How to Talk Sports in French

Are you that fan of European sports who gets up in the wee hours to watch games in France? If you just love sports in general or simply want to know more about talking sports in French, we've got you covered.

We have the names of the sports, the verbs to use with each, and the terms for players (usually with both masculine and feminine forms), equipment, and playing fields. It's a long, useful list, so buckle up.

Note that we discuss exceptionally popular French sports like soccer, tennis, and cycling elsewhere on their own pages.

Many of the words below are linked to audio files. Simply click on the link to hear the correct pronunciation and then repeat it a few times to commit it to memory.

Names of Sports (Noms de sports)

Note that, in many instances, the French and English words are nearly identical.

archery	le tir à l'arc
baseball	le base-ball
basketball (specific terms below)	le basket
biking or cycling	le cyclisme
boxing	la boxe
diving	la plongée
fishing	la pêche
football	le football américain
golf (specific terms below)	le golf
(ice) hockey (specific terms below)	le hockey (sur glace)
jogging	le jogging
sailing	la voile
skating	le patinage
rollerskating	le patin à roulettes or le skating
skiing (specific terms below)	le ski
cross-country skiing	le ski de randonnée or le ski de fond
downhill skiing	le ski de descente or le ski de piste
water skiing	le ski nautique
soccer	le foot(ball)
swimming	la natation
tennis	le tennis
volleyball	le volley(ball)
wrestling	la lutte

The French Verbs Used With Sports

In French, playing or doing sports is normally expressed with jouer au or faire.

Sports That Use Jouer au

1. Jouer au ("to play"): Just add the name of the sport after the verb, like this:

• to play golf > jouer au golf
• to play hockey > jouer au hockey

to play...	jouer au...
baseball	base-ball
basketball	basket
soccer	foot(ball)
football	football américain
golf	golf
hockey	hockey
tennis	tennis
volleyball	volley(ball)

Sports That Use Faire

2. Faire ("to do"): The verb is usually followed by de + article + noun, like this:

• to swim > faire de la natation
• to do archery >  faire du tir à l'arc

​There are exceptions where just the noun is used, without the partitive and article. For example:

• to hike > faire une randonnée

Some sports also have their own verb, which is a one-word verb form of the noun. Those are listed in the right-hand column below. For example:

• to wrestle > faire de la lutte or lutter

Notice that le golf can use either jouer au or faire and is on both lists.

to do...	faire...	or this
to box	de la boxe	boxer
to ride a horse	du cheval
to bike	du cyclisme or monter sur bicyclette	rouler
to golf	du golf
to jog	du jogging
to wrestle	de la lutte	lutter
to swim	de la natation	nager
to skate	du patin(age)	patiner
to inline skate	du patin à roulettes or du skating
to dive	de la plongée	plonger
to ski	du ski	skier
to downhill ski	du ski de descente or du ski de piste
to cross country ski	du ski de randonnée or du ski de fond
to water ski	du ski nautique
to shoot archery	du tir à l'arc
to sail	de la voile
to hike	une randonnée

Anomaly: la Pêche Uses Aller

But, la pêche uses neither of these verbs and goes on a separate list with aller, as in aller à la pêche ("to go fishing"), or it's used with its own verb pêcher ("to fish").

to go...	aller...	or this
to go fishing	à la pêche	pêcher

Basketball (Le Basket)

If you like basketball, you'll enjoy learning essential basketball terms. You can practice these words while playing or watching your teams. Learning a language is like sports: The more you practice, the better you get.

Basketball Team

basketball team	équipe de basket
basketball player	basketteur (m) or basktteuse (f)
guard	arrière
offensive player	attaquant
jumper	sauteur

Basketball Equipment 

equipment	matériel
basketball	ballon de basket
court	terrain de jeu
basket	panier
opponent's basket	panier adverse
rim, ring	anneau
backboard	panneau

Basketball Action

to catch the ball	attraper le ballon
to block	bloquer
to dribble	dribbler
to steal the ball	intercepter le ballon
to handle the ball	manier le ballon
to guard a player	marquer un joueur
to pass	passer

Golf (Le Golf)

You could practice this vocabulary the next time you hit the links.

Golf Players

golfer	joueur de golf or golfeur (m) joeuse de golf or golfeuse (f)
foursome	quatuor

The Golf Course

golf course	terrain / parcours de golf
greens fee	droit de jeu
driving range	terrain d'exercice
fairway	allée
grass bunker	fosse d'herbe
sand trap	fosse de sable
waste bunker	fosse naturelle
water hazard	obstacle d'eau
green	vert
hole	trou

Golf Equipment 

equipment	matériel
golf bag	sac de golf
caddie	cadet(te)
cart	chariot, voiturette de golf
golf ball	balle de golf
ball marker	repère
golf glove	gant de golf
set of clubs	jeu de bâtons de golf
golf club	club, crosse, canne (de golf)
wood	bois
iron	fer
driver	bois n° 1
pitching wedge	cocheur d'allée
sand wedge	cocheur de sable
putter	fer droit

Golf Action

to golf	faire du golf or jouer au golf
tee	té
tee marker	jalon de départ
handicap	handicap
golf stroke	coup de golf
swing	élan
backswing	montée
half swing	demi-élan
chip	approche roulé
pitch	approche lobé
divot	motte de gazon

The Golf Score

score card	carte de pointage
par	normale
birdie	oiselet
bogey	boguey
double bogey	boguey double
eagle	aigle
double eagle	albatros
hole in one	trou d'un coup

The Golf Ball

ball trajectory	trajectoire de balle
hook	crochet de gauche
slice	crochet de droite
draw	léger crochet de gauche
fade	léger crochet de droite

Hockey (Le Hockey)

Ice hockey, a popular sport in French-speaking Canada and elsewhere, has a special set of terms.

Notice that when we speak of hockey players, French-speaking Canadians tend to use a different word than the French do. Both terms will be understood in both countries.

Hockey Players

hockey player	hockeyeur/euse (France) joueur/euse de hockey (Canada)
goalie	gardien de but
opponent	adversaire

The Hockey Rink 

rink	patinoire
goal	but or cage
goal crease	territoire de but

Hockey Equipment

equipment	matériel
hockey stick	crosse de hockey
puck	palet
helmet	casque protecteur
face mask	protecteur facial
glove	gant
skate	patin

Hockey Action

to play hockey	jouer au hockey
to check	mettre en échec
to clear the puck	dégager le palet
to score a goal	marquer un but
to shoot	lancer or tirer

Skiing (Le Ski)

Skiing is another popular sport in many French-speaking countries.

Types of Skiing and Skiers

to ski	faire du ski or skier
cross-country skiing	ski de fond
downhill skiing	ski de descente or ski aval
cross-country skier	skieur de fond or fondeur
downhill skier	descendeur
forerunner	ouvreur de piste
freestyle	libre
classical	classique
jumping	saut
downhill	descente
giant slalom	slalom géant
slalom	slalom
super-G	super géant

Skiing Equipment

equipment	matériel
hat	bonnet
headband	serre-tête or bandeau
goggles	lunettes
glove	gant
ski pole	bâton de ski
skis	skis
boot	chaussure
coverboot	surchaussure
binding	fixation

On the Hill

ski course	parcours de ski
trail	piste
marked course	piste balisée
hill	tremplin or piste de saut
start platform	plate-forme de départ
length of the trail	longueur de la piste
flag	fanion or drapeau
jump	tremplin
mogul	bosse
finish time	temps à l'arrivée
control point	poste de contrôle
gate	porte