Use this sports vocabulary game to introduce or review the names of sports in English. It’s a “Hidden Picture” style activity where students guess the sport before the full image is revealed. No preparation is required. Just play the video in class and pause when students are ready to guess. Vocabulary includes basketball, soccer, table tennis, tennis, baseball, bowling, golf, volleyball, football, and badminton.

Sports Vocabulary Game – How to Play

Play the video in class. There are 10 hidden pictures of different sports, each covered by colored shapes. As the shapes gradually disappear, the sport is revealed. Students must guess the sport before the image is fully visible, using the lesson’s target language.

With beginner learners, simply practice the sport names (e.g., soccer, tennis, basketball). With higher-level learners, encourage them to make full sentences, such as:

I’m good at soccer.
I’m not very good at tennis.
I like playing badminton.
I play basketball at the weekend with my friends.

Other Sport Teaching Resources

Sports Quiz – A fun “What am I?” style quiz game about sports.
Sports Worksheets – Printable activities to practice sports names and related vocabulary.
Sports PowerPoint – An interactive slideshow for teaching the names of sports.
Sports Lesson Plan – A ready-to-use plan for teaching sports in English to beginners.
Sports Flashcards – Printable PDF cards you can hold up or display in class.
Sports List – A useful vocabulary list of sports in English with pictures.

All Activity Videos