The Super Bowl: Interpreters, American football, and a big day in the United States.
February 7, 2022 § Leave a comment
Dear colleagues:
Because Americans love to bring up sports in a conference, and due to the acquired taste needed to enjoy a sport popular in the United States and few other places in the world, every year I write a post on the biggest sporting event: The Super Bowl.
On February 13 the United States will hold the most watched TV event in our country, a game played on an unofficial holiday, more popular than most holidays on the official calendar. The Super Bowl is the national professional football championship game in the United States of America; and it is not football… at least not THAT football played in the rest of the world. This popular sport in the United States is known abroad as “American football,” and even this designation seems troublesome to many who have watched a little American football and do not understand it well. Although it is mainly played holding a ball, the sport is known in the United States as football for two reasons: (1) Because this American-born sport comes from “rugby football” (now rugby) that came from soccer (football outside the United States) and (2) Because it is football, but it is not British organized football, which when American football invented was called “association football” and was later known by the second syllable of the word “association”: “socc” which mutated into “soccer.” You now understand where the name came from, but is it really football? For Americans it is. Remember that all other popular team sports in the United States are played with your hands or a stick (baseball, basketball and ice hockey). The only sport in the United States where points can be scored by kicking the ball is (American) football. So, even though most of the time the ball is carried by hand or caught with your hands, sometimes, a team scores or defends field position by kicking or punting the football. Now, why is all this relevant to us as interpreters? Because if you interpret from American English you are likely to run into speakers who will talk about the Super Bowl, football, or will use examples taken from this very popular sport in the U.S.
On Sunday, most Americans will gather in front of the TV set to watch the National Football Conference champion Los Angeles Rams battle the American Football Conference champion Cincinnati Bengals for the Vince Lombardi Trophy (official name of the trophy given to the team that wins the Super Bowl) which incidentally is a trophy in the shape of a football, not a bowl. It is because the game was not named after a trophy, it was named after a tradition. There are two football levels in the United States: college football played by amateur students, and professional football. College football is older than pro-football and for many decades the different college champions were determined by playing invitational football games at the end of the college football season on New Year’s Day. These games were called (and still are) “Bowls.” You may have heard of the Rose Bowl, Cotton Bowl, Orange Bowl, Sugar Bowl, and many others. When a professional football game was created to determine the over-all champion between the champions of the American and National Conferences, it was just natural (and profitable) to call it the “Super Bowl.”
The game, which involves two teams representing two regions of the country, will be played in Los Angeles, California. It will be the second time in history that one team playing for the famous trophy will play in its home stadium. Last year was the first time when the Tampa Bay team played at home. Every year the Super Bowl is played in a venue where the weather at this time of the year is more welcoming. There will be millions watching the match from home, and there will be hundreds of millions spent on TV commercials during the game.
As I do every year on these dates, I have included a basic glossary of English<>Spanish football terms that may be useful to you, particularly those of you who do escort, diplomatic, and conference interpreting from American English to Mexican Spanish. “American” football is very popular in Mexico (where they have college football) Eventually, many of you will face situations where two people will discuss the Super Bowl; as you are interpreting somebody will tell a football story during a presentation; or you may end up at a TV or radio studio simultaneously interpreting a football game for your own or another foreign market.
The following glossary does not cover every term in football; it includes terms very common, and where there were several translations of a football term, I selected the term used in Mexico by the Mexican media that covers the sport.
| ENGLISH | SPANISH |
| Football | Fútbol Americano |
| National Football League | Liga Nacional de Fútbol Americano |
| NFL | N-F-L (ene-efe-ele) |
| American Football Conference | Conferencia Americana |
| National Football Conference | Conferencia Nacional |
| Preseason | Pretemporada |
| Regular season | Temporada regular |
| Playoffs | Postemporada |
| Wildcard | Equipo comodín |
| Standings | Tabla de posiciones |
| Field | Terreno de juego |
| End zone | Zona de anotación/ diagonales |
| Locker room | Vestidor |
| Super Bowl | Súper Tazón |
| Pro Bowl | Tazón Profesional/ Juego de estrellas |
| Uniform & Equipment | Uniforme y Equipo |
| Football | Balón/ Ovoide |
| Jersey | Jersey |
| Helmet | Casco |
| Facemask | Máscara |
| Chinstrap | Barbiquejo |
| Shoulder pads | Hombreras |
| Thigh pads | Musleras |
| Knee pads | Rodilleras |
| Jockstrap | Suspensorio |
| Cleats | Tacos |
| Tee | Base |
| Fundamentals | Términos básicos |
| Starting player | Titular |
| Backup player | Reserva |
| Offense | Ofensiva |
| Defense | Defensiva |
| Special teams | Equipos especiales |
| Kickoff | Patada/ saque |
| Punt | Despeje |
| Return | Devolución |
| Fair catch | Recepción libre |
| Possession | Posesión del balón |
| Drive | Marcha/ avance |
| First and ten | Primero y diez |
| First and goal | Primero y gol |
| Line of scrimmage | Línea de golpeo |
| Neutral zone | Zona neutral |
| Snap | Centro |
| Long snap | Centro largo/ centro al pateador |
| Huddle | Pelotón |
| Bolsillo protector | |
| Fumble | Balón libre |
| Turnover | Pérdida de balón |
| Takeaway | Robo |
| Giveaway | Entrega |
| Interception | Intercepción |
| Completion | Pase completo |
| Tackle | Tacleada/ derribada |
| Blitz | Carga |
| Pass rush | Presión al mariscal de campo |
| Sack | Captura |
| Run/ carry | Acarreo |
| Pass | Pase |
| “I” Formation | Formación “I” |
| Shotgun Formation | Formación escopeta |
| “T” Formation | Formación “T” |
| Wishbone Formation | Formación wishbone |
| Goal posts | Postes |
| Crossbar | Travesaño |
| Sidelines | Líneas laterales/ banca |
| Chain | Cadena |
| Out-of-bounds | Fuera del terreno |
| Head Coach | Entrenador en jefe |
| Game Officials | Jueces |
| Flag | Pañuelo |
| POSITIONS | POSICIONES |
| Center | Centro |
| Guard | Guardia |
| Offensive Tackle | Tacleador ofensivo |
| Offensive line | Línea ofensiva |
| End | Ala |
| Wide Receiver | Receptor abierto |
| Tight end | Ala cerrada |
| Running Back | Corredor |
| Halfback | Corredor |
| Fullback | Corredor de poder |
| Quarterback | Mariscal de campo |
| Backfield | Cuadro defensivo |
| Defensive end | Ala defensiva |
| Defensive tackle | Tacleador defensivo |
| Nose guard | Guardia nariz |
| Linebacker | Apoyador |
| Cornerback | Esquinero |
| Free safety | Profundo libre |
| Strong safety | Profundo fuerte |
| Place kicker | Pateador |
| Punter | Pateador de despeje |
| Penalty | Castigo |
Even if you are not a football fan, and even if you are not watching the big game on Sunday, I hope you find this glossary useful. Now I invite you to comment on football, sports interpreting, or maybe you would like to share a “sports interpreting anecdote” with all of us.
The Professional Interpreter 