How to Talk About the World Cup in Spanish
Here at Na’atik, teachers and students have been enjoying the festival of sport that is the World Cup. Fútbol, or soccer for those north of the border, is the most popular sport in Mexico and the Spanish speaking world in general. The World Cup is always a time for fierce national pride and hotly contested regional rivalries. It is also, however, an opportunity for peoples and cultures to come together and celebrate both sporting excellence and a shared love of the game.
Watching and discussing sports in a foreign language can be challenging, with a whole new set of words and phrases to master. This guide to the must-know terms is designed to get you talking about fútbol in no time at all.
The Basics
The ball - La pelota, el balón or el esférico
The match / game - El partido or el juego
The stadium - El estadio
The pitch / field - El campo / la cancha
These are the most important parts of the pitch, but names can vary depending on exactly what is happening on it:
The parts of the goals itself are known as:
The net - La red
The posts - Los postes
The crossbar - El travesaño
The Players - Los Jugadores
While there are a wide variety of specialist positions with different names, these are some of the most common positions you will need when discussing games. There is also a degree of regional variation for position names. We’ll teach you the most common position names used here in Mexico.
Other important team members include:
Captain - El capitán
Substitute - El suplente
Coach - El entrenador
The Rules - Las reglas
Referee - El árbitro
Assistant referee - El juez de línea, El abanderado
Penalty - Penal
Foul - Falta
Offside - Fuera de lugar
Free kick - Tiro libre
Throw in - Saque de banda
Corner kick - Tiro de esquina
Yellow/Red Card - Tarjeta amarilla/roja
The World Cup - La Copa Mundial
National team - Selección nacional
Host nation - País anfitrión
Group stage - Fase de grupos
Second round - Segunda ronda
Quarter/Semi Final - Cuartos de final/Semifinal
To qualify - Clasificar
Eliminated - Eliminado
Champion - El campeón
Trophy - Trofeo
Mexican Phrases - Las Frases Mexicanas
Mexico has a history of successfully qualifying from the group stage of the World Cup only to be eliminated in the second round. This regular failure to get beyond the fourth match of the tournament has led to fans of the team using the phrase:
Vamos por el quinto, literally meaning ‘let's go for the fifth’. At the time of writing this blog, Mexico’s World Cup fate is not yet decided, so supporters will still be using this exhortation in their final group game!
One of our favorite Mexican football phrases refers to goals scored in the top corner. While many languages and countries have their own terms to describe this part of the goal, Mexico likely wins the trophy for the most unusual with the colorful phrase:
Donde las arañas hacen su nido, or ‘where the spiders make their nest’!
Engaging with sports can be a fantastic way to practice your language skills, whether you are joining a team with native speakers or just listening along to Spanish commentary for your favorite team’s games. The World Cup shows us that soccer/football really is a universal language, and with just a few shared words fans from across the world can enjoy the beautiful game together.
¡Vamos por el quinto!
If you want to read more about Mexican language and culture, check out our monthly blog posts. If you want to improve your Spanish, the best way to learn is with a Na’atik Immersion Experience here in Felipe Carrillo Puerto. Find out more about this unquie non-profit language program here.