Book One: Vokabelliste

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Book Two: Vokablen + Erklärungen

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Football Vocabulary (Fussball-Lexikon)
In order to use this soccer glossary, you’ll need to know a few abbreviations. You’ll
also find helpful annotations scattered throughout that are useful for understanding
aspects particular to the sport and Germany.

• Noun genders indicated by: r (der, masc.), e (die, fem.), s (das, neu.)

• Abbreviations: adj. (adjective), n. (noun), pl. (plural), sing. (singular), sl.

  (slang), v. (verb)

A
r Abstieg relegation, moving down
abseits (adj.) offside
e Abwehr defense
e Ampelkarte “traffic light” card (yellow/red)
r Angreifer attacker, forward
r Angriff attack, offensive move
r Anhänger fan(s), follower(s), devotee(s)
r Anstoß
Welche Mannschaft hat Anstoß?
kickoff
Which team/side will kick off?
e Aufstellung lineup, roster
r Aufstieg promotion, moving up
r Ausgleich
unentschieden (adj.)
tie, draw
tied, a draw (undecided)
auswärts, zu Besuch
zu Hause
away, on the road
at home, home game
s Auswärtsspiel
s Heimspiel
zu Hause
away game
home game
at home, home game
s Auswärtstor goal scored in an away game
auswechseln (v.) substitute, switch (players)
B
r Ball (Bälle) ball
e Bank
auf der Bank sitzen
bench
sit on the bench
s Bein leg
bolzen (v.) to kick the ball (around)
r Bolzplatz (-plätze) amateur football/soccer field
r Bombenschuss a difficult shot, usually from a long distance
e Bundesliga German professional soccer league

D
r DFB (Deutscher Fußballbund) German Football (Soccer) Federation
r Doppelpass one-two pass, give and go pass
s Dribbling dribbling
e Drittkette/Dreierkette
e Viertkette/Viererkette
straight three-man backfield (free-kick defense)
four-man backfield defense
E
r Eckball corner ball (kick)
e Ecke corner (kick)
r Eckstoß corner kick
r Einwurf throw-in, toss
e Elf the eleven (players), soccer team
r Elfmeter penalty kick (from eleven meters)
e Endlinie endline goal line
r Europameister European champion
e Europameisterschaft European championship
F
e Fahne (-n) flag, banner
r Fallrückzieher
bicycle kick, scissors kick (Note: A Fallrückzieher is an acrobatic
goal shot in which a player flips and kicks the ball backward over his
own head.
fäusten to punch (the ball)
fechten to parry (the ball)
s Feld field, pitch
FIFA International Football (Soccer) Federation
e Flanke cross, center (e.g., into the penalty area)
r Flugkopfball
r Kopfball, r Kopfstoß
diving header
header shot
r Freistoß free kick
r Fußball football, soccer; soccer ball
e Fußballmannschaft football/soccer team
r Fußballschuh (-e) soccer shoe
s Fußballstadion (-
stadien) soccer stadium

G
e Gäste (pl.)
s Heim
visiting team
home team
r Gegner (-) opponent, opposing team
gelbe Karte caution, yellow card (for foul)
gewinnen (v.)
verlieren
to win
to lose
e Grätsche sliding trip, straddle vault
grätschen (v.) to straddle, tackle, trip (often a foul)
H
e Halbzeit halftime
e Halbzeitpause halftime break (15 minutes)
e Hälfte
erste Hälfte
zweite Hälfte
half
first half
second half
halten
gut halten
to save (keeper)
to make a good save
s Heim
e Gäste (pl.)
home (team)
visiting team
e Heimmannschaft home team
r Hexenkessel an unfriendly stadium (“witch’s cauldron”), usually the opponent’s
home stadium
e Hinrunde/s Hinspiel
e Rückrunde/s
Rückspiel
first round/leg
second round/leg
r Hooligan (-s) hooligan, rowdy
J
r joker (sl.) – sub who comes in and scores goals
K
r Kaiser “the emperor” (nickname for Franz Beckenbauer, Kaiser Franz)
r Kick kick (soccer/football)
r Kicker soccer player
r Konter counterattack, counteroffensive
Note: The noun der Kicker/die Kickerin in German refers to a soccer/football player,
not just someone playing the position of “kicker.”
The verb “to kick” can take several forms in German (bolzen, treten, schlagen). The
verb kicken is usually limited to sports.

L
r Leitwolf “lead wolf,” a player who inspires the team
r Libero sweeper
r Linienrichter linesman
M
e Manndeckung one-on-one coverage, man coverage
e Mannschaft team
e Mauer defensive wall (of players) during a free kick
mauern (v.) to form a defensive wall; to defend aggressively
e Meisterschaft championship
s Mittelfeld midfield
r Mittelfeldspieler midfielder
N
e Nationalmannschaft national team
e Nationalelf national team (of eleven)
P
r Pass pass
r Platzverweis ejection, expulsion
r Pokal (-e) cup (trophy)
Q
e Qualifikation qualification (round), qualifying
r Querpass lateral/crossfield pass
R
e Rangliste the rankings
r Rauswurf ejection
s Remis
unentschieden
tie game, draw
tied, a draw (undecided)
e Reserven (pl.) reserve players
rote Karte red card (for foul)
e Rückgabe return pass
e Rückrunde/s Rückspiel
e Hinrunde/s Hinspiel
second round/leg
first round/leg

S
r Schiedsrichter
r Schiri (sl.)
referee
“ref,” referee
r Schienbeinschutz shinguard, shinpad
schießen (v.)
ein Tor schießen
to shoot (ball)
to score a goal
r Schiri (sl.) “ref,” referee
r Schlussmann (sl.) goalkeeper
r Schuss shot (at goal)
e Schwalbe (sl., lit.
“swallow”)
a deliberate dive to draw a penalty (automatic red card in
the Bundesliga)
e Seitenlinie sideline, touchline
siegen (v.)
verlieren
to win, be victorious
to lose
r Sonntagsschuss a difficult shot, usually made from a long distance
s Spiel game
r Spieler player (m.)
e Spielerin player (f.)
r Spike (-s) spike (on a shoe)
e Spitze forward (usually a striker out front)
s Stadion (Stadien) stadium
r Stand score, standings
r Stollen (-) stud, cleat (on a shoe)
r Strafpunkt penalty point
r Strafraum penalty area, penalty box
r Strafstoß
r Elfmeter penalty kick
r Stürmer forward, striker (“stormer”)
T
e Taktik tactics
r Techniker (sl.) technician, i.e., a player who is very talented with the
ball
s Tor goal
e Latte
s Netz
r Pfosten
(net); a scored goal
crossbar
net
post
r Torhüter goalkeeper, goalie
r Torjäger goal scorer (who scores often)
r Torschuss goalkick

r Torschützenkönig leading goalscorer (“goal king”)
r Torwart goalkeeper, goalie
r Trainer coach, trainer
trainieren (v.) practice, train, work out
r Treffer goal, hit
treten (v.)
eine Ecke treten
Er hat ihm an das Schienbein
getreten.
jemanden treten
to kick
to make a corner kick
He kicked him in the shin.
to kick someone
U
UEFA European Football (Soccer) Association (founded 1954)
unbesiegt undefeated
unentschieden (adj.) tied, a draw (undecided)
V
r Verein club (soccer, football)
verletzt (adj.) injured
e Verletzung injury
verlieren (verlor, verloren)
Wir haben (das Spiel) verloren.
to lose
We lost (the game).
r Verteidiger defender
e Verteidigung defense
verweisen (v.)
den Spieler vom Platz verweisen
eject, throw out (of game)
throw a player off the field
s Viertelfinale quarter finals
e Viertkette/Viererkette straight four-man backfield (free-kick defense)
r Vorstand board, directorship (of club/team)
vorwärts/rückwärts forwards/backwards
W
wechseln (v.)
auswechseln
einwechseln
substitute
substitute out
substitute in
r Weltmeister world champion
e Weltmeisterschaft world championship, world cup
r Weltpokal world cup
e Wertung point awards, scoring
e WM (e Weltmeisterschaft) world championship, world cup
das Wunder von Bern the miracle of Berne

Note: The story of Germany’s “miracle” win in the 1954 WM (World Cup) played in
Bern, Switzerland was made into a German movie in 2003. The title is “Das Wunder
von Bern” (“The Miracle of Bern”).
Z
zu Besuch, auswärts on the road
zu Hause at home, home game
e Zuschauer (pl.)
s Publikum
spectators
fans, spectators

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The Ultimate German Vocabulary Guide For Football
/ Soccer
fluentu.com/blog/german/german-vocabulary-soccer-football-world-cup/
So Germany won the 2014 World Cup!

If you’ve already talked to your German friends about German movies or music, why not talk
about football as well?
There’s no better time to add football words to your German vocabulary.
The Ultimate German Vocabulary Word List For Soccer & the
World Cup
These German words will put you right in the middle of the action!

2/18
Abwehrspieler (m.): Defender
A defender is a player who tries to stop the other team from scoring a goal.
Hans ist ein Abwehrspieler in meiner Fußballmannschaft.
Hans is a defender in my football team.
Anstoß (m.): Kick-off
When the game begins.
Der Anstoß der Fußball-Weltmeisterschaft ist Heute.
The kick-off to the football World Cup is today!
Anzeigetafel (f.): Scoreboard
Um den Spielstand zu wissen, musst du die Anzeigetafel angucken.
To know the score, you must look at the scoreboard.

3/18
Auswärts Spiel (n.): Away Game
A game played not in a team’s home stadium.
Hertha BSCs Auswärts Spiel wird in München sein.
Hertha BSC’s away game will be in Munich.
Auswechselspieler (m.): Substitute
Max spielt später. Er ist ein Auswechselspieler.
Max will play later. He is a substitute.
Aus (n.): an Out
When the ball is outside the marked game field
Bei einem Aus hinter der Torlinie, kommt es darauf an, wer den Ball zuletzt berührt hat.
When an “out” is called for a ball that is behind the goal net, it depends on who touched the
ball last.
Außenseiter (m.): Underdog
Im Spiel zwischen Mexiko und Ghana ist Ghana der Außenseiter.
In the game between Mexico and Ghana, Ghana is the underdog.

4/18
Eckball (m.): Corner kick
This is a free kick from any of the four corners of the pitch.
Das andere Team hat einen Eckball bekommen.
The other team got a corner kick.
Einwurf (v.): a Throw in
A type of restart where the player throws the ball from behind a sideline with both hands
Einwurf hat immer die Mannschaft, die nicht zuletzt am Ball war.
A throw in always goes to the team, that didn’t touch the ball last.

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