This lesson suits upper-intermediate to advanced learners. After listening, scroll down and test your knowledge with our quiz.
Learning notes
Language objective
Starting a conversation and talking about soccer/football.
Starting a conversation about soccer
- How about that match yesterday?
- Has your team ever got to a cup final?
- Who are you going for this game?
- What do you think of players who dive for free kicks and penalties?
Different phrases we can use to talk about soccer
- The match kept me on the edge of my seat until the very end.
- It was an end-to-end game that ended up in a draw.
- We blew a two-goal lead.
- Maybe we’ll win on penalties.
Colloquial expressions:
To get a kick out of something means to get a lot of enjoyment out of something.
If you are glued to the screen, you are watching something very closely and just can’t stop.
A game or show keeps you on the edge of your seat, if it is so exciting that you don’t know what is going to happen or how it is going to end.
Vocabulary:
A draw - it is when neither team wins because both finish with an equal score.
A comeback (in soccer) – is when a team comes from a losing position to either win or draw the match.
A two-goal lead – is when one team is two goals ahead of the opposite team.
A good sport - is someone who doesn’t get angry or rude when their team loses. In general, it means someone who is kind and generous.
A bit of a sore loser – is someone who gets angry when their team loses and is not kind and generous!
A die-hard fan – is a loyal supporter who knows a lot about their team.
An underdog - is a person or group who people expect will lose a game or a sporting competition.
Goalkeepers – are players in soccer or field hockey whose role is to stop the ball from entering the goal.
Defenders - are players whose role is to protect their own team’s goal.
Midfielders (in soccer) – are players in the central part of the field.
Forwards – are players who attack, that is, who try to score goals in football, hockey, or other sports.
Cultural information:
The 2022 FIFA World Cup is scheduled to be in Qatar from 20 November to 18 December 2022. This is the first time it has been held in the Middle East and in an Arab country.
SBS is the only place in Australia where fans can watch this event in Australia. All matches and the FIFA World Cup Today highlights show will be streamed live on SBS On Demand, while SBS Radio will also broadcast all 64 matches in up to four languages simultaneously: English, Arabic and in the languages of the competing teams.
Transcript:
(Note: This is not a word-for-word transcript)
SBS acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country and their connections and continuous care for the skies, lands and waterways throughout Australia.
Hi! Welcome to the SBS Learn English podcast, where we help Australians to speak, understand and connect.
My name is Josipa, and I get a kick out of learning new English phrases that I can use in my everyday life.
To get a kick out of something means to get a lot of enjoyment out of something.
Do you know what I also get a kick out of?
Watching the soccer team from my birth country compete at FIFA World Cup. And this year, since now I’m an Australian citizen, my enjoyment is doubled.
I’ll be glued to the screen when either Croatia or Australia are competing with the best teams in the world in Qatar, where the World Cup is being played this year.
If you are glued to the screen, you are watching something very closely and just can’t stop because whatever you are watching is so interesting.
Another great thing about this global event are the conversations that we can have with friends and colleagues who also really love football.
So, let’s practise some useful soccer phrases or should I say football phrases?
In Australia 'football' can refer to soccer, rugby league, rugby union or Australian Rules football. So you'll often hear Australian's use 'soccer' so it doesn't get confused with the other sports.
Soccer is the term usually used in Australia and Canada as well as in the U.S.
Anyway, with us are Allan and Claire,
Claire
How about that match yesterday?
Allan
Oh yes, it kept me on the edge of my seat until the very end. Such a shame it ended up in a draw. I still can’t believe we blew a two-goal lead. The other team had an impressive comeback!
Claire
You're a good sport. I thought you'd be a sore loser!
Allan
Nah! I'm a die-hard fan but I still love a close game.
So, Claire asked Allan if he had enjoyed the match. She said,
How about that match yesterday?
"How about that match yesterday?” is an example of an informal way to ask if someone enjoyed the match, or game.
Another great way to start a conversation about soccer could be by asking,
- How do you think your team will do in the upcoming game?
- Has your team ever got to a cup final?
- Who are you going for this game?
Do you remember how Allan answered? He said,
The match kept me on the edge of my seat until the very end.
If something keeps you on the edge of your seat, it is very exciting and you don’t know what what is going to happen or how it is going to end.
So, for example, after watching a movie, you could say, “I was on the edge of my seat for the entire movie.”
Allan also said,
Such a shame it ended up in a draw.
If a game, any game not just soccer, ends up in a draw, it means that neither team has won because both teams finished with an equal score.
Games can also end up in a tie, which is the same as ending up in a draw.
The other team had an impressive comeback!Allan
A comeback is when a team comes from a losing position to either win or draw the match.
My team blew a two-goal lead!Allan
This means that Allan's team was two goals ahead but the other team came back to draw.
And, if you hear someone saying they blew something in everyday situations it means they failed it.
Claire then used some interesting phrases,
You're a good sport. I thought you'd be a sore loser!
A good sport doesn’t get angry or rude when their team loses. People who get angry when their team doesn’t win are sore losers.
The term ‘good sport’ can be used outside of sports talk too, and can just mean someone that is kind and generous.
For example, you could say, “Be a good sport and drive me to the shops.”
Nah! I'm a die-hard fan but I still love a close game.Allan
A die-hard fan is a loyal supporter who knows everything about their team.
While preparing for this episode, I asked Allan how he chooses who to support when his favourite team is not playing.
He used an interesting phrase I’d like to share with you; he said,
I always go for the underdog.
An underdog is a person or group who people expect will lose a game or a sporting competition.
We don’t have a word for the underdog in the Croatian language.
Speaking with my Italian, Japanese, Nepali and Russian colleagues, I discovered that their languages also don’t have a literal translation of the word underdog. And what about your language?
The opposite of an underdog is a favourite. How do you say an underdog or favourite in your language?
Let’s hear some other phrases we can use to describe what is happening in a soccer game.
Claire
This game is real end-to-end stuff!
Allan
Our forwards missed a few scores. Maybe we’ll win on penalties.
Claire
I’ve always wanted to ask you what you think of players who dive for free kicks and penalties.
A soccer game is end-to-end when both teams constantly attack each other so that the ball and the play moves from one end to the other a lot.
So, if a game is fast-moving and full of action, you can say,
This game is real end-to-end stuff!Claire
Allan then said that his forwards missed a few scores.
Forwards are also called strikers; their main job is to score a goal.
There are four main types of players according to where they play. They are: goalkeepers, defenders, midfielders and forwards.
If you would like to know more about the meaning of these words and how they influence how a team plays, look at the learning notes at the top of the page.
Finally, listen to this question Claire asked. It's a great conversation starter.
What do you think of players who dive for free kicks and penalties?
Do you know what a free kick means? How about penalties?
Let me try explaining, but please have patience, I only just learned this part myself.
So, when a member of one team fouls someone from the other team, that is, hurts them or makes them fall, that team can be given a free kick.
A free kick is a kick which no-one can challenge and the game stops. If this happens near the goal, this free kick is called a penalty.
What do you think of players who dive for free kicks and penalties?
A dive is when a player falls to the ground easily and pretends to be badly injured so that they can be given a free kick or penalty.
Informally,this is called ‘diving’ and it is against the rules of the game. But it’s also very hard to judge.
And, because it is so hard to judge, everyone has a different opinion about it and so it is a very common topic of conversation, particularly between supporters of different teams!
My guest today is an expert and a die-hard fan of everything soccer related. His name is Efthymios Kallos, and his voice has become a part of many Greek households across the country as Efthymios has been reporting on SBS Greek for over 32 years.
Hi Efthymios, it's a great honour to have you in our show.
Efthymios
Hi Josipa, it’s great to be a part of your podcast.
Josipa
So what I’m curious about is the name of the Australian Men’s National Team, the Socceroos. How did they get this name?
Efthymios
The Socceroos’ is a blended word made up of the words ‘soccer’ and ‘kangaroo’. It’s been used since the 1970s to describe the team. But did you know a different Australian animal was also nearly the name for the team?
Josipa
No… which Australian animal?
Efthymios
The emu! In a competition to pick a name for the team ‘The Emus’ was actually the favourite! Emus are known for being really fast-running birds that also have a good kick so some people argued that it was a better fit.
Josipa
That’s interesting! And how about the Matildas, Australia’s women’s soccer team?Where did their name came from?
Efthymios
They were actually first known as “the Female Socceroos” but they obviously deserve their own name, right?! The name ‘Matildas’ was also a result of a competition. Fans could have chosen ‘Waratahs’, that’s a red Australian flower or ‘Lorikeets’, which are a colourful Australian bird. But they didn’t, they picked ‘Matilda’s! You might have heard this word in the name of the classic Australian song ‘Waltzing Matilda’. A ‘matilda’ means a swag, or bag that is carried by someone travelling with all their possessions inside.
Josipa
It’s a great name. But it doesn’t really make sense because carrying a bag with all your possessions is not a very fast way to move. Anyway, the 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar is kicking off soon, where and how can we watch t?
Efthymios
SBS is the only place where fans can watch this event live and free. All matches and the FIFA World Cup Today highlights show will be streamed live on SBS On Demand, while SBS Radio will also broadcast all 64 matches in up to four languages simultaneously: English, Arabic and in the languages of the competing teams.
A big thank you to our educational consultant Professor Lynda Yates, our guests Efthymios Kallos and Vrishali Jain and Paul Nicholson and Lily O'Sullivan who voiced the characters of Allan and Claire.
