Today’s World Cup language podcast looks at the phrase, ‘Panenka‘ which was used when describing Morocco’s penalty shoot-out win against Spain in the last-16 match at the 2022 World Cup. 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 then you can contact us at [email protected].

 

2022 World Cup Language Podcast: Last 16 – Panenka (Morocco v Spain)

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DF: Hello again everyone and welcome to Languagecaster.com – the football-language podcast for learners and teachers of English. This is Damian and I’m here in London while of course Damon, the other member of the Languagecaster team, is in Japan. We continue with our look at some language from the last-16 knock-out matches and on today’s World Cup language podcast we explain a very famous phrase, ‘Panenka‘ which was used in a BBC report that described Morocco’s amazing victory over Spain on penalties.

Stinger: You are listening to languagecaster.com (from a French fan)

This is how the BBC reported on the shock Moroccan victory against Spain that sent the north African side through to the last eight for the first time in its history and only the fourth African team to reach the quarter finals. Amazing. After 120 goal-less minutes, the game had to be decided on a penalty shoot out and when Spain missed their first three penalties, it meant that if defender Achraf Hakimi scored then Spain would be eliminated and Morocco would qualify. The pressure was intense but the PSG player decided to not hit the ball to the left or to the right but instead calmly and carefully chipped or dinked the ball down the centre of the goal. The Spanish keeper had dived to the right meaning that the ball went in. This kind of penalty is known as a Panenka after Antonín Panenka from Czechoslovakia who scored a penalty like this in the 1980 European Championship final win against West Germany. Taking a penalty like this, especially in such tense circumstances, demonstrates how cool and calm Hakimi was. It was an amazing end to a wonderfully surprising game. Well done Morocco!