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Learn English Through Football Podcast: Business End of the Season
In this week’s football-language podcast we look at some phrases connected to the expression, ‘business end of the season’ as we only have a few weeks left of the season. We will also look at some predictions from the upcoming Premier League games this weekend including the big title decider in England, the Copa del Rey final and the Merseyside derby. And we will also be answering some of your football-language questions. You can read the transcript for this podcast below, while you can also check out our glossary of footballing phrases here and visit our site to access all our previous posts and podcasts. If you have any suggestions or questions about the phrase or our podcast then you can contact us here.
Hello
DB: You’re listening to the Learn English through Football Podcast.
DB: Hi everyone. I hope you are well. My name is Damon, and I am based in a beautiful, sunny Japan. I managed to get a bit of time in the mountains. I wonder how Damian, the other half of the team is doing?
DF: Hello Damon and hello everyone. I hope you are all doing well and that you are enjoying all the football; a big week of Champions League football indeed! Apologies for missing last week’s podcast. I was in Rome in Italy. In fact, I was supposed to see Roma play against Pisa but my flight was cancelled so I missed out on a trip to the Stadio Olimpico – what a pity! But well done to Roma and their fans though as they won 3-0.
DB: That’ s a real shame missing out on the opportunity to go to the Stadio Olimpico. I hope you managed to enjoy the non-footballing side of Roma though!
DF: Now, we are really into the business end of the season! Do you remember what this phrase means and when we use it? It does of course refer to the most important part of the season where things are decided: the champions; European qualification; promotion and relegation. How is your favourite team doing? Are they involved in a title race or a relegation battle? My team Tottenham are very much in a relegation battle after losing yet another game last weekend. Spurs are now in the bottom three which means they are in the relegation spots (or places) and there is a good chance for them to go down to the Championship next season! I thought we might get a new manager bounce after the appointment of Roberto de Zerbi but so far this has not happened!
DB: Yes, Tottenham seem to be in a bit of a slump in form, just at the wrong time in the season! Surely Spurs are too big to go down though!
Stinger: You are listening to the Learn English Through Football Podcast.com (in Arabic)
DF: And thanks for that message, which was in Arabic. And we’re going to have more messages like that throughout the show. And how many of these languages will you be able to recognise? We’ll have the answers at the end of the show. Now Damon, what else do we have on the podcast today?
Today’s Show
DB: Well Damian, we are going to take a look at some phrases connected to the business end of the season, that is, words and phrases linked to winning titles, qualifying for next season’s European competitions, winning promotion and getting relegated. We’ll be explaining ‘title race‘; ‘‘relegation battle‘ and ‘automatic promotion‘. We also have some predictions for some of the big games at the weekend, including the Merseyside derby and the big Premier League showdown between Manchester City and Arsenal.
Stinger: You are listening to the Learn English Through Football Podcast.com (in Spanish)
DF: OK, what language do you think that was? And if you can, send us a message like that saying, ‘You are listening to the Learn English Through Football Podcast‘ in your language, or maybe you could add your name and which team you support as well. We’d be really happy to hear from you. Just record your short message and send it on to contact@learnenglishthroughfootball.com.
Stinger: You are listening to the Learn English Through Football Podcast.com (in Hungarian)
DB: Right, as we said, let’s take a look at the business end of the season with Damian.
Title Race
DF: OK, as we have mentioned at the start of the show we are in the business end of the season so there are lots of things to be decided over the next couple of weeks. We are going to start with a look at the big top-of-the-table clash this weekend in the Premier League between Manchester City and Arsenal. The Gunners are six points clear but if City were to win on Sunday this gap would be down to three points. And City have a game in hand which means that both teams have their fate in their own hands. Both teams if they win all their games can still win the title.
And this is the first time in a few years that there has been a real fight for the title in England; so we can use the phrase, ‘title race‘ to describe this fight. It is a race between two teams to see which of them will become champions. Which of City or Arsenal do you think will win the Premier League title race?
Stinger: You are listening to languagecaster.com (in Chinese)
Relegation Battle
DB: Now at the other end of the table, at the bottom of the Premier League, three clubs are in real danger of taking the last relegation place (Burnley (20 pts) and Wolves (17 pts) look almost certain to go down). Tottenham currently sit 18th with 30 points, in the relegation zone and two points from safety, while West Ham (32 pts) and Nottingham Forest (33 pts) are just above them. We call this a relegation battle, a tense struggle where every point could decide who stays up and who goes down.
Automatic Promotion
DB: Another phrase used in the business end of the season is automatic promotion. In the Championship, Coventry City have already secured automatic promotion. They’re top of the table with 86 points and will be promoted to the Premier League without any play off matches. Their promotion is automatic. Chasing them, are Ipswich Town on 75 points, who are just ahead of Millwall (73 pts) and Middlesbrough (72 pts), all fighting for that second automatic slot. The phrase‘automatic promotion’ means a club moves up without the need for playoff matches.
Stinger: You are listening to languagecaster.com (in Welsh)
Predictions
DB: Right, let’s turn our attention to predictions and we’ve got some cracking games to look at. Damian?
Copa del Rey final: Atlético Madrid vs Real Sociedad
DF: Right, let’s start with the big game in Spain this weekend. It is the King’s Cup final – Copa del Rey – and this season it sees Atlético Madrid take on Real Sociedad. The Madrid side have not won this trophy since 2012, while the team from San Sebastian last won it in 2020. I think Atlético have hit form and they will be lifted by their win over Barcelona in the Champions League this week. So, I am going for a 2-1 Atlético win.
DB: I agree with you Damian. Atletci will be buoyed by their Champions League win over Barcelona and I think will win this game 2-0.
Premier League: Everton vs Liverpool
DF: This season’s Merseyside derby between Everton and Liverpool is a big one and not just because it is the first time they will face each other in Everton’s new stadium for the first time. Everton are pushing for a Champions League spot next season so they will be looking to beat Liverpool who are ony a couple of places above them in 5th place. I think this will be a 1-1 draw.
DB: I absolutely hate the derby as a Liverpool fan. Recently, it’s been a struggle against Everton at their place, and as you said, this is the first Merseyside derby at their new stadium. I’m hoping my team Liverpool can spoil the party, and I think they will A 2-1 win for the Reds, with a late winner!
Premier League: Manchester City vs Arsenal
DF: OK, the big title showdown on Sunday? City are definitely in form but Arsenal have the points. I think City will win this one 2-0 and they will keep the pressure on the Gunners.
DB: I agree. I think Arsenal will go with the idea of getting a point and will try to frustrate Man City. But you don’t want to allow City to keep the ball and play around the box, especially with playmaker, Cherki, hitting form now. Maybe a 1-0 win to City.
Stinger: You are listening to languagecaster.com (in German).
DF: What do you think of our predictions? Let us know by coming along to the forum on our site. Maybe you can give one or two predictions from games that you are watching this weekend there as well?
Now, we have also recently had questions and comments on phrases there. And we are also organising all of the words and phrases in the forum into one post. So, go along and find out more about these and many more phrases there. It’s a great place to practise using football words and phrases.
And don’t forget to come along to any of our social media sites – you can find us on Facebook; YouTube; Instagram and many more.
Contact
DB: And remember, our website also has a huge glossary with hundreds and hundreds of football terms, expressions, phrases and clichés about the beautiful game of football. Please tell all your friends about us and give us ‘a like’ or a recommendation on your favourite podcast or social media platform!
Stinger: You are listening to languagecaster.com (in Polish)
DB: Yes, that message was in Polish. We have also heard messages in, at the start Arabic, followed by Spanish, Hungarian, Chinese, Welsh, German, and Polish. Well done if you recognised any of those languages and we’d love to hear from you if you’d like to record a message in any language that you know.
Goodbye
DB: Thank you everyone for listening. This week we have looked at the phrases, ‘title race‘; ‘automatic promotion‘ and ‘relegation battle‘. Do you know any other words and phrases linked to these words? How about in another language that you know? You can get in contact with us if you have another football phrase or term you’d like us to explain – drop us a line and say hello!
Enjoy all the football this weekend. And we’ll be back with another football expression early next week. Until then, ta-ra!
DF: Bye!
