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In a historic soccer match on Tuesday, the Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal set a world record. They won their 28th game in a row when they beat Al-Ittihad 2-0 in the AFC Champions League.
This victory broke the previous record of 27 consecutive wins. That record was set by Welsh team The New Saints in their 2016/17 season.
Before that, the Dutch team Ajax held the record for 44 years. They had a 26-game winning streak from 1971 to 1972.
Al-Hilal’s manager, Jorge Jesus, expressed his joy at this achievement. He thanked everyone at the club for helping achieve the historic record.
In the quarterfinal’s second leg, Al-Hilal had a 2-0 lead over Al-Ittihad. They almost fell behind when Al-Ittihad’s Romarinho hit the post in the first half. But, Al-Hilal scored in the 61st minute and took the lead.
Al-Ittihad had almost no chance of a comeback when their player, Abderrazak Hamdallah, got a red card. Al-Hilal later scored a second goal at the end of the game.
Next, Al-Hilal will play Al Ain in the Champions League semi-finals. They are also leading the Saudi Pro League, 12 points ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr.
Al-Hilal have been successful this year without their star player Neymar, who had major knee surgery in November.
However, the most consecutive wins in soccer is still held by the women’s team Olympique Lyonnais Féminin. They won 41 games in a row between 2012 and 2013. This record includes both men’s and women’s soccer.
Vocabulary
- Historic – Important or significant and will be remembered for a long time
- Match – A match is a game or contest between two teams or individuals where they try to win by playing a sport
- Club – a soccer team
- Set a record – to achieve/do something better or more significant than anyone has done before; the most or least ever measured
- In a row – something happening a number of times, one after the other; consecutively; in succession
- Victory – win; success; achievement; triumph
- Break a record – better or more extreme than anything that has come before
- Previous – coming or occurring before something else; existing before in time or order; preceding
- Consecutive – Happening in a row; one after another; Things that follow one after the other without a break
- Welsh – related to or coming from Wales
- Season – a time period or time of year when a sport is played; a fixed/set number of games for one year of a sport
- Hold a record – To have the best or highest achievement in an activity and keep it for a period of time
- Win streak – Winning many games in a row;
- Manager – coach; the person who tells the players on a team what to do
- Express – to show a feeling, opinion, or fact; communicate; convey
- Achievement – Something great that someone has done;
- Quarter final – the stage or games in a tournament with only eight teams remaining; One of the four games in a competition that decides which players or teams will play in the two semi-finals
- Second leg – The second of two games between the same teams; The second game played between two teams to decide the winner (after a first game)
- Lead – to be at the front; to be ahead; to be winning
- Fall behind – To start losing a competition or game you were previously winning
- Hit the post – When the ball hits the upright part of the goal frame and bounces out, not going in
- Half – e.g., A soccer game has two 45-minute halves. It is 90 minutes long.
- Take the lead – To start winning in a game or competition;
- Chance – opportunity; possibility;
- Comeback – when a team that was losing at the beginning of a game wins the game; To recover from a defeat or disadvantage
- Red card – A card that means a player has to leave the game for doing something wrong
- Semi-final – The game that comes before the final game in a tournament; the winners of semi-final games go the final game
- Successful – Achieving what you wanted; having the effect or result you intended; to do correctly or finish something you wanted to do
- Star – a famous person; main actor in a show or movie; the best person; very famous
- Major – very important, big or significant
- Surgery – a medical operation/action/procedure to repair or remove part of the body
Quiz
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Discussion Questions
- Why do you think Al-Hilal was able to win so many games in a row?
- How important do you think a manager is to a soccer team’s success?
- What do you think are the biggest challenges for a team trying to win so many games in a row?
- How can a team stay motivated and focused during a long winning streak?
- English teachers looking for teaching ideas, check out my post on using easy news articles for lessons.
- English learners looking for study ideas, check out my post on using news stories for English practice.
Original Story
Fill-in-the-Blank Listening Practice
In a historic _____ match on Tuesday, the Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal set a _____ record. They won their 28th game in a _____ when they beat Al-Ittihad 2-0 in the AFC Champions _____.
This victory broke the _____ record of 27 consecutive wins. That record was _____ by Welsh team The New Saints in their 2016/2017 season.
_____ that, the Dutch team Ajax held the record for _____ years. They had a 26-game winning streak from 1971 to _____.
Al-Hilal’s manager, Jorge Jesus, _____ his joy at this achievement. He thanked everyone at the club for _____ achieve the historic record.
In the quarterfinal’s _____ leg, Al-Hilal had a 2-0 lead over Al-Ittihad. They almost fell _____ when Al-Ittihad’s Romarinho hit the _____ in the first half. But, Al-Hilal scored in the 61st minute and _____ the lead.
Al-Ittihad had almost no _____ of a comeback when their player, Abderrazak Hamdallah, _____ a red card. Al-Hilal later scored a second goal at the _____ of the game.
Next, Al-Hilal will play Al Ain in the _____ League semi-finals. They are also leading the Saudi Pro League, _____ points ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr.
Al-Hilal _____ been successful this year without their star player Neymar, who had _____ knee surgery in November.
_____, the most consecutive wins in soccer is still held by the _____ team Olympique Lyonnais Féminin. They won 41 games in a row between _____ and 2013. This record includes both men’s and women’s _____.
