free kick: when a player is fouled, his team get possession of the (static) ball G Back to top gate: the number of people that go to see a football game, or the amount of money people pay to see it. gate receipts: the amount of money received by a club from the people who  buy tickets for a game giant-killing: when a small club (a giant-killer’) beats a big one in a knockout competition goal: 1 an area on a football pitch, marked by two posts with a net fixed behind them, where players try to send the ball in order to score. 2 a point scored in some sports, such as football or hockey, when a player gets the ball into this area. goal difference: the difference between the number of goals a team scores and the number it concedes goalkeeper: the player who stands in the team's goal to try to stop the other team from scoring. goal-line: the line inside the goal goalmouth action: opportunities to score from within the penalty area go in front: to score the first goal in a game go through: to qualify for the next round in a cup competition ground: a stadium H Back to top half: 45 minutes of a game half-time: the 15-minute interval between the halves of a match handball: playing the ball illegally with your hand or arm hat-trick: three goals scored by the same player in one game have a game/games in hand on another team: to have played fewer games than another team head: to hit the ball with the (usually) front part of your head (forehead) header: hitting the ball with the head high-flying (adj): describing a club near the top of the division hit: to kick home game: when a team plays in their own stadium honours: titles hooped shirts: shirts with horizontal stripes I Back to top in-form: currently playing well injured: unable to play because of physical problems international: a player who has played for his or her country’s national team. K Back to top kick off: the time when a game of football starts. kit: the particular clothing worn by a football team. knockout (adj): this describes a competition in which the loser of a game leaves the competition L Back to top league: a group of teams playing a sport who take part in competitions between each other. lead: having more goals than the other team at a given point during the game leg: in some knockout competitions, the teams play two games, one at home and one away: the first and second legs. The result is the ‘aggregate’ score over the two legs. level: having the same goals as the other team long range shot: an attempt at goal from 25 metres or more loose ball: when the ball is blocked by the goalkeeper, for example, and is momentarily not controlled by either team M Back to top manager: the coach of a British team, normally with more powers, for example, choosing players to buy man of the match: the best player in one game. mark: stay close to an opponent so that he can’t get the ball match: a game of football. match programme: a small-format magazine produced for every home game match-winner: player who has a lot of skill and who can score a goal at any moment. Merseyside Derby: a ‘derby’ is a game between two teams that are geographically close to each other. Merseyside is the area around the River Mersey, where Liverpool is located. midfield: the central area of a football pitch, or the central structure of a football team. minnows: a small club or team, especially in a cup competition move: a combination of passes taking the ball towards the opponents’ goal N Back to top neck-and-neck: when two teams are very close to each other in terms of points nerves: feeling nervous net: the part of the goal that catches the ball neutral ground: a stadium that does not belong to either of the two sides in a match O Back to top offside: when a pass is made to a player and there are fewer than two opposing players between him and the opposing goal off the field: relating to what happens other than during the game. one-on-one: an attacker in front of the goal with only the goalkeeper to beat one-touch: passing between players without controlling the ball first one-two: a situation where a player passes to a team-mate and receives the ball directly in return on the field: relating only to what happens during the game. opponents: the other teams in a league or a game. outcome: the result overhead kick: kicking the ball over your own head, sometimes called a ‘bicycle’ kick own goal: a goal scored in your ‘own goal’ P Back to top pass: to kick the ball to a member of your team; also ‘a pass’ penalty spot: the white dot in the penalty area where the ball is placed for a penalty kick pitch: the area of grass where the game takes place. player of the year: the best player over the whole season. player: one of the people who play on a team. point: a unit for counting how much a team has earned from winning or drawing a game, used in comparing that team with other team’s in the league. A club wins one ‘point’ if it draws a games and three if it wins post: the vertical part of the goal (cf ‘bar’) promote: a team that finishes at the top of a lower division can go up to a higher division, or be ‘promoted’ purist: a person who loves the traditional aspects of the game put (your team) in front: to score the first goal in a match for your team Q Back to top qualifier: a game during the qualification phase for a tournament, for example, before the World Cup quarter finals: the round that involves the last eight teams in a cup competition R Back to top ranking: the order of teams, etc., in terms of quality, achievement, etc. referee: the man in black … who controls the game relegation: going down from one division to another (also: ‘to relegate’/ ‘to be relegated’) relegation zone: the area (of the table) where teams are in danger of moving down to a lower division replay: 1 a second game in a cup competition after the first one ends in a draw. A replay is played at the stadium of the away team from the first game 2 on television, a repetition of an exciting or controversial moment reserve player: a player from the second team rival: a team competing with others for the same thing or in the same area. roof of the net: the top of the net round: a stage in a knockout tournament run: a movement in which a player ‘runs’ with the ball at his feet, or into a position where he can receive the ball runners-up: the team that comes second in the championship. S Back to top sack: to dismiss (from employment) save: when the goalkeeper stops the ball entering the net score: 1 get a goal. 2 a result season: the period of the year during which football is played, which in Europe is from August to May. sending-off: when the referee sends a player off the pitch before the end of the game because that player has done something wrong. shock result: an unexpected result, normally because one of the teams is inferior on paper shoot: to try and kick a goal. shot: an attempt to score a goal by kicking the ball towards it showdown: a deciding match in a given competition, normally between two big teams side: team side-bet: a bet that is not as important as another bet. sidelines: the lines along the side of the pitch sign (a player): to contract a player from another club silverware: trophies skill: special ability skipper: captain slip up: make a mistake snatch a win: to score and win in the last seconds spectators: the people who go to a stadium to watch a game spell: a period of time during a game sportsmanship: a spirit of honest play and respect for the opponent spot: position in the league, e.g. fifth spot the spot: the penalty spot, from where penalties are taken squad: the whole group of players from which those for each match are chosen. square: a pass which is parallel to the half-way line standing ovation: the crowd standing to applaud a player (artist, etc.) through respect, love, etc. stretcher off: take a player off the pitch on a stretcher, because of a bad injury strike: a shot, to shoot (at the goal) striker: player whose job is to score goals. stroke of half-time: close to half-time stroke of time: the last second of the game stroll: an easy game sub: substitute subs’ bench: where the substitutes sit during the game supporters: followers of a club T Back to top table: a list that shows the position of all teams in a competition, as well as how many wins, draws, loses, etc they have. tap in: score from very near the goal team: the 11 players who play as a group. team-mates: other players on your team thrashing: when a team is beaten by a large number of goals (also ‘to thrash’) tie: a cup game. tier: a division. time: full time (the 90th minute) title: the status of being champions title race: when more than one team has a chance to win the championship. top flight: the top division in a given country. training ground: where teams practise before games transfer fee: the money paid to another club to contract a player to your club transfer window: period of time when players can move from one team to another. trophy: the prize for winning a competition, e.g. a cup turn a game around: when a team recovers and changes the score during the match turnstiles: revolving gates at the entrance to a stadium two-horse race: when there are only two teams that have a realistic chance of winning the championship. U Back to top up: to go/be up is when a team takes/is in the lead during a game upfield: in the direction of the opponents’ goal up front: in a position where you are close to the other team’s goal (in attack). upset: a surprise result V Back to top venue: the place where a game is played (also concerts) versus: against victory: when a team wins a game. volley: kicking the ball before it touches the ground W Back to top win (a game): to score more goals than the other team by the end of the game; also = a victory winger: a player whose position is at either of the two sides of the field, in the attacking half. winner: the goal that wins a game world cup: the most important football competition between national teams. wrong-footed: when a player intends to go one way but a pass or shot goes another