Football or soccer? Football refers to any of several games played
with an inflated leather ball by two teams on a field with a goal at
each end. The most common forms of football are: Rugby Football; American
Football; Association Football—also known as soccer from (as)soc(iation
football). The vocabulary on this page is for Soccer, the form most
closely related to the original and the form played in the FIFA World
Cup.
| attack |
to make a forceful attempt to score a goal |
| attacker |
a player that has possession of the ball |
| away game |
a game played at the opponent's ground |
| away team |
the team that is visiting the opponent's ground |
| beat |
to defeat |
| bench |
a long seat for several people |
| captain |
the player who leads and directs the other players on the
field |
| centre circle |
a circular marking in the centre of the field from which
kickoffs are taken |
| champions |
a team that has beaten all other teams in a sporting contest |
| championship |
a sporting contest for the position of champion |
| changing rooms |
the rooms where players dress to play |
| cheer |
to shout in encouragement and give support |
| corner kick |
a restart of the game where the ball is kicked from one
of the four corners of the field |
| cross |
a pass from an attacking player near the sideline to a team
player in the middle or on the opposite side of the field
(also a verb) |
| crossbar |
the horizontal beam across the top of a goal |
| defend |
to resist an attack |
| defenders |
the players that do not have possession of the ball |
| draw |
a game that ends with both teams having the same number
of goals |
| dropped ball |
a way of restarting the game where the referee drops the
ball between two players |
| equalizer |
a goal that makes the score even (the same for both teams) |
| extra time |
a further period of play added on to the game if the scores
are equal |
| field |
the rectangular, grass area where a game is played |
| field markings |
the straight and curved white lines painted onto the field |
| FIFA |
Federation Internationale de Football Association; the official
body of international football |
| FIFA World Cup |
a solid gold statue given to the champion of each World
Cup tournament to keep for the next 4 years |
| first half |
the first 45 minutes of the game, before half-time |
| fit |
in form, in good health |
| fixture |
a game played on a particular date |
| fixture list |
a programme of games |
| forward |
one of the three or four players on a team who play at the
front and are responsible for most of the scoring |
| foul |
an unfair or invalid piece of play, against the rules |
| free kick |
a kick given to a player for a foul by the opposition; the
player kicks the ball without any opposing players within ten
feet of him |
| friendly game |
a game that is not part of a serious contest |
| goal |
1. a ball that crosses the goal line between the goalposts
and below the crossbar, winning one point 2. the structure consisting
of two posts linked by a crossbar into which all goals are scored |
| goal area |
the rectangular area 20 yards wide by 6 yards deep in front
of each goal |
| goal kick |
a way of restarting the game where the ball is kicked from
inside the goal area away from the goal |
| goal line |
the boundary or line at each end of the field |
| goalkeeper, goalie |
the player in front of the goal who tries to stop the other
team scoring |
| goalpost |
one of the two upright posts of the goal, 8 feet high |
| goal scorer |
a player who puts the ball into the goal and so "scores
a goal" |
| ground |
the place where a game is played |
| half-time |
the 5-minute rest period between the first half and second
half |
| hand ball |
a foul, when a player touches the ball with his arm or hand |
| header |
the striking of the ball by a player with his head |
| home |
a team's own ground. |
| hooligan |
a violent troublemaker |
| injury |
a wound suffered by a player (for example: broken leg, sprained
ankle) |
| injured player |
a player who has been hurt or wounded |
| injury time |
time added to the end of the first or second half to compensate
for time lost because of player injuries |
| kick |
to strike or hit with the foot (also a noun) |
| kick-off |
the start of a game, or restart after a goal, when a player
kicks the ball forwards |
| Laws of the Game |
the 17 main rules for football established by FIFA |
| league |
a group of teams that play each other for competition |
| linesman |
the 2 officials who help the referee; they watch the sidelines
and goal lines |
| match |
a game of football |
| midfield |
a region of the field near the midfield line |
| midfield line |
a line that runs across the centre of the field; centre
line; halfway line |
| midfield player |
the players that play behind the forwards |
| national team |
the team representing a particular country or nation |
| opposing team |
a team playing against another team |
| own goal |
a mistake, when a team places the ball inside its own goal |
| pass |
when a player kicks the ball to a teammate |
| penalty area |
a rectangular area in front of the goal, 44 yards wide by
18 yards deep |
| penalty kick, penalty shot |
a kick from the penalty spot by a player against the opposing
goal keeper; awarded for the most serious violations of the
rules or used in the event of a draw |
| penalty spot |
the small circle 12 yards in front of the goal |
| possession |
control of the ball |
| red card |
a small card, red in colour, that the referee holds up to
show that a player must leave the game for very bad behaviour |
| referee |
the chief official; he starts and stops play, makes all
decisions about the rules, and acts as timekeeper |
| score (verb) |
to put the ball into the goal and gain a point |
| score (noun) |
the amount of goals for each team |
| score a hat trick |
when one player gets three goals in the same game |
| scorer |
a player who scores or gets a goal |
| scoreboard |
a large panel or other display that shows the current score
or number of goals for each side |
| second half |
the second 45 minutes of the game, after half-time |
| send a player off |
when the referee tells a player to leave the field for bad
behaviour |
| side |
one of the two teams playing a game |
| sideline |
the line that runs along the length of the field on each
side; touchline |
| spectator |
a person who watches a game (or other performance) |
| stadium |
a special sports ground with seats for spectators where
football (or another game) is played |
| striker |
a team's best forward who plays near the centre of the field |
| studs |
small points on the underneath of a player's boots to help
prevent slipping |
| substitute |
a player who replaces another player on the field |
| supporter |
a spectator who supports one of the teams and wants it to
win |
| tackle |
to try to take the ball away from another player by kicking
or stopping it with the feet |
| team |
the members of one side |
| tie |
when two teams have scored the same number of goals in a
game; a draw |
| tiebreaker |
a way of choosing the winner of a game when both teams have
the same number of goals, for example by a series of penalty
kicks |
| ball |
the hollow sphere that players kick in soccer |
| coach |
a person who trains a team |
| net |
the mesh of cord hung over and behind the goal; can also
mean the goal itself |
| pitch |
the football field |
| ticket tout |
a person who tries to sell tickets at a price higher than
the official price |
| to keep goal |
to be the goal keeper or goalie |
| to score a goal |
to put the ball into the goal or net |
| to shoot at goal |
to kick the ball towards the goal |
| touch line |
the line that runs along the length of the field on each
side; sideline |
| underdog |
a team that is not expected to win |
| unsporting behaviour |
rude or bad conduct |
| whistle |
the instrument that the referee blows to create a loud,
high-pitched sound |
| winger |
a forward who plays to the side of the striker or strikers |
| World Cup |
the international soccer competition between nations, organized
by FIFA every 4 years |
| yellow card |
a small card, yellow in colour, that the referee holds up
to warn a player for bad behavior |