Whatever your interests, and however you like to spend your time off from work, there is always a way to inject a little language learning into your day. And that includes sports! Sport can also be an exciting part of your travel experience, and again gives you the excuse to pick up a few words. Not that we think you should need an excuse! So if your destination this summer happens to be France, here are the most popular sports you will find in the country — and a little vocabulary to get you prepared. Enjoy!

 

 

Football

 

Football is big business in France as it is in so many countries. Ligue 1 is the main French football league, with 20 clubs competing for the title and fighting not to get relegated to Ligue 2. The names PSG, Monaco, and Lyon might already be familiar to you. These national teams regularly qualify for the UEFA Champions League, and as well as this the Coupe de France and the Coupe de la Ligue are huge crowd-drawers. So if football is your thing, you couldn’t do much better than to be in France!

 

So what French should you know before going to a match? For the team:

 

Team — équipe

Football player/player — footballeur/joueur

Coach — entraineur

Defender — défenseur

Forward — avant/attaquant

Goalie — gardien de but/goal

Referee — arbitre

Striker — buteur

Substitute — remplaçant

Winger — ailier

 

And some words for the game itself:

 

Game — match

Half — période

Half time — mi-temps

Extra time/overtime — prolongation

Stoppage time — arrêts de jeu

Corner flag — piquet de corner

Football — ballon de foot

Goal net — filet

Midfield — milieu du terrain

Playing field — terrain de jeu

Stadium — stade

Dive — simulation

Header — tête

Pass — passe

Tackle — tacle

Free kick — coup franc

Foul — faute

Goal — but

Offside — hors-jeu

 

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Rugby

 

Rugby might be equally big business in France to football! The Elite One Championship is the top level rugby competition in the country, home to the likes of Toulouse and ASM Clermont Auvergne. The SQY Rugby Festival attracts a lot of fans, as does the European Rugby Challenge Cup and Six Nations. There are plenty of tournaments for you to attend if you feel like fitting a little rugby into your French travels, is what we’re saying.

 

Here are some team words to get you started:

 

Back row — troisième ligne

Captain — capitaine

Centre — centre

Coach — entraîneur

First row — première ligne

Flanker — troisième ligne aile

Fly-half — demi d’ouverture

Forward — avant

Fullback — arrière

Hooker — talonneur

Prop — pilier

Scrum half — demi de mêlée

 

And here are some words for the beautiful game of rugby:

 

Knock on — en-avant

Line-out — touche

Maul — maul

Forward pass — pass en avant

Drop goal — drop

Conversion — transformation

Brawl — bagarre

Tackle — plaquage

Try — essai

Up and under — chandelle

Red/yellow card — carton rouge/jaune

Penalty — pénalité

Punt — coup de volée

Place kick — coup de pied placé

Touchline — ligne de touche

Try line — ligne de but

Post — poteau

Field — terrain

Dead-ball line — ligne de ballon mort

 

 

Horse racing

 

Where do we even start with horse racing in France? There is so much to choose from! French horse racing is governed by France Galop, who oversee everything from spectator numbers to the safety of horses. There are more than 6,500 flat races held in France every year, the most famous of which is the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe. The Longchamp Racecourse is arguably one of the most famous in the world, both for its horse racing and ties to France’s aristocratic history. Definitely worth a visit whether you’re watching a race or not!

 

Horse racing vocabulary is a little different, but we have the basics covered for you!

 

Bet — pari

Blinkers — oeillères

Breeder — éleveur

Competitor — concurrent

Cross the line — franchir la ligne

Disqualify — disqualifié

Doping — dopage

Fall (from the horse) — dopage

Fall (horse) — chute

False start — faux départ

False pace — faux train

Fence — barrière

Horse racing slang — argot des courses

Hurdle — course de haie

Jump racing — course d’obstacles

Race — course

Race course — cheval de course

Ring — rond de présentation

Sprint to the line — sprint final

Track — piste

 

So here is just a taste of the most popular sports in France and the vocabulary you should use. Which sport are you starting with?