---
title: "Football Glossary - Free Resource"
url: https://thepehub.co.uk/free-content/resources/football-glossary-114/
description: "A Glossary of key football vocabulary - Free downloadable PDF resource"
---

# Football Glossary

## Download Resource PDF

[Download Now](https://media-prod.pehub.eject.pro/cms-sync/cG9zdDoxNzk2MTM3)

This glossary is our full guide to key hockey vocabulary and tennis terminology. Available as a downloadable PDF you can print and stick on a wall.

**Attacking team –** The team with possession of the ball in a game.

**Centre circle –** A 10m circle that goes around the **centre spot.** Only two players from the team taking the **kick-off** are allowed inside the centre circle during a kick-off.

**Centre spot –** A small spot in the centre of the pitch, where all **kick-offs** are taken at the start of each half or after a goal is scored.

**Channel –** The name given to the areas next to the two **touchlines**. **Defenders** can try to force the ball into a channel, while an attacker might attack a channel to **cross** a ball towards the goal. 

**Chip shot/Pass –** A kick that lifts the ball to go over an opponent.

**Corner kick –** A kick taken by an attacking team from the corner of the pitch. It is awarded when the ball goes behind the **goal line** on either side of the goal, having touched a defending team’s player last.

**Counterattack –** When the defending team wins possession and launches an attack quickly before the other team can get back to defend.

**Covering defender –** A player who stays behind teammates when defending. Their job is to cover across and pressure opponents who get past other defenders before they can shoot. 

**Cross –** A ball played across a goal from a wide position by the **attacking team.**

**Cushioning/trapping the ball –** A way of stopping and controlling a ball passed to a player. A ball can be cushioned using the foot, thigh, or chest. A cushioned ball should finish in front of the player, who can then pass, dribble or shoot.

**Defender –** A player on a team whose job is to stop the opposition from goal-scoring. They stay closer to their own goal and do not usually join attacks with their team.

**Defending team –** The team that does not have possession of the ball.

**Dribbling** – An individual player moving around the pitch whilst maintaining possession of the ball by keeping it close to their feet.

**Far post –** The goal post that is furthest away from where the ball is positioned and often used to describe where a player is stood when attacking a **cross**.

**Formations –** How the players of each team are organised and positioned when playing. Each position has a different role on the pitch. The positions include **goalkeeper**, **defender**, **midfielder** and **striker**.

**Foul –** When a player commits an offence of the rules of football. A foul results in the other team getting a **free kick** at the spot of the foul. A penalty kick is awarded if the foul is committed in the penalty area.

![A player shooting a football](https://media-prod.pehub.eject.pro/attack-defend-shoot.png)

**Free kick –** A kick taken with a stationary ball by a player after a **foul** is committed. The team who committed the foul must be a set distance away from the free kick when it is taken.

**Goalkeeper –** A position on a football team. There is only one goalkeeper on each team. A goalkeeper defends a team’s own goal. They are the only player allowed to handle the ball but can only do so inside the **penalty area**. 

**Goal kick –** A kick taken from inside the **penalty area**, usually by a **goalkeeper**. It is awarded when the ball goes behind the **goal line** on either side of the goal, having touched an attacking team’s player last.

**Goal line** – The boundary line that runs along the width at either end of the pitch. The goals sit on this line, and for a goal to be awarded, the ball must cross fully over the line between the goalposts. If the ball crosses the goal line on either side of the goal, a **goal kick** or **corner** will be awarded, depending on who touched the ball last.

**Goalside** – A tactic when marking as a **defender**. The defender keeps themselves between their opponent and their own goal to block their path towards the goal.  

**Halfway line –** A line that goes across the width of the pitch exactly halfway between each **goal line.**

**Kick-off –** How a game is (re)started in football. It involves the ball being kicked from the **centre spot** by a player. One team starts the first half with a kick-off, whilst the other team kicks off the second half. After each goal, the team that conceded the goal restarts the game with a kick-off.

**Linesman –** An official who stays on a **touchline** and helps the **referee** officiate a game.

**Marking –** A defensive tactic where players are organised in positions to try and stop an attacking team and get possession from them. It involves a **defender** staying close to an opponent to limit their space and make it easier to intercept a pass.

**Midfielder -** A player on a team whose job is to link the **defenders** and the **attackers** of a team. They move between each **penalty area**. They help defenders to block the goal when **defending** and move the ball forward to attackers when **attacking**.

**Near Post –** The goal post that is closest to where the ball is positioned. Often used to describe where a player is stood when attacking a **cross**.

**Offside –** A situation where an **attacker** does not have at least two defenders between themselves and the goal they are attacking when receiving a pass. It results in a **free-kick** being awarded to the **defending** team.

**Penalty area/box –** A rectangular box that comes out from the **goal line** at either end surrounding the goal. A **goalkeeper** is allowed to handle the ball within the penalty area, and any **foul** of an **attacking** player inside the penalty area leads to awarding a **penalty kick**.

**Penalty spot –** A spot marked in the **penalty area** where a **penalty kick** is taken from.

**Penalty kick - is** awarded when a **foul** is committed against an **attacking** player inside the **penalty box**. No other player except the **goalkeeper** and penalty taker is allowed inside the box until the kick has been taken.

**Referee –** The official in charge of a game of football. They are helped by two **linesmen**.

**Striker -** A player on a team whose job is to attack with the ball and score goals. They stay near the opponent's **penalty area** in the best position to try and shoot when they receive the ball.

**Throw-In –** When the ball goes off the pitch off the **touchlines,** the ball is reintroduced to the pitch by a throw-in. This involves being thrown overhead by a player from behind the touchline where the ball went off the pitch. Whichever team touches the ball before it goes off the pitch, the other team take the throw-in.

**Touchlines –** The boundary lines that run perpendicular to the **goal lines** on either side of the pitch. Each touchline has a **linesman** that operates along it to assist the **referee**. A throw-in is awarded if the ball goes off the pitch over a touchline.

**Volley –** When a ball is kicked by a player in the air before it bounces on the floor.

**Winger – Attacking** players who stay wide on the pitch. They operate near the **touchlines,** and their job is to dribble the ball close to the **goal line** before **crossing** it for an **attacker** to try and score.

##  Other Resources You May Find Helpful

- [Hockey Safety](https://thepehub.co.uk/free-content/resources/hockey-safety-921/)
- [Football Rules](https://thepehub.co.uk/free-content/resources/football-rules-105/)