Spanish sports vocabulary

Learning a language is hard work, but it's more enjoyable if you decide to start by mastering the vocabulary of your hobbies or interests. So, if you're passionate about sports, it's essential that you know how to have a conversation about your favorite team.

At don Quijote we want to help you with that and bring you the definitive list of sports vocabulary in Spanish you need. Soccer? Basketball? Tennis? Learn all the terms used to talk about sports in Spanish with us.

You can also read this article in Spanish here.

List of sports in Spanish

Before we get fully into the vocabulary, you need to know the name of your favorite sport in Spanish. Here is a very complete list of sports in Spanish so you can find yours:

• Fútbol – Soccer or Football
• Baloncesto - Basketball
• Tenis - Tennis
• Pádel - Paddle tennis
• Natación - Swimming
• Waterpolo - Water polo
• Voleibol - Volleyball
• Hockey
• Balonmano - Handball
• Fórmula 1 - Formula 1
• MotoGP
• Atletismo - Athletics
• Ciclismo - Cycling
• Golf
• Béisbol - Baseball
• Bádminton - Badminton
• Rugby
• Patinaje - Skating
• Esquí - Skiing
• Surf - Surfing
• Equitación - Horse riding
• Karate
• Judo
• Boxeo - Boxing
• Artes marciales - Martial arts
• Escalada - Climbing
• Esgrima - Fencing
• Piragüismo – Canoeing

These are just some of the best-known sports, but there are many more. Are you missing anything? Let us know!

Spanish sports words

In addition to learning sports vocabulary in Spanish, you also need to know some general terms. In most sports, the people who attend the estadios or campos (stadiums or fields) are aficionados (fans) and they are also called afición (fandom). The songs to cheer on your favorite team are called cánticos, but you will also be able to hear the team's anthem before the game.

In a soccer or basketball game you need a árbitro (referee) to control and direct the fouls or collisions between the jugadores (players). And many sports have prórroga (extra time) after the end of regulation time.

Now that you know the main terms, let's look at the specific vocabulary of each sport. Come and learn Spanish in Spain will allow you to get to know, attend and experience first-hand matches of great teams or international players, as well as use all the relevant terms of your favorite sport in Spanish in context.

Football vocabulary in Spanish  

The sport par excellence in Spain and in most of the world is football. Football vocabulary in Spanish contains many words derived from English or directly in this language, so it can be easy.

Among the equipment used by players in a football match, you can find:

• Balón - Ball
• Portería - Goal
• Red - Net
• Espinilleras - Shin guards
• Camiseta – T-shirt
• Botas de fútbol Football boots

You should also know that the place where the game is played is a campo (field) or estadio (stadium), made up of líneas de banda (touchlines), área de penalti (penalty area) and banderines de córner (corner flags), among other elements.

The most common moves are regatear (dribbling), chutar (shooting), cabecear (heading), despejar (clearing), centrar (crossing), interceptar (intercepting), hacer un pase filtrado (playing a through ball), amagar (feinting) and recuperar el balón (winning the ball back). On the other hand, the positions of the players on a football pitch are delantero centro (center forward), extremo (winger), mediocampista defensivo/ofensivo (defensive/offensive midfielder), defensa central (center back), lateral (full back), portero (goalkeeper).

As for the key rules and terms of football:

• Fuera de juego - Offside
• Penalti - Penalty
• Córner - Corner
• Saque de banda - Throw-in
• Falta - Foul
• Tarjeta amarilla - Yellow card
• Tarjeta roja - Red card
• Tiempo añadido / Tiempo extra - Added time or extra time
• Tiempo de descuento - Time remaining
• VAR
• Gol - Goal
• Hat-trick
• Chilena

Basketball vocabulary in Spanish

Another world-famous sport is basketball. Here you will find all the Spanish vocabulary for this sport that you might need during your intensive Spanish course or in conversations with your classmates.

The equipment and elements of the basketball court consist of a balón (ball), aro (hoop), canasta (basket), tablero (backboard), cancha (court), línea de tiro libre (free throw line), línea de tres puntos (three-point line), línea de fondo (baseline), línea de medio campo (half-court line), línea de banda (sideline), banquillo (bench), cronómetro (stopwatch), uniforme (uniform) and zapatillas (sneakers).

Not forgetting the movements characteristic of this sport: driblar or regatear (dribbling), encestar (score a basket), bloquear (blocking), asistir (assisting), pivotar (pivoting), fintar (feinting), hacer un mate (dunking), tiro en suspension (jump shots), tiro libre (free throws), alley-oop, robo de balón (steals) and tapón (blocks).

The positions of the players on a basketball court are base (point guard), escolta (shooting guard), alero (forward), ala-pívot (power forward) and pivot (center).

In addition, these words will be useful to you and are used in basketball:

• Cancha or pista de baloncesto - Basketball court
• Asistencia - Attendance
• Punto - Point
• Tiro - Shot
• Rebote - Rebound
• Mate - Dunk
• Finta - Fint
• Falta personal – Personal foul
• Doble drible – Double dribble
• Zona – Zone
• Tiempo muerto – Time out
• Posesión - Possession
• Rebote ofensivo - Offensive rebound
• Rebote defensivo - Defensive rebound

Tennis vocabulary in Spanish

Tennis is a very popular sport in Spain thanks to players such as Rafa Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz. It is not surprising that these names come up in conversation, so below you will find the most relevant tennis vocabulary in Spanish.

Tennis players use a raqueta (racket) and a ball to play matches. The tennis court is called pista de tenis and is made up of a red (net) that separates the two players or teams.

In terms of moves, you can identify el saque plano, cortado or liftado (flat serve, cut or topspin), la volea (volley), el golpe de derecha (drive), el revés (backhand), dejada (drop shot), smash, passing shot, slice and top spin

The scoring system in tennis is not like in other sports, the points are added up in a different way. That's why in a tennis match you'll see the scoreboard go through these numbers: 15-30-40; and it doesn't add up one by one like in soccer, nor are there triple points like in basketball.

Key rules and terms of tennis in Spanish:

• Saque or servicio - Serve
• Doble falta - Double fault
• Punto de ruptura - Break point
• Punto de partido - Match point
• Ace
• Let
• Saque directo - Direct serve
• Línea de fondo - Baseline
• Empuñadura - Grip
• Overgrip
• Cordaje - String
• Deuce
• Tie-break
• Set

As in soccer or basketball, tennis has many technical terms that have remained untranslated in English, so it is easy to remember them if it is your native language.

Vocabulary of other sports in Spanish

Boxing is not as famous as soccer, but if you are interested in this sport, you should learn these terms:

• Guantes - Gloves
• Protector bucal - Mouth guard
• Vendajes - Bandages
• Ring
• Esquina - Corner
• Saco de boxeo - P unching bag
• Nocaut (KO) - Knockout
• Nocaut técnico (TKO) - Technical knockout
• Conteo de protección - Protective count
• Asalto - Assault
• Guardia alta or guardia baja - High guard or low guard
• Juez - Judge
• Decisión dividida/unánime - Split/Unanimous Decision

The movements of boxers in the ring are jab, gancho (hook), uppercut, crochet, cross, esquivar (dodge), clinch, fintar (feint), contragolpe (counter punch) and golpe al hígado (liver punch), among others.

Let’s continue with another sport: swimming. This sport has several styles, it can be team, individual or synchronized. However, the vocabulary of swimming in Spanish is simple.

Among the swimming strokes are crol (crawl), brazada (breaststroke), espalda (backstroke), mariposa (butterfly), estilo libre (freestyle), nado de supervivencia (survival swim). Other Spanish sport terms related to this sport are:

• Piscina - Swimming pool
• Gorro – Swimming cap
• Gafas – Swimming goggles
• Bañador - Swimsuit
• Respiración - Breathing
• Bucear or Sumergirse - Diving
• Flotar - Floating
• Trampolín - Trampoline
• Carriles - Rails
• Aletas - Fins
• Viraje - Turning
• Patada de delfín - Dolphin kick
• Deslizamiento - Slide
• Salida en flecha - Arrow exit
• Volteo - Flipping
• Respiración bilateral - Bilateral Breathing

Sports with cars and motorcycles are also popular in Spain, especially Formula 1 and MotoGP. The equipment of the pilotos (drivers) is similar, as they both wear cascos (helmets), are vehículos monoplazas (single-seater vehicles) and have neumáticos (tires).

The movements are adelantar (overtaking), acelerar (accelerating), derrapar (skidding), hacer una parada en boxes (making a pit stop), tomar una curva (cornering), apurar la frenada (braking) and hacer un undercut or overcut (undercutting or overcutting).

Formula 1 vocabulary in Spanish:

• Neumáticos pueden ser blandos, duros or intermedios - Tires can be soft, hard or intermediate
• Alerón delantero y trasero - Front and rear wing
• Volante – Steering wheel
• DRS
• Halo de seguridad - Safety halo
• Pole position
• Vuelta rápida - Fastest lap
• Bandera roja o amarilla – Red or Yellow flag
• Coche de seguridad - Safety car
• Grip
• Carga aerodinámica - Downforce
• Estrategia de neumáticos - Tire strategy
• Motor híbrido - Hybrid engine
• Penalización en parrilla - Grid penalty

MotoGP vocabulary in Spanish:

• Guantes - Gloves
• Mono de cuero protector - Protective leather suit
• Rodilleras - Knee pads
• Botas - Boots
• Deslizaderas - Sliders
• Protector de espalda - Back protector
• Pole position
• Vuelta rápida - Fastest lap
• Bandera roja - Red flag
• Caídas en alta velocidad - High speed crashes
• Box – Pit box
• Setup de suspensión - Suspension setup

This sports vocabulary in Spanish will help you to improve and expand your knowledge about your favorite sport. So don't hesitate to come to Spain and discover all the matches you can watch live, with international and national players in world famous teams. Live the sport with don Quijote in one of our Spanish language schools!