Let’s learn about sports in Spanish!
¡Aprendamos sobre deportes en español!
But first let's look at the history behind the Spanish sports ~
In Spain, there are various sports to choose from. Soccer, bullfighting, basketball, tennis, golf, skiing, and Formula One racing are the most popular sports in Spain. These seven sports are extremely common in Spain. These sports are practised by children and adults of all ages. They begin at a young age so that they will be ready when high school arrives and the competition heats up.
Soccer is referred to as futbol in Spain. Soccer is a way of life for the Spaniards. They live, breathe, and eat soccer. La Liga is a professional football league in Spain that is regarded as one of the best in the world. FC Barcelona and Real Madrid are their biggest competitors. These Spanish soccer teams are highly competitive and boast some of the best players in the world.
Bullfighting takes place between March and October. In Spain, a traditional bullfight is known as a "corrida de toros." The flagmen in bullfighting are known as "bandilleros." The bull is fooled into running through the flag by the flagman. Bullfighting is divided into three parts. Bullfighting is divided into three parts. The “picadores” are the first part of a bullfight (lancers on horseback.) The “bandilleros,” who are part of a matador's cuadrilla and are in charge of positioning the banderillas during a bullfight, come in second. Third, the bull is deceived by the red cap when it passes through it. They bring the show to a close with a well-placed blade.
(Fun Fact - This is a very dangerous sport!)
Basketball, The ACB (Asocianion de Clubs de Baloncesto) is not the best league in Spain, but it is regarded as one of the best in the world, second only to the NBA. There are 18 teams in this league. Basketball has a total of 34 games in a season.
Tennis - Thanks to players like Tommy Robredo, Fernando Verdasco, and Rafael Nadal, Spain has risen to prominence on the international tennis stage. These professional tennis players are among the best in the world. Rafael Nadal is the world's number one player, followed by Tommy Robredo (16th) and Fernando Verdasco (7th).
Golf - There are many excellent golf courses in Spain. Any of the best in the world can be found there. When you visit, you can play golf at any time of year. Courses can be found all over Spain, including near the airport. So, if you're in the mood for a round of golf, you won't have to look far.
Skiing - Spain is Europe's second-highest mountainous region. There are 36 excellent ski resorts in the region. It's normally sunny, so you'll have plenty of visibility. Another advantage is the pleasant weather, which is ideal for skiing.
Formula One is a motorsport series held on a national level. Also known as the most popular sport on the planet. Every week, more than 200 countries tune in to see the world's best drivers compete on the track. In Spain, it is a very common sport.
Let’s learn the Spanish for each sport and how to pronounce them!
Fact: Most sports in Spanish are masculine nouns, so remembering the genders shouldn't be too difficult.
In the video below, learn more about the vocabulary of sports in Spanish! Click below to see more:
The terms for the people who participate in most sports fall into one of two categories:
Ending in “-ista” for both male and female.
– El futbolista
– La futbolista
Other words ending in “-ista”:
Ending in “-or” for male and “-ora” for female:
Let’s learn the verbs and actions!
To say that you participate in one of the sports, use the verb jugar followed by the preposition a and the sport's name. Jugar is an u → ue stem-changing verb in the present tense. This translates to the following conjugations:
Juego → I play
Juegas → You play
Juega → He/she plays
Jugamos → We play
Jugáis → You guys play
Juegan → They play
Only the yo form of jugar, conjugated as yo jugué, is irregular in the preterite tense.
Look at the examples below of how to use it in the context:
Juegan al fútbol en el parque todos los días. — Every day, they play soccer in the park.
Jugué al tenis ayer por un rato. — I played tennis for a while yesterday.
Where do we play sports? Keep in mind after you say what sport you play, you need to know where you play them (location/place).
If you were to say you're in one of these places, then you need to use the verb estar.
La cancha — Field/Court
In English, whether you play it on a field or court, you're probably playing it on a cancha in Spanish. Is this a soccer field? La cancha de fútbol. Is it a basketball court? La cancha de baloncesto.
La pista — Track/Rink
Pista is a flexible term that typically refers to a track or rink. In Spain, the term la pista de tenis can be used to refer to a tennis court, but in Latin America, the term la cancha de tenis is preferred.
La piscina — Pool
This is the most common way to refer to a swimming pool, which can be either interior (indoors) or al aire libre (outdoors).
Here are several more sports venues:
El campo de golf — Golf course
El estadio — Stadium
El gimnasio — Gym
In the video below, learn more about the phrases and how to use them in a sentence!
Beginner
Task 1 - Match the correct word for Spanish.
Task 2 - Complete the sentences about what you like and dislike choosing the sports above in the table.
Me gusta ___________________________________________________________
Me no gusta _________________________________________________________
Me encanta _________________________________________________________
Detesto ____________________________________________________________
Task 3 - Translate the sentences to English.
Me gusta la danza - ___________________________________________________
Detesto el tenis - _____________________________________________________
Here is a word search activity to download:
Here is a crossword activity to download:
Intermediate
Task 1 - Match the correct sports from Spanish to English. The first one has been done for you.
Task 2 - ¿Qué deportes practicas? - What sports do you do? Hago… Juego…
Practice writing 4 of your own sentences using hago and juego.
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
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Here is a crossword activity to download:
In this worksheet, you will need to match the correct word for each sport!
Advanced
Task 1 - Unscramble and correct the words. Then write what it means in English.
A) estolonElbac = ____________________________________________
B) Lanionatac = _____________________________________________
C) mpinisElalo = _____________________________________________
D) marElsubimonis = __________________________________________
E) Litacionaequ = ____________________________________________
F) gimnLaasia = _____________________________________________
G) aismElparadico = ___________________________________________
H) Elbolfut = _________________________________________________
Task 2 - Translate these sentences into English.
1) Me gusta jugar al fútbol con mi equipo porque es competitivo.
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2) Me encanta la natación porque es relajante y tranquila.
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3) Soy una persona deportista y, por eso, practico muchos deportes.
____________________________________________________________________
4) Prefiero jugar al baloncesto porque es muy emocionante.
____________________________________________________________________
5) En mi tiempo libre, me gusta ver los partidos de fútbol en la televisión.
____________________________________________________________________
In this powerpoint, you will be able to learn more about giving an extended opinions on sports
Complete the activity! No cheating!