Short story: Portal of Glory

While filming an ad in front of the Santiago de Compostela in Madrid in March 2004, Brazilian striker Ronaldinho was asked by the director to demonstrate a scissor kick. Ronaldinho complied - and promptly smashed a window in the 12th century cathedral's Portico de la Gloria (Portal of Glory). Ronaldinho was relieved to learn that the broken pane was a modern addition and, unlike most of the church, did not date from the 1100s.

VOCABULARY
an ad = advertisement - reklama
a striker - napastnik
a scissor kick - kopnięcie z przerzutki
to comply - zastosować się
to smash - zniszczyć, rozbić
a pane - szyba

JOKE OF THE WEEK: Clock in heaven

4 surgeons are taking a tea break. 1st surgeon says "Accountants are the best to operate on because when you open them up, everything inside is numbered."
2nd surgeon says "No, librarians are the best. Everything inside them is in alphabetical order."
3rd surgeon says "Well you should try electricians. Everything inside them is colour coded."
4th surgeon says "I prefer football fans. They're heartless, spineless, gutless and their heads and butts are interchangeable."

VOCABULARY
a surgeon - chirurg
colour-coded - oznaczony kolorami
heartless - bez serca, nieczuły
spineless - 1. bez kręgosłupa, 2. tchórzliwy
gutless - tchórzliwy (dosł. bez jelita)
a butt - infml. tyłek, zadek
interchangeable - wymienny

DID YOU KNOW?

A Brazilian Artur Friedenreich is soccer's All-Time top scorer. Even though most people think that it's Pele, he's actually second with 1,280 career goals. Friedenreich played from 1909 to 1935 and netted a whopping 1,329 goals!

VOCABULARY
a scorer - zdobywca bramki
to net - strzelić bramkę
whopping - gigantyczny

QUOTATION OF THE WEEK

The ball is round and there are two goals.
Piłka jest okrągła, a bramki są dwie.
Kazimierz Górski

Football Facts

1. Football is the most played and most watched sport in the world.
2. It originated generally in its present form in Britain.
3. World's oldest club, Sheffield FC, was formed in 1857.
4. It is called football in practically every country except America, where it is called soccer.
5. Some famous players include: Pele, Maradona, Eusebio, Ronaldo, Beckham, and Mattheus.

VOCABULARY
to originate - zapoczątkować, pojawić się
except - oprócz, z wyjątkiem

CHECK YOUR VOCABULARY

Complete the sentences with these words:
a. free b. referee c. kick d. match e. coach f. forwards

1. ______ the ball as far as possible.
2. The first-line players are called ___.
3. The ___ must control the players during the game.
4. A penalty kick is the right given to a player from the opposing team to a ___ kick.
5. Eleven players from each team participate in a soccer ___.
6. The ___ didn't train the players well, so the team lost the game.

Answer Key:
Answer key: 1c, 2f, 3b, 4a, 5d, 6e.

---