• Programs
    • Preschool
    • Elementary School
    • Middle School
    • High School
    • Adults
    • School Solutions
  • School Solutions
  • Pricing
  • How it Works
  • Testimonials
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • My Cart
  • Login
  • Try a Free Class
logo

855-997-4652 LOGINTRY A FREE CLASS

  • Programs
    • Preschool
    • Elementary School
    • Middle School
    • High School
    • Adults
    • School Solutions
  • School Solutions
  • Pricing
  • How it Works
  • Testimonials
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • My Cart
  • Login
  • Try a Free Class
  • Programs
    • Preschool
    • Elementary School
    • Middle School
    • High School
    • Adults
    • School Solutions
  • School Solutions
  • Pricing
  • How it Works
  • Testimonials
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • My Cart
  • Login
  • Try a Free Class
logo

855-997-4652 LOGINTRY A FREE CLASS

  • Programs
    • Preschool
    • Elementary School
    • Middle School
    • High School
    • Adults
    • School Solutions
  • School Solutions
  • Pricing
  • How it Works
  • Testimonials
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • My Cart
  • Login
  • Try a Free Class
February 1, 2020 by Rafael Parra Spanish Vocabulary 0 comments

Make New Friends Through Sports: Fútbol vs. Football

While traveling or living abroad, learning the ins and outs of the local sports culture is a common and rewarding cultural experience. If you’re getting ready to experience life in Latin America, learn about the local sports scene to help improve your conversations with others and make new friends! 

In Latin America, fútbol is by far the most popular sport we play. However, American Football has carved its niche amongst some Latinoamericanos, and the Super Bowl has become popular enough to be broadcasted—with the famous ads and everything. 

If that’s not proof enough that we enjoy the Super Bowl ourselves, take a look at this year’s halftime show! Los Tigres del Norte, a Mexican mariachi band, are going to be playing alongside Shakira and Jennifer Lopez; all three groups have connections to Spanish speaking countries!

Knowing Spanish vocabulary for both fútbol and football is a great way to connect with Spanish speakers at home or during your travels, so today we’re going to look at some useful vocabulary as well as similarities between both sports.

How Are Football and Soccer Alike?

You already know that football and fútbol are different sports, but how are they similar? 

Fascinating Rivalries

For starters, they share infamous rivalries. You might be familiar with the rivalry between the Packers and Bears; but did you know fútbol has a rivalry that is so strong that their games attract millions of international followers? Real Madrid vs. FC Barcelona have been playing against each other for over 100 years! You can read more about this in our post about famous fútbol teams.

Colorful Fandoms

Another similarity between sports is the fans. Fútbol games have no shortage of colorful guests. Fans will often paint their bodies to match the team they’re rooting for and will carry huge flags to represent their team or their country. One of the reasons I like the Green Bay Packers so much is because I went to a Super Bowl party with people from Wisconsin some years ago when they won. If you go to a soccer fans’ house and share some chips while watching a game, you’ll have a new favorite team, and hopefully learn some new words along the way!

Big Events

world cup soccer in spanish

The Super Bowl is one of USA’s biggest sporting events. Each year, the viewership reachers over 100 million, and they have billion-dollar revenues! The World Cup is no different. While the World Cup has substantially more viewers, it usually makes less money than the Super Bowl. Both sports have big events that bring people together in restaurants, homes, and stadiums all over the world! In Guatemala, it’s common for families to buy the World Cup sticker album every time the event takes place, and you’ll see people selling and trading stickers everywhere you go.

Community Building

Sports have always played a big role in children’s development. Playing team based sports like football and fútbol can teach kids about sportsmanship, teamwork, and healthy lifestyle!

Football Vocabulary

One of the most difficult things to learn about football is all of the vocabulary. There are so many terms to keep track of, it sure takes time to learn all of them! If you’ve spoken Spanish with people from different countries, you’ll notice we have a sort of “dialect” where we use different words based on where we come from. Football is no different. Some countries will use English terms, some Spanish, and some will do “Spanglish”. The vocabulary we’ll review today talks about the official terms, but don’t be surprised if you learn a new way to say a word presented below.

If you want to teach football rules to a Spanish speaker, these words are a must!

EnglishSpanishPronunciation
centerel centrosayn-troh
cornerbackel esquineroays-kee-nay-roh
downla oportunidadoh-pohr-too-nee-dahd
end zonela zona de anotaciónsoh-nah day ah-noh-tah-syohn
footballel fútbol americanofoot-bohl ah-may-ree-kah-noh
fullbackel corredor de poderkoh-ray-dohr day poh-dayr
fumbleel balón perdidobah-lohn payr-dee-doh
halfbackel corredor rápidokoh-ray-dohr rah-pee-doh
halftime showel show de medio tiemposhow day may-dyoh teeaym-poh
interceptionla intercepcióneen-tare-sape-syohn
kickoffla patada de salidapah-tah-dah day sah-lee-dah
scrimmage linela línea de golpeolee-nya day gohl-pay-oh
puntpatearpah-tyar
quarterbackel mariscal de campomahr-ees-kahl day kahm-poh
tacklederribarday-ree-bar
touchdownla anotaciónah-noh-tah-syohn
field goalel gol de campogohl day kahm-poh
goal postel poste de golpohs-tay day gohl
helmetel cascokahs-koh
shoulder guardslas coderaskoh-day-rahs
interferencela interferenciaeen-tayr-fayr-ayn-syah
neutral zonela zona neutrasoh-nah mwayr-tah
offsidefuera de juegofoo-ayr-ah day hoo-ay-goh
complete passel pase completopass-ay kohm-play-toh
incomplete passel pase incompletopass-ay een-kohm-play-toh
penaltyla penalizaciónpayn-ahl-ee-sah-syohn
slotbackel receptor libreray-sape-tor lee-bray
receiverel receptorray-sape-tor
wide receiverel receptor abiertoray-sape-tor ah-bee-air-toh

Vocabulario de Fútbol

Now that you can explain to your friends what’s going on in the football field, it’s time to learn some fútbol vocabulary!

EnglishSpanishPronunciation
forwardslos delanterosday-lahn-tay-rohs
midfieldersel medio campomay-dyoh kahm-poh
defendersla defensaday-fane-sah
goalkeeperel arqueroar-kay-roh
goalla porteríapor-tay-ree-ah
corner kickel tiro de esquinatee-roh day ay-skee-nah
free kickel tiro libretee-roh lee-bray
penalty kickel penalpay-nahl
yellow cardla tarjeta amarillatar-hay-tah ah-mah-ree-yah
red cardla tarjeta rojatar-hay-tah roh-hah
offsidefuera de lugarfoo-ayr-ah day loo-gahr
own goalel autogolaoo-toh-gohl
penalty shootoutlos penalespay-nahl-ays
shotel tirotee-roh
wallla barrerabah-ray-rah
dribbledriblardree-blahr

Shared Vocabulary

These two sports are similar in more ways than one. They share some terms that apply to either sport; you can also use them to describe other sports! Can you guess which other sports have these general terms in them? You’ll find the following words in both football and fútbol:

EnglishSpanishPronunciation
passel pasepah-say
foulla faltafahl-tah
fieldel campokahm-poh
refereeel árbitroahr-bee-troh
half timeel medio tiempomay-dyo tyem-poh
over timeel tiempo extratyem-poh extra
ballel balónbah-lohn
teamel equipoay-kee-poh
playoffla eliminatoriaay-lee-mee-nah-toh-ryah
defense la defensaday-fayn-sah
offenseel ataqueah-tah-kay
blockel bloqueobloh-kay-oh
formationla formaciónfohr-mah-syohn
time outtiempo fueratyem-poh fooay-rah
jerseyla camisetakah-mee-say-tah
possessionla posesiónpoh-say-syohn

Get Ready To Root For Your Team!

Sporting events have been a primary form of entertainment for as long as we’ve existed. When done right, sports bring people together and relieve stress while having fun. It’s no surprise this is one of the best ways to connect with other cultures, so much so that in modern times we play sports together throughout the whole planet. If you want to put what we learned here today into practice, you can take a free class at Homeschool Spanish Academy and ask a Guatemalan what their favorite sport is!

  • Author
  • Recent Posts
Rafael Parra
Rafael Parra
Freelance Writer at Homeschool Spanish Academy
A native Spanish speaker from Guatemala, I'm a psychology student, creative developer, and aspiring polymath whose always learning new things and improving as a person. I'm a nerd when it comes to language, education, and videogames. My goal is to practice all these disciplines in unison and make something great with my time.
Rafael Parra
Latest posts by Rafael Parra (see all)
  • How to Master Spanish Sentences with Verbs and Correct Verb Tenses - January 24, 2021
  • Top 7 Best Books to Learn Spanish for Kids - January 21, 2021
  • Positive Adjectives in Spanish for Any Person or Occasion - January 15, 2021
football futbol latin american sports sports in spanish
0

Related Posts

mission trip

Mission Trip Spanish You Need to Know to Survive!

July 31, 2018
Read More
Spanish days of the week

Spanish Days of the Week

February 18, 2019
Read More
human body in spanish

Spanish Body Parts: Vocabulary and Idioms

February 21, 2019
Read More
Día del Cariño

Valentines or Palentines? 4 Tips for Día Del Cariño

February 14, 2019
Read More

Leave a Comment! Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Top 10 Careers of the Future—in Spanish!Previous Post
Groovin' Instrument Words in SpanishNext Post

About Us

HSA offers Spanish curricula for all ages. Schedule classes on any day of the week – you can take them on your own, or share a class and save money! We make it easy to learn at your own pace. LEARN MORE >

Resources

  • About
  • Get a Transcript
  • Take a Free Class
  • FAQs
  • How it Works
  • Partners

Recent Posts

  • Read in Spanish II: Free Spanish Texts for High School Students
    Read in Spanish II: Free Spanish Texts for High School Students
    January 26, 2021
    Welcome to our “Read in Spanish” Blog Series...
  • 8 Mexican Graphic Novels That Will Turn You Into a Fan
    8 Mexican Graphic Novels That Will Turn You Into a Fan
    January 26, 2021
    The world of Mexican graphic novels is a...

Terms & Conditions Privacy Policy Contact UsSitemap© 2021 HSA. All rights reserved.