The most popular sports in France| Inspire Academy Online

Discover the most popular sports activities among the French.

FOOTBALL

Football is a collective sport which is mainly played on the foot with a spherical ball. He opposes two teams of eleven players in a stadium, whether on a grassy field or on a floor.

Some vocabulary :

Equipe adverse : Opponent team
Entraîneur : Coach
Remplaçant : Substitute
Meneur de jeu : Playmaker
Gardien de but : Goalkeeper
Défenseur : Defender
Arrière centre : Center back
Attaquant / avant : Forward
Avant-centre : Center forward
Buteur : Striker
Milieu de terrain : midfielder

TENNIS

Tennis is a racket sport that pits either two players or four players into two teams of two. Players use a racket strung vertically and horizontally.

Some vocabulary :

Ace : Service gagnant

Advantage : Avantage

All : égalité partout

Alley / tramlines : le couloir

Allow a suspension (to) : accorder un arrêt de jeu

Backhand : revers

Ball Boy/Girl : Ramasseur/ramasseuse de balles

Baseline : ligne de fond

Break point : balle de break

Broken service : service perdu

Chair umpire : arbitre de chaise

Come up to the net (to) : monter au filet

EQUITATION

Horse riding is the technique of driving a horse under human action. It can be practiced as an art, a hobby or a sport. In this discipline, the human being relies on the use of an equine, most often a horse or a pony.

Some vocabulary :

Equitation : Horse riding

Sports équestres : Equestrian sports

Centres équestres : Riding school

Cheval : Horse

Cavalier : Horse rider

Cavalier (ière) : Horseman (woman)

Cavalier d’obstacle : showjumper

Cavalier de dressage : Training rider

Cavalier de complet : Three day event rider

Maréchal-ferrant : Farrier, Blacksmith

JUDO

Judo was created as a physical, mental and moral pedagogy in Japan by Jigorō Kanō in 1882. It is generally categorized as a modern martial art, which later evolved into combat sport and Olympic sport.

Some vocabulary :

ceinture (obi) : belt
dojo (salle de judo) : practice hall/training hall
judogi / tenue de judo : judo costume/ suit
marque blanche : white marker
surface de combat : contest area
tatami (tapis) : mat
ceinture blanche : white belt
ceinture bleue : blue belt
ceinture jaune : yellow belt
ceinture marron : brown belt
ceinture noire : black belt

BASKET BALL

Basketball or basketball, frequently designated in French by its abbreviation basketball, is a collective sport opposing two teams of five players on a rectangular field.

Some vocabulary :

Out of bounds ! : Sortie !
A free throw : lancer franc
A three-point goal : un tir à 3 points
To score a point : marquer un point
To shoot : tirer au panier
To dribble : dribbler
The rim : l’anneau du panier
The free throw line : la raquette
The hoop : le panier
A lane : un couloir

RUGBY

Rugby XV, also called rugby union in English-speaking countries, which is played in teams of fifteen players on the field with substitutes, is the most practiced variant of rugby.

Some vocabulary :