Soccer fans from across the globe are heading to North America for the World Cup — and bringing with them their own vocabulary to describe the beautiful game.

Unique Soccer Phrases

Here’s a look at some of the phrases the locals might be hearing from traveling supporters inside and outside stadiums, and where they might have originated. For example, ‘squeaky bum time’ refers to the late stages of a match when players and fans get tense and nervous. Another phrase, ‘parking the bus,’ describes when a team plays ultra-defensively to stop its opponent from scoring.

Other phrases include ‘false 9,’ which refers to a player who starts as a striker but constantly moves into deeper positions on the field, and ‘worldie,’ which describes a goal that belongs in the ‘world class’ category. ‘Total football’ is a tactical ideology where outfield players have no fixed position and can feel comfortable on the field wherever they are.

‘Nutmeg’ is the act of kicking the ball between an opponent’s legs, while ‘sitter’ refers to an easy chance that a player contrives to mess up. ‘Panenka’ is a type of penalty kick where the player chips the ball slowly and cheekily straight into the middle of the goal. ‘Clean sheet’ refers to when a team doesn’t concede a goal, and ‘top bin’ describes the top corners of a goal.

The ’12th man’ refers to the team’s fans, who can act as an extra player if they are loud or intimidating. These unique phrases add to the excitement and charm of the World Cup, and fans from around the world will be using them to describe the action on the field.

Original reporting: Texarkana Gazette — read the source article.