Tor! Goal! But! The UEFA Football Dictionary Arrives

UEFA has just released a tri-lingual pocket football dictionary with common football phrases in German, English and French. Titled “Praxiswörterbuch Fußball,” the dictionary apparently has over 1,800 terms.

“These are official terms used by UEFA and the world football body FIFA, as well as terms favoured by professionals and ordinary fans in everyday football life,” says UEFA’s website.

Think it’s safe to assume that terms for abusing oppositions fans are not included, but seems the book still contains some interesting phrases. For example, Real Madrid backup keeper Jerzy Dudek might like to know that he’s missing out on Euro 2008 because in English he’s a “benchwarmer,” but in German he’s a “bankdruecker,” and in French he’s an “eternel remplacant.”

Similarly, David Seaman might be interested to learn that Nayim beat him from the halfway line (below) with a “looping shot” in English, but a “bogenlampe” in German and a “tir en cloche” in French.

Useful phrases indeed, should you ever meet either of these two keepers and feel the need to annoy them tri-lingually.

Of course, that’s not what the dictionary is intended for. “It’s primarily to help the sport’s administrators and perhaps coaches such as Ottmar Hitzfeld who will be taking over the Switzerland team later this year with no real knowledge of French,” UEFA’s head of language services Florian Simmen told Reuters.

Which would be fine and dandy if Simmen hadn’t followed that comment with this sexist bombshell: “But it is also available in normal bookstores so any women who want to really impress their husbands during Euro 2008 should definitely think about buying it.” Oh dear.

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Category: World Football