A plain-English glossary of the words you will meet in commentary, match reports and our statistics.
- Added time
- Minutes added at the end of each half for stoppages. See match length.
- Aggregate
- The combined score of a two-legged tie.
- Assist
- The final pass or touch that leads directly to a goal.
- Away goals rule
- A tie-breaker where goals scored away from home count more; now abolished in many competitions. See tie-breakers.
- Box-to-box
- A midfielder who covers the pitch from one penalty area to the other.
- Brace
- Two goals by one player in a match.
- Cap
- An appearance for a senior national team. See the most capped African players.
- Clean sheet
- A match in which a team concedes no goals.
- Counter-attack
- A quick attack launched immediately after winning the ball.
- Cross
- A pass from the wide areas into the penalty area.
- Derby
- A match between local rivals. See Africa's greatest derbies.
- Diaspora player
- A player born abroad who represents the country of his or her family. See the African diaspora.
- Dual national
- A player holding two nationalities and eligible for more than one national team.
- Elo rating
- A strength rating based on results and opponent quality. See how Elo works.
- Extra time
- Two periods of 15 minutes played when a knock-out match is level.
- False nine
- A centre-forward who drops deep to create space and link play.
- Free transfer
- A move at the end of a contract, with no transfer fee.
- Friendly
- A match outside official competition. Friendlies count as caps but do not tie a player to a country.
- Group of death
- A tournament group with several strong teams.
- Hat-trick
- Three goals by one player in a match. See every AFCON hat-trick.
- Head-to-head
- The record of matches between two teams. Browse head-to-head records.
- High press
- Pressuring opponents near their own goal to win the ball back quickly.
- Injury time
- Another name for added time.
- Loan
- A temporary transfer of a player to another club. See loans explained.
- Man-marking
- A defender following a specific opponent rather than guarding a zone.
- Nutmeg
- Passing the ball through an opponent's legs.
- Offside
- See the offside rule explained.
- Own goal
- A goal a player accidentally scores into their own net.
- Penalty
- A free shot from 11 metres awarded for a foul or handball in the penalty area.
- Playmaker
- The player who organises a team's attacks.
- Qualifier
- A match that decides entry to a tournament. See AFCON qualification.
- Relegation
- Dropping to a lower division after finishing near the bottom.
- Seeding
- Placing teams in pots for a draw so the strongest are kept apart.
- Set piece
- A restart such as a corner, free kick or throw-in.
- Shoot-out
- Penalty kicks used to decide a level knock-out match.
- Sudden death
- A shoot-out phase where one miss can end the contest.
- Tiki-taka
- A style built on short passes and possession.
- Transfer window
- The period when clubs can register new players.
- Treble
- Winning three major trophies in one season.
- VAR
- Video assistant referee. See VAR explained.
- Wing-back
- An attacking full-back in a system with three centre-backs.
- xG (expected goals)
- The probability that a shot becomes a goal, based on similar shots. See statistics explained.