Competition & Football Vocabulary

Vocabulary flashcards covering common competitive and football-related phrases.

set the pace

Establish the speed or standard for others to follow.

forge ahead (with sth)

Make strong progress.

slip up

Make a careless mistake.

take some beating

Be very good and hard to defeat.

gain ground (on sb/sth)

Get closer to catching up or winning.

have sth up your sleeve

Have a secret plan or idea.

tip the balance (in sb’s favour)

Make something change to help someone win.

come out on top

Be more successful than everyone else.

in the balance

Uncertain, could go either way.

give your all

Put in maximum effort.

come down to sth

Be decided by one main factor.

a dream come true

Something you’ve wanted for a long time becomes real.

pay the price (for doing sth)

Suffer because of your actions.

pull (sth) off

Succeed in something difficult.

look back (on sth)

Think about something from the past.

on the bench

Not playing, but available as a substitute.

gamble on sth/sb

Take a risk hoping it will work.

pay off

Bring good results after effort or risk.

brush sb/sth aside

Treat something as unimportant.

hit back

Respond strongly to an attack.

in contention (for sth)

Having a chance to win.

rain off (sth)

Cancel because of rain.

a long way to go

A lot of progress still needed.

let sb off the hook

Let someone escape trouble or blame.

go all out for sth

Make a great effort to achieve something.

within striking distance (of sth)

Close enough to achieve it.

fight back

Try hard to resist or recover from a setback.

hold your own (against sb/sth)

Compete successfully.

come off worse

Suffer more harm than others.

be out of the running (for sth)

No longer have a chance to win.

lose the plot

Stop thinking clearly or lose focus.