Stadium and match day
55 terms · Whole glossary
- Attendance
- The number of spectators at a match.
- Away day
- A trip to watch your team play away.
- Away end
- The separated section for visiting supporters.
- Ball boy
- A helper at the touchline who returns the ball quickly.
- Bus welcome
- The tradition of greeting the team bus at the ground with songs and flares.
- Capacity
- The maximum number of places in a stadium.
- Club anthem
- The song played before kick-off, like “You’ll Never Walk Alone” or “Hala Madrid”.
- Club mascot
- A costumed character who entertains the crowd.
- Curva
- The curved stand behind the goal at Italian grounds and home of the ultras: Curva Sud, Curva Nord.
- Dugout
- The touchline shelter for coaches and substitutes.
- Fan ID
- A personal pass that some countries require to enter a stadium.
- Fan march
- A procession of supporters to the stadium. Also called a corteo.
- Fan zone
- An official area for supporters with screens and entertainment.
- Floodlights
- The stadium lights for evening games.
- Fortress
- A home ground where the team is almost impossible to beat.
- Full-time
- The end of normal time.
- Groundhopping
- The hobby of visiting as many different grounds as possible.
- Half-time
- The 15-minute break between the halves.
- Home advantage
- The edge of playing at home: a familiar pitch, no travel and the crowd behind you.
- Home end
- The stand behind the goal where the most vocal home supporters traditionally gather.
- Hospitality
- VIP seats with catering and service.
- Hybrid pitch
- Natural grass reinforced with synthetic fibres.
- Kick-off time
- The scheduled time of the opening whistle.
- Kit
- A team’s shirt, shorts and socks: home, away and third.
- Kop
- A steep stand behind the goal named after Spion Kop hill; the most famous is Liverpool’s.
- Lap of honour
- Players walking round the pitch after a big win or at the end of the season.
- Line-ups
- The announced starting elevens and substitutes, usually an hour before the game.
- Mascots
- Children who walk out holding the players’ hands.
- Matchday programme
- A booklet for the match with line-ups, articles and stats; a collector’s item.
- Matchday revenue
- A club’s income from tickets, food and merchandise at the ground.
- Matchday ritual
- A fan’s routine before a game: the pub, the walk, the scarf.
- Minute’s applause
- An alternative to silence: a tribute through applause.
- Minute’s silence
- A tribute in memory of someone before kick-off.
- Pitch
- The playing field; the standard size is about 105 × 68 m.
- Pitch invasion
- Fans flooding onto the pitch; forbidden and punished.
- Police escort
- The police escort that takes away fans from the station to the ground.
- Pre-match pub
- The bar where fans gather before the game.
- Press box
- The seats for journalists in the stand.
- Replica shirt
- A copy of the match shirt sold to fans.
- Retro shirt
- A copy of an old kit, popular with fans.
- Safe standing
- Rail-seating sections that bring back standing support without the risk of crushes.
- Scoreboard
- The screen showing score, time and replays.
- Season ticket
- A ticket for every home game of the season.
- Section
- A numbered part of a stand with its own entrance. Also called a block.
- Segregation
- Keeping rival fans apart in and around the stadium.
- Sell-out
- A match for which every ticket is sold.
- Stand
- A section of the stadium with spectator places along one side of the pitch.
- Steward
- A safety officer in the stands who checks tickets, helps fans and keeps order.
- Technical area
- The marked zone by the bench from which the coach may give instructions.
- Terrace
- A standing area of a stadium. Banned in England’s top divisions after Hillsborough, they remain a symbol of fan culture in Germany.
- Ticket tout
- Someone who resells tickets above face value. Also called a scalper.
- Tunnel
- The passage from the dressing rooms to the pitch.
- Turnstile
- The gate that admits fans into the stadium.
- Warm-up
- The players’ preparation on the pitch before kick-off.
- Yellow Wall
- The South Stand at Borussia Dortmund, Europe’s largest standing terrace.