2026 World Cup Language Podcast Day 12: (to) Shrug Off
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2026 World Cup Language Podcast Day 12: (to) Shrug Off
Day ten at the 2026 World Cup and on this World Cup language podcast we look at the verb phrase ‘to shrug off’ and how we can use it to talk about Argentina v Austria. You can read the transcript for this podcast below, while you can also check out our glossary of footballing phrases here and visit our site to access all our previous posts and podcasts. If you have any suggestions or questions about the phrase or our podcast then you can contact us here.
Hello
DB: Hi there and welcome to the Learn English Through Football podcast and our daily World Cup phrase. My name is Damon and I’m based in Tokyo, which is warm, cloudy, and a little bit humid. Not as dramatic as the stormy weather in the US at the Philadelphia Stadium. A massive storm delayed the second half between France and Iraq by two hours.
A number of venues have seen high temperatures too, and in those cases it makes sense to stop for water breaks, or hydration breaks. However, with many other stadiums being unaffected by high heat, these breaks are becoming a bit of a distraction and I’m not surprised each time they are called there are usually loud boos from the crowd.
Hydration breaks are definitely a negative, but as always it’s impossible not to enjoy the football when the whistle blows. How about Cape Verde? The debutants are undefeated after two matches against Spain and Uruguay, and they have put two past the South Americans. Great stuff!
Contact
Stinger: You are listening to the Learn English Through Football Podcast.com (from an English fan)
(to) Shrug Off
DB: OK, today’s phrase is ‘to shrug off’, which can describe Lionel Messi’s performance in Argentina’s victory over Austria at the World Cup.
If you shrug off something, you put a disappointment, mistake, or problem behind you, you don’t let it affect your play. In football, it is easy to make a mistake – a missed tackle, a fluffed chance, a goalkeeping howler. The best players can recover quickly, stay focused, and still play well.
In this game, Messi had an early setback when he missed a penalty. For some players, a miss like that could damage their confidence and affect the rest of their performance. However, Messi shrugged off the disappointment and kept looking for opportunities to help his team. He went on to score a brace and lead Argentina to a second victory in the tournament.
Embed from Getty Images
So, if a player makes a mistake but doesn’t let it affect their performance, we can say they shrugged it off.
Bounce Back
DB: In this kind of situation, you may also hear the phrase ‘bounce back’. Messi bounced back from his penalty miss to score twice and inspire Argentina to victory.
To bounce back means to recover from a setback or disappointment and perform well afterwards. A team can bounce back after a defeat, or a player can bounce back after missing a penalty. Messi shrugged off the missed penalty and bounced back with two goals.
Oh yes, and he also became the all-time leading goal scorer in the World Cup with 18 goals!
Stinger: You are listening to the Learn English Through Football Podcast.com (from a Norwegian fan)
DB: Thank you for that message which was from a Norwegian fan.
We’ll be back tomorrow with more football language from the World Cup. Until then, ta-ra!
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