A Chinese podcast · Same story, 4 levels
世界杯:恩博洛点球破门,补时乌龙救主,卡塔尔一比一逼平瑞士
World Cup: Embolo's Penalty, a Stoppage-Time Own Goal — Qatar Draw Switzerland 1-1
About this story
An easy Chinese listening lesson on the World Cup: Embolo's penalty puts Switzerland ahead, but a stoppage-time own goal by Muheim lets Qatar snatch a 1-1 draw. HSK 2 vocabulary on penalties, own goals, and a dramatic finish.
This is an HSK 2 Chinese listening episode that runs about 5 minutes. The full Mandarin script is shown with tap-for-pinyin and a line-by-line English translation, so you can listen and read at once — comprehensible input in the sense of Stephen Krashen's i+1 theory. It teaches 7 key vocabulary words such as 证明、压力、有意思 and walks through 3 grammar patterns, each explained in English with examples. The same news story is retold at 4 difficulty levels — use the level selector above to find the version that is challenging but still understandable for you.
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原文Read the complete story in Chinese. Reveal pinyin and English only when you need them.
English transcript reference
Today we're talking about a World Cup match.
It's Qatar versus Switzerland.
The final score was one to one.
The ending of this game was especially interesting, so let's take it slow.
Before the match, everyone thought Switzerland was stronger.
Switzerland is a European team, and their players are at a higher level.
Qatar, by comparison, is a smaller soccer nation.
So many people thought Switzerland should win.
Speaking of Qatar, you might recall the last World Cup was held in Qatar.
Back then they were the host country.
This time, they qualified on their own merit, so they really wanted to prove themselves.
These two teams are in the same group, called Group B.
Also in the group are Canada and Bosnia.
In this group, every team wants to earn more points.
When the match began, both teams played seriously.
For a while at the start, neither side scored.
At around the seventeenth minute, Switzerland won a penalty.
What is a penalty?
It's when someone fouls in front of the goal, like touching the ball with a hand.
At that point, the other team gets to shoot from very close, with only the keeper in the way.
So a penalty is easy to score.
Switzerland's Embolo stepped up to take it.
He struck the ball straight into the net.
One to zero, Switzerland ahead.
After scoring, Switzerland played fairly cautiously.
They wanted to hold onto this one to zero.
Qatar kept trying to equalize, but didn't have many chances.
Time ticked by, and it looked about to end.
The Swiss fans in the stands all felt the win was near.
But the most magical thing about soccer is in the final few minutes.
The match had already reached stoppage time — those extra minutes played at the end.
Qatar attacked forward one last time.
The ball flew toward Switzerland's goal.
Right at that moment, a Swiss player went to block it.
His name is Muheim.
He meant to clear the ball away, but it touched him and bounced into his own goal.
This is called an own goal.
An own goal is when you accidentally put the ball into your own net.
This goal counts as Qatar's goal.
So the score became one to one!
Qatar's players and fans went wild.
Equalizing at the very last moment feels amazing.
And on Switzerland's side, everyone was stunned.
The three points that were almost theirs suddenly became just one.
For Switzerland, this point was such a shame.
The whistle blew, the score fixed at one to one.
Each team took one point.
For Qatar, this point felt like a freebie — they were thrilled.
For Switzerland, this point felt like losing two — they were gutted.
The same one to one, yet the two teams' moods were completely different.
Looking at the whole group, this point means different things to each team.
Qatar gained an extra point, and their morale shot up.
Switzerland wanted three points but took only one, so the pressure ahead grows.
In such a tight group, those two dropped points might prove crucial in the end.
This game also taught everyone a word: own goal.
A ball kicked into your own net counting for the opponent is not rare in soccer.
Sometimes, a single own goal can change a whole match.
Qatar today picked up a point exactly this way.
But that's soccer — anything can happen.
This game also reminds everyone: until the very last second, no one should celebrate too early.
That's the story of Qatar and Switzerland's one to one.
Listen again
Try it without the transcript and notice what sounds clearer.
What vocabulary does this episode teach?
词汇考纲词。用事实让别人相信。卡塔尔很想证明自己。
考纲词。心里很重、很紧的感觉。瑞士后面的压力大了。
HSK 1-2. interesting.
HSK 1-2. meaning / interest.
对方门前犯规后判的球,离门很近,进球率高。瑞士得到一个点球。
不小心把球弄进自己的门,算对方的进球。
比赛九十分钟之外多踢的那几分钟。
* beyond level超纲词
What grammar patterns appear in this episode?
语法眼看就要…
'On the verge of… / about to…' — something is just about to happen.
眼看就要结束了。
眼看就要赢的三分,只剩一分。
结果
'As it turned out / in the end' — introduces an outcome, often unexpected.
结果球碰到他,弹进了自己的门。
同样…,…完全不一样
'The same…, yet completely different…' — sets up a contrast.
同样一个一比一,两个队的心情完全不一样。
Proper Nouns
专有名词Free account
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