Does Theo like playing football?

Elementary (A1-A2) 20 minutes
ESL Sports Activity for Elementary A1-A2, information gap, question prompts, table completion

ESL Sports Activity - Speaking: Information Gap, Asking and Answering Questions, Table Completion - Pair Work

In this sport likes and dislikes speaking activity, students ask and answer questions about which sports four people like and dislike playing in order to complete a chart. In pairs, students ask and answer...

ESL Sports Activity - Speaking: Information Gap, Asking and Answering Questions, Table Completion - Pair Work In this sport likes and dislikes speaking activity, students ask and answer questions about which sports four people like and dislike playing in order to complete a chart. In pairs, students ask and answer present simple yes/no questions with their partner to complete the missing information in the chart that shows the sports four people like and dislike playing. When the students have finished, they answer four questions based on the completed chart.
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Sports Match

Elementary (A1-A2) 25 minutes
ESL Sports Vocabulary Games for Elementary A1-A2, pelmanism, matching, categorising

ESL Sports Vocabulary Games - Vocabulary: Pelmanism, Matching, Categorising - Pair Work

Here are a set of fun sports vocabulary games to help introduce beginners to the names of sports. Students begin by playing a sports pelmanism game. In pairs, students take it in turns to turn over one sport...

ESL Sports Vocabulary Games - Vocabulary: Pelmanism, Matching, Categorising - Pair Work Here are a set of fun sports vocabulary games to help introduce beginners to the names of sports. Students begin by playing a sports pelmanism game. In pairs, students take it in turns to turn over one sport picture card and one sport word card. If the picture and word match, the student reads the sport aloud, keeps the two cards and has another turn. The student with the most pairs of cards at the end of the game wins. Students then move on to play a snap style game with the cards. One student takes all the picture cards and the other takes the word cards. Both students turn over a card from their pile at the same time. If the two cards match, the first student to say 'Snap' scores a point. The two students then pick up their own cards, shuffle them and play again. The first student to get ten points wins the game. Finally, the pairs place the word cards face up on the table and categorize the sports according to certain criteria, e.g. team sports, individual sports, sports that use a ball, winter sports, water sports, etc.
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Sports Questionnaire

Elementary (A1-A2) 35 minutes
ESL Sports Questionnaire Elementary A1-A2 completing, asking and answering questions, Find Someone Who

ESL Sports Questionnaire - Speaking Activity: Completing, Asking and Answering Questions, Freer Practice

In this insightful sports speaking activity, students complete questions about sports with go, play and do and then ask and answer the questions in a Find Someone Who activity. Students begin by completing...

ESL Sports Questionnaire - Speaking Activity: Completing, Asking and Answering Questions, Freer Practice In this insightful sports speaking activity, students complete questions about sports with go, play and do and then ask and answer the questions in a Find Someone Who activity. Students begin by completing questions on the worksheet with the verbs: go, play or do. Students then look at the verbs in the questions and think about what the sports have in common when each verb is used and review the rules for go, play and do sports collocations. Next, students write one follow-up question using go, play or do for each question. Students then go around the class asking each other the questions, e.g. 'Do you go cycling?' When a student finds someone who answers 'Yes, I do', the student writes down that person's name and asks the follow-up question to gain more information, noting down the answer. When everyone has finished, students give feedback to the class on what they found out.
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Sports Vocabulary Games

Elementary (A1-A2) 35 minutes
ESL Sports Vocabulary Games Elementary A1-A2 miming, forming sentences, true or false, group guessing

ESL Sports Vocabulary Games - Vocabulary: Miming, Forming Sentences, True or False, Guessing - Group Work

In these free sport vocabulary games, students practice sports vocabulary by playing a miming and true or false game. In groups, students begin by playing a sports miming game. Students take...

ESL Sports Vocabulary Games - Vocabulary: Miming, Forming Sentences, True or False, Guessing - Group Work In these free sport vocabulary games, students practice sports vocabulary by playing a miming and true or false game. In groups, students begin by playing a sports miming game. Students take it in turns to pick up a card and mime the sport on the card for the other students to guess. The first student to correctly guess the sport wins and keeps the card. The student with the most cards at the end of the game is the winner. Afterwards, students play a true or false sports game where they take it in turns to pick up a card and make a personal statement about the sport on the card, e.g. 'I like to play badminton at the park'. The other students then each guess whether the statement is true or false and the answer is revealed. Students score one point for each correct guess. The student with the most points at the end of the game wins.
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Game On!

Pre-intermediate (A2) 20 minutes
ESL Sports Board Game Pre-intermediate A2 impromptu speech, communicative practice, group work

ESL Sports Board Game - Speaking: Impromptu Speech, Communicative Practice - Group Work

In this engaging sports board game, students share their opinions about different sports. In groups, students take turns rolling the dice and moving their counters along the board. When a student lands on a...

ESL Sports Board Game - Speaking: Impromptu Speech, Communicative Practice - Group Work In this engaging sports board game, students share their opinions about different sports. In groups, students take turns rolling the dice and moving their counters along the board. When a student lands on a square, they talk about the sports topic on the square for 20 seconds, naming the sport, giving opinions about it and explaining their reasons. If a student can't think of anything to say or stops talking before the 20 seconds are up, they go back two squares. The first student to reach the finish wins the game.
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Sports Collocations

Pre-intermediate (A2) 40 minutes
ESL Sports Collocations Activity Pre-intermediate A2 asking and answering questions, table completion

ESL Sports Collocations Activity - Speaking: Asking and Answering Questions, Table Completion

In this useful sports collocations speaking activity, students learn about sports collocations with go, play and do as well as places where sports are played. First, students look at pictures of...

ESL Sports Collocations Activity - Speaking: Asking and Answering Questions, Table Completion In this useful sports collocations speaking activity, students learn about sports collocations with go, play and do as well as places where sports are played. First, students look at pictures of sports on the worksheet and write collocations with go, play and do for each sport, e.g. play golf. After that, students prepare questions for each picture to find out who in the class does each sport, where they do it and how often. Next, give each student a sports card, which shows the sport they do, where they do it and how often. Students then move around the classroom asking the questions they have prepared in order to find out who does the other sports on their worksheet. When a student finds a classmate who answers 'Yes, I do' to their first question, they write down their name and ask where the person does the sport and how often, noting down the answers. Afterwards, students compare their answers in pairs and then discuss what sports they do, where they do them and how often.
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Game, Set and Match

Intermediate (B1) 25 minutes
ESL Sports Activity Intermediate B1 asking and answering questions, freer practice

ESL Sports Activity - Speaking: Asking and Answering Questions, Freer Practice

In this productive sports speaking activity, students answer questions about sports and then try to find another student for each question who has the same answer. First, students answer sports questions on the worksheet. Students then go...

ESL Sports Activity - Speaking: Asking and Answering Questions, Freer Practice In this productive sports speaking activity, students answer questions about sports and then try to find another student for each question who has the same answer. First, students answer sports questions on the worksheet. Students then go around the class asking and answering the questions from the worksheet to try to find other students who have the same answer. When a student finds someone with the same answer, they write down the person's name and ask a follow-up question to gain more information, noting down the answer. The student then moves on to speak to another classmate. When everyone has finished, students give feedback to the class on what they found out.
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Sports Connections

Intermediate (B1) 50 minutes
ESL Sports Games Intermediate B1 categorising, pelmanism, forming sentences, group discussion

ESL Sports Games - Vocabulary: Categorising, Pelmanism - Speaking Activities: Forming Sentences,  Answering Questions, Freer Practice - Group Work

In these entertaining sports vocabulary games, students practice making connections between sports. The activities consist of a categorizing and pelmanism...

ESL Sports Games - Vocabulary: Categorising, Pelmanism - Speaking Activities: Forming Sentences,  Answering Questions, Freer Practice - Group Work In these entertaining sports vocabulary games, students practice making connections between sports. The activities consist of a categorizing and pelmanism game to practice verb-sport collocations, a sport similarities game, and a sports discussion activity. First, students play a sports categorizing game where they categorize sports on cards into three groups, according to the verb that is used with each sport: go, play or do. Next, students play a sports pelmanism game to reinforce the verb-sport collocations. Students take it in turns to turn over two sports cards. If the two sports use the same verb, the student keeps the cards and has another turn. Students then move on to talk about similarities between the sports by playing another pelmanism game. This time, when two cards are turned over, the student makes a sentence about how the two sports are similar. If a suitable sentence is made, the student keeps the cards and has another turn. Afterwards, students use the cards to ask and answer questions and develop short conversations about sports.
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Sports Time

Intermediate (B1) 45 minutes
ESL Sports Vocabulary Worksheet Intermediate B1 matching, gap-fill, categorising, sentence completion, guessing

ESL Sports Vocabulary Worksheet - Vocabulary Exercises: Matching, Gap-fill, Categorising, Sentence Completion, Guessing

Here is a free sports worksheet to help students practice sports vocabulary and action verbs related to sports. Students start by matching action verbs to...

ESL Sports Vocabulary Worksheet - Vocabulary Exercises: Matching, Gap-fill, Categorising, Sentence Completion, Guessing Here is a free sports worksheet to help students practice sports vocabulary and action verbs related to sports. Students start by matching action verbs to pictures. Students then complete sentences about sports with the action verbs. After that, students categorize sports vocabulary, e.g. vocabulary associated with sports equipment, etc. Finally, students secretly choose their favourite team sport and complete sentences using the sports vocabulary from the worksheet. Students then take it in turns to read their sentences to the class who tries to guess the sport being described.
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Sports Equipment

Upper-intermediate (B2) 30 minutes
ESL Sports Worksheet and Game Upper-intermediate B2 matching, listing, listening, drawing

ESL Sports Worksheet and Game - Vocabulary Activities: Matching, Listing, Listening, Drawing - Pair Work

In this comprehensive sports vocabulary worksheet and game, students learn sports equipment vocabulary and play a describing and drawing game to practice the language. First, students match sports...

ESL Sports Worksheet and Game - Vocabulary Activities: Matching, Listing, Listening, Drawing - Pair Work In this comprehensive sports vocabulary worksheet and game, students learn sports equipment vocabulary and play a describing and drawing game to practice the language. First, students match sports equipment to pictures and write the vocabulary underneath. Students then write which sports equipment can be used with each sport. Students then move on to think of other sports equipment that goes with each sport and add it to the chart, e.g. For baseball, students might add the word 'bat'. After that, in pairs, students take it in turns to read instructions to their partner, e.g. 'In the first box, draw something you wear on your feet when you go ice skating.' Their partner listens and draws the sports equipment being described. Students score one point for each correct picture. The student with the most points wins.
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Sports Quiz

Upper-intermediate (B2) 25 minutes
ESL Sports Quiz Game Upper-intermediate B2 gap-fill, multiple-choice quiz, group and pair work

ESL Sports Quiz Game - Vocabulary: Gap-fill, Multiple-Choice Quiz, Guessing - Group and Pair Work

Here is an interesting sports quiz game to help students practice vocabulary related to different sports. In two groups, students begin by completing sports trivia questions with sports-related words from...

ESL Sports Quiz Game - Vocabulary: Gap-fill, Multiple-choice Quiz, Guessing - Group and Pair Work Here is an interesting sports quiz game to help students practice vocabulary related to different sports. In two groups, students begin by completing sports trivia questions with sports-related words from a box. Next, students pair up with someone from the other group and take turns reading each sports trivia question along with three possible answers to their partner, who tries to guess the correct one. For each correct guess, students put a tick next to the question. The student with the most correct guesses at the end of the game wins.
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Sports Talk

Upper-intermediate (B2) 25 minutes
ESL Sports Board Game Upper-intermediate B2 impromptu speech, multiple-choice questions, guessing, freer practice

ESL Sports Board Game - Vocabulary and Speaking: Impromptu Speech, Multiple-Choice Questions, Guessing, Freer Practice - Group Work

In this enjoyable sports board game, students practice sports-related vocabulary and talking about sports. In groups, players take turns rolling the dice and moving...

ESL Sports Board Game - Vocabulary and Speaking: Impromptu Speech, Multiple-Choice Questions, Guessing, Freer Practice - Group Work In this enjoyable sports board game, students practice sports-related vocabulary and talking about sports. In groups, players take turns rolling the dice and moving their counter along the board. If a player lands on a 'Talk about' square, they talk about the sports-related topic on the square for 30 seconds without stopping. If a player can't think of anything to say or stops talking before the 30 seconds are up, they go back two squares. If a player lands on a blank square, another student picks up a card from the top of the pile and reads out the question on the card, followed by three possible multiple-choice answers. The player has ten seconds to answer. If the player answers correctly, they remain on the square. If not, they move their counter back two squares. The first player to reach the finish wins the game.
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Using Sports Vocabulary

Sports vocabulary names sports, equipment and actions and helps students describe participation and preferences. Learning these words in phrases lets students explain what they do, where they do it and why they enjoy it.

This page contains 12 resources from elementary (A1-A2) to upper-intermediate (B2), including two free downloads. The materials cover sport names, verb combinations, equipment, opinions and conversation practice.

Use these examples as starting points, teaching each verb and sport as a phrase rather than applying one rule to every sport.

PurposeUseful languageExample
Talk about games play football, play tennis 'I play tennis on Saturdays.'
Describe activities with 'go' go swimming, go cycling 'We go cycling at the weekend.'
Describe activities with 'do' do gymnastics, do karate 'She does karate after school.'
Name equipment racket, bat, helmet 'You need a racket to play tennis.'
Describe sporting actions kick, throw, catch, hit 'The player kicks the ball.'
Explain preferences enjoy, prefer, because 'I enjoy swimming because it helps me relax.'

How to Use Sports Vocabulary

Build from familiar examples: Start with sports students recognise and connect each name with a picture, action or piece of equipment. Include watching as well as participating so everyone has a way to contribute.

Keep verbs attached to sport names: Record phrases such as 'play basketball', 'go skiing' and 'do gymnastics' together. Ask students to change the subject or time expression while keeping the phrase accurate.

Give opinions a clear shape: Model an answer that names a sport, states a preference and gives a reason. Encourage partners to ask about where or how often, extending a short answer into an exchange.

3-Step Framework for Teaching Sports Vocabulary

For elementary to pre-intermediate students, move from recognising sports to exchanging information and explaining opinions.

1. Establish names and connections: Students match sport pictures with word cards in a memory game, reading matched words aloud. They then sort the sports into categories. This gives them vocabulary to recognise and retrieve before using it in questions.

2. Exchange specific information: Partners ask and answer yes/no questions to complete a chart showing which sports different people like and dislike. Checking questions against the completed chart gives students a clear reason to listen accurately and use sport names in sentences.

3. Develop an opinion: Use a board game in which students speak about a sports topic for 20 seconds, naming the sport, giving an opinion and explaining their reasons. Offer a short planning pause if needed so students can build on the sentence practice from the previous stage.

Common Mistakes with Sports Vocabulary

Using 'play' with every sport: Learn the usual verb with each activity rather than extending 'play' to all sports. Incorrect: 'I play swimming every week.' Correct: 'I go swimming every week.' Compare this with 'I play tennis every week.'

Confusing 'win' and 'beat': Use 'win' with a match, race or competition and 'beat' with an opponent. Incorrect: 'Our team won the other team.' Correct: 'Our team beat the other team.' You can also say 'Our team won the match.'

Common Questions About Teaching Sports Vocabulary

How can students practice using go, play and do with sports?

The activity Sports Questionnaire asks students to complete sports questions with go, play or do and prepare follow-up questions. They then interview classmates, record names and answers, and report their findings. Using the collocations in both prepared questions and follow-up exchanges takes practice beyond simply sorting sports into categories.

What free worksheet can I use for teaching sports vocabulary?

The free worksheet Sports Time connects sports action verbs with pictures and sentence contexts. Students also categorise vocabulary before choosing a team sport and writing clues about it. Reading those clues for classmates to guess gives the written work a speaking purpose and encourages students to describe sports precisely.

What games help students practice sports vocabulary through movement?

The free resource Sports Vocabulary Games begins with students miming sports for classmates to identify. They then make personal statements about sports while others guess whether each statement is true or false. The two games move from recognising an action to using the sport's name in a complete statement.

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