Soccer—or football, as it’s known to billions around the globe—is more than just a game. It’s a world of passion, strategy, and high-stakes drama that has captured the hearts of fans everywhere. This excitement has kicked its way into our everyday language, giving us a rich playbook of idioms. An idiom is a common phrase with a figurative meaning that isn’t obvious from the literal words. When you “move the goalposts,” you’re not physically touching a soccer net—you’re unfairly changing the rules of a situation! This article will explore 40 energetic idioms from the world of soccer, helping you express yourself with the skill and flair of a star player.
Why We Use Idioms in Art and Language
Idioms add color, personality, and a sense of shared culture to our language. In art and literature, they are a powerful shorthand for complex ideas and emotions. Describing a character who “scores an own goal” instantly communicates a self-defeating action without a long explanation. These expressions make dialogue feel authentic and descriptions more imaginative, creating a quick and powerful connection with the audience through the shared, exciting language of sports.
40+ Energetic Idioms from the Soccer Pitch
Here is a list of idioms to help you talk about life, work, and relationships with a sporty twist.
Gameplay and Strategy
1. To Move the Goalposts
- Meaning: To unfairly change the rules or conditions of a situation while it is in progress.
- Usage Example: “We were about to sign the contract, but the client moved the goalposts and asked for a lower price.”
- This idiom perfectly captures the frustration of having the criteria for success changed at the last minute.
2. To Keep Your Eye on the Ball
- Meaning: To stay focused on the most important thing and not get distracted.
- Usage Example: “There are many small issues, but we need to keep our eye on the ball, which is finishing the project on time.”
- This is a fundamental piece of advice for any player in a ball game and is now common in business and life.
3. To Get the Ball Rolling
- Meaning: To start a process or activity.
- Usage Example: “Let’s get the ball rolling on this meeting with a quick introduction from everyone.”
- This idiom uses the image of the first kick of a ball to signify the start of an action.
4. To Kick Something Off
- Meaning: To begin an event, often with an energetic or special action.
- Usage Example: “The festival will kick off with a performance by a famous local band.”
- This phrase comes directly from the “kick-off,” the formal start of a soccer match.
5. To Be on the Ball
- Meaning: To be alert, knowledgeable, and quick to react.
- Usage Example: “Our new assistant is really on the ball; she anticipates every need before we even ask.”
- This idiom suggests a person is as focused and ready as a player who is in control of the ball.
6. A Game of Two Halves
- Meaning: A situation that changes completely from one period to the next.
- Usage Example: “The first year of the business was difficult, but the second year was a huge success. It was a real game of two halves.”
- This is a very common phrase used by sports commentators that has moved into everyday speech, especially in the UK.
7. To Watch from the Sidelines
- Meaning: To be an observer in a situation, without being actively involved.
- Usage Example: “He wanted to help with the project, but he was forced to watch from the sidelines as the new team took over.”
- The “sidelines” are the lines at the side of the pitch where non-players (like coaches and substitutes) stand.
8. To Level the Playing Field
- Meaning: To make a situation fair and equal for everyone involved.
- Usage Example: “New government regulations were introduced to level the playing field for small businesses.”
- This idiom uses the idea of a flat, even sports field to describe a fair competitive environment.
9. A Political Football
- Meaning: A controversial issue that politicians from different parties argue about for political advantage, without resolving it.
- Usage Example: “Healthcare reform has become a political football that is endlessly debated but never fixed.”
- This phrase describes an issue being “kicked back and forth” between opposing sides.
Scoring, Winning, and Losing
10. To Score an Own Goal
- Meaning: To do something that inadvertently harms your own interests instead of helping them.
- Usage Example: “He tried to criticize his opponent, but he got his facts wrong and ended up scoring an own goal.”
- In soccer, an “own goal” is when a player accidentally scores against their own team, which is a disastrous mistake.
11. To Know the Score
- Meaning: To understand the true reality of a situation.
- Usage Example: “Don’t try to fool her with excuses; she’s been a manager for 20 years and she knows the score.”
- This idiom uses the most important fact in a game (the score) to mean the essential facts of any situation.
12. To Hit the Back of the Net
- Meaning: To score a goal or achieve a great success.
- Usage Example: “After months of hard work, she finally hit the back of the net with her new product launch.”
- This is a very common and enthusiastic phrase used by soccer commentators to describe a goal being scored.
13. To Blow the Whistle on Someone
- Meaning: To report an illegal or improper activity to the authorities.
- Usage Example: “The accountant decided to blow the whistle on the company’s fraudulent practices.”
- This idiom comes from the referee’s whistle, which is blown to stop play when a rule is broken.
14. A Game Changer
- Meaning: An event, idea, or person that completely changes a situation.
- Usage Example: “The new smartphone was a real game changer for the industry.”
- This phrase is used to describe something that fundamentally alters the “game” or situation.
15. A Hat-Trick
- Meaning: To achieve three successes in a row.
- Usage Example: “The company won three major awards in one night, a real hat-trick for the CEO.”
- In soccer, a “hat-trick” is when a single player scores three goals in one game.
Player Roles and Actions
16. A Team Player
- Meaning: A person who works well as a member of a team, prioritizing group success over personal glory.
- Usage Example: “She’s a great colleague, always willing to help others. She’s a true team player.”
- This is a very common and positive term used in business and professional environments.
17. A Safe Pair of Hands
- Meaning: A person who is reliable, trustworthy, and can be depended upon to do a job well.
- Usage Example: “Leave the project with the senior manager; she’s a safe pair of hands.”
- This idiom comes from the description of a skilled goalkeeper who can be trusted to catch the ball safely.
18. To Take an Early Bath
- Meaning: To be forced to leave a game or activity early due to a mistake or poor performance.
- Usage Example: “The player was shown a red card and had to take an early bath.”
- This British idiom literally refers to a player being sent off and heading to the showers (the “bath”) before the game is over.
19. To Be on the Bench
- Meaning: To be temporarily removed from your usual active role.
- Usage Example: “After the project failed, the manager was on the bench for a few months.”
- In soccer, players “on the bench” are substitutes who are not currently playing in the game.
20. To Be Relegated
- Meaning: To be moved to a lower position or rank.
- Usage Example: “When the company downsized, his department was relegated to a smaller office in the basement.”
- In many soccer leagues, the worst-performing teams are “relegated” to a lower division at the end of the season.
British Football Slang
21. To Be Sick as a Parrot
- Meaning: To be extremely disappointed and unhappy.
- Usage Example: “He was sick as a parrot after his team lost the final in the last minute.”
- This is a very famous and popular idiom in British football slang, often used by players and managers in interviews.
22. To Be Over the Moon
- Meaning: To be extremely happy and delighted.
- Usage Example: “She was over the moon when she was chosen as the new team captain.”
- While used generally, this phrase is particularly popular in British football culture to describe the joy of a victory.
23. To Park the Bus
- Meaning: To play in a very defensive way, with the sole aim of not letting the other team score.
- Usage Example: “After they scored the first goal, the team decided to park the bus for the rest of the game.”
- This is a modern soccer term used to describe a highly defensive and often criticized strategy.
24. Squeaky-Bum Time
- Meaning: The tense, nerve-wracking final moments of a close game.
- Usage Example: “It’s the 90th minute and the score is tied; it’s real squeaky-bum time now.”
- This humorous phrase was coined by the famous Manchester United manager Sir 25. To Rule the Stars
- Meaning: To have control over one’s own destiny, rather than being governed by fate.
- Usage Example: “The astrologer claimed she could read the future, but the philosopher believed that a wise man could rule his own stars.”
- This phrase is often used to argue against the idea of fate and in favor of free will and personal agency.
26. To Have Stars in One’s Crown
- Meaning: To have many significant achievements or successes to one’s name.
- Usage Example: “After a long and celebrated career, the retiring general had many stars in his crown.”
- This idiom evokes the image of a monarch’s crown decorated with jewels, where each star represents a notable accomplishment.
27. A Constellation of…
- Meaning: A group of related, brilliant, and impressive things or people.
- Usage Example: “The conference featured a constellation of leading scientists from around the world.”
- This is a sophisticated way to describe a group, comparing it to a pattern of bright stars.
28. To Follow Your Star
- Meaning: To follow your destiny or pursue your unique path and purpose in life.
- Usage Example: “Despite his family’s wishes for him to be a doctor, he decided to follow his star and become an artist.”
- This idiom is often used to describe a decision to pursue a personal passion, much like ancient sailors followed a single star to navigate.
29. To Be Lost in the Stars
- Meaning: To be daydreaming, preoccupied, or not paying attention to the present reality.
- Usage Example: “He didn’t hear a word the teacher said; he was completely lost in the stars.”
- This poetic phrase is a more whimsical alternative to “spacing out.”
30. To Have Star Quality
- Meaning: To possess the special, captivating charisma and talent that is characteristic of a famous performer.
- Usage Example: “Even in the school play, it was clear she had that special star quality.”
- This idiom describes an innate “it factor” that makes someone compelling to watch.
31. To Be a Shooting Star
- Meaning: To have a brief but brilliant and spectacular period of success or fame.
- Usage Example: “The band was a shooting star in the 80s; they had one massive hit album and then disappeared.”
- This metaphor compares a person’s fleeting fame to the beautiful but short-lived streak of a meteor.
32. My Stars!
- Meaning: An old-fashioned exclamation of surprise or shock.
- Usage Example: “My stars! I never expected to see you here.”
- This quaint expression, popular in the 18th and 19th centuries, is similar to saying “Oh my goodness!”
33. To Get a Gold Star
- Meaning: To receive praise, approval, or recognition for a good job, often from a person in authority.
- Usage Example: “He got a gold star from the boss for finishing the report ahead of schedule.”
- This idiom comes from the common practice in elementary schools of rewarding good work with a gold star sticker.
34. To Be in the Gutter, But Looking at the Stars
- Meaning: To find hope, beauty, and ambition even when you are in the worst of circumstances.
- Usage Example: “Though he had lost everything, he remained optimistic, proving you can be in the gutter but looking at the stars.”
- This is a famous and powerful quote from the writer Oscar Wilde that has become an idiomatic expression for resilience.
35. The Fault is Not in Our Stars
- Meaning: Our destiny is in our own hands and our choices, not controlled by fate.
- Usage Example: “We can’t just blame bad luck for our failure; the fault is not in our stars, but in ourselves.”
- This is a well-known line from Shakespeare’s play Julius Caesar that argues for free will over destiny.
36. To Be Star-Struck
- Meaning: To be completely overwhelmed with awe and admiration when meeting a famous person.
- Usage Example: “When she met her favorite actor, she was so star-struck that she couldn’t say a word.”
- This idiom vividly describes the feeling of being stunned or dazzled by a celebrity’s presence.
37. To Set One’s Watch by Someone
- Meaning: To rely on someone as being extremely predictable and punctual.
- Usage Example: “He arrives at 8:00 AM every single day; you could set your watch by him.”
- This idiom compares a person’s reliability to the predictable, clockwork movement of the stars and celestial bodies.
38. The Morning Star
- Meaning: A symbol of a new beginning, the dawning of hope, or a herald of light.
- Usage Example: “After the long period of darkness, the rebellion’s first victory was the morning star of a new era.”
- This refers to the planet Venus (or sometimes Mercury), which is the brightest object in the sky just before sunrise.
39. To Have Stars in Your Hair
- Meaning: A poetic and literary way to describe someone as divine, magical, or otherworldly.
- Usage Example: “In the fantasy novel, the elven queen was described as having stars in her hair.”
- This is a highly visual and romantic idiom used to create a sense of wonder and enchantment.
40. To Steer by the Stars
- Meaning: To navigate your life or a situation using your core principles or a guiding purpose.
- Usage Example: “When she was faced with a difficult moral choice, she steered by the stars of her own conscience.”
- This metaphor draws a parallel between ancient sailors using stars for navigation and a person using their values for moral guidance.
- Alex Ferguson.
Practice Your New Vocabulary
Ready to play? 🥅 Fill in the blanks with the best idiom from the list.
Fill in the Blanks
- He made a terrible mistake and knew his actions would only ________________ for his own team.
- She’s the most talented person in the office, truly in a ________________.
- If you want this project to succeed, you have to stay focused and ________________.
- I have given you my final offer. Now the ________________.
- He was furious when the other team unfairly ________________ by changing the rules at the last minute.
- The new intern is so quick and efficient; she is really ________________.
- The manager is incredibly reliable; we all know we’re in ________________ with her.
- I don’t want to cause any trouble, so I’m not going to ________________ at the meeting.
- He was so disappointed after losing the match; he was as ________________.
- To celebrate our victory, let’s all go out and ________________! (Just kidding, sort of!) No, let’s use a soccer one: Let’s celebrate, we really ________________ with that win.
Answers
- score an own goal
- league of their own
- keep your eye on the ball
- ball is in your court
- moved the goalposts
- on the ball
- a safe pair of hands
- watch from the sidelines (or rock the boat)
- sick as a parrot
- hit the back of the net
Conclusion
Idioms from soccer bring the energy, drama, and passion of the beautiful game into our everyday language. They allow us to talk about our own lives—our victories, our defeats, our strategies, and our teamwork—in a way that is dynamic and universally understood. By using these expressions, you can make your conversations and writing more exciting and relatable. We encourage you to get on the ball and use these phrases to score some linguistic goals of your own. If you enjoyed this collection, continue your journey by exploring our other articles on the fascinating world of figurative language!
