Part 2 cue cardSport and competition

Describe a sports event or match you watched

Match cards tempt people into commentary on the whole game. The examiner wants one or two moments and your reaction, and "why it was memorable" needs more than the score. Keep past simple for events and past continuous for the scene around you.

1 minute to prepare
Up to 2 minutes
Samples at Band 6, 7 and 8
Updated 20 October 2026

Describe a sports event or match you watched.

You should say:

what the event was
where and when you watched it
who you watched it with
and explain why it was memorable

Rehearse the long turn

1 minute to prepare · 2 minutes to speak

Sit this card with the AI examinerThen the Part 3 discussion, and a full report

A 60-second plan

what the event wasMorocco v Portugal, 2022 World Cup quarter-final
where and when you watched itcafé in Maarif, Casablanca, December afternoon
who you watched it withflatmates Yassine and Hamza; Dad at half-time
and explain why it was memorablefirst African semi-final; city awake till dawn

Sample answers

225 words · about 1:57 spoken at a Band 6 pace

The sports event I want to talk about is the football match between Morocco and Portugal in the World Cup 2022. It was the quarter-final, and nobody expected that Morocco can win against a team with so many famous players.

I watched it in a café in Casablanca, in the Maarif area, on the tenth of December. The café was so crowded that people were standing outside on the pavement and watching through the window. They put a big screen at the wall and the noise was incredible.

I was with my two flatmates, Yassine and Hamza, and my father arrived to the café at half-time because he couldn't find a place in another café. My father is not usually interested about football, so it was funny to see him so excited.

It was memorable because Morocco won one-nil, and we became the first African team to reach the semi-final. The goal came just before half-time, it was a header, and the whole café jumped at the same time, I lost my glasses for a minute. In the second half we were very nervous, every time Portugal attacked people were praying. When the referee blow the final whistle, everyone run outside. The streets were full of cars beeping and people waving flags until the morning. I have never seen my city so happy like that.

The mistakes that keep it at Band 6

the World Cup 2022 should be the 2022 World Cup
nobody expected that Morocco can win should be nobody expected that Morocco could win
a big screen at the wall should be a big screen on the wall
arrived to the café should be arrived at the café
interested about football should be interested in football
the referee blow the final whistle should be the referee blew the final whistle
everyone run outside should be everyone ran outside
so happy like that should be as happy as that

Why this is Band 6, not Band 7

Fluency and coherence: Speaks at length and keeps the story moving, with some vivid detail ("I lost my glasses for a minute"). It stays at Band 6 because sentences are often strung together with commas rather than linked, as in "it was a header, and the whole café jumped at the same time", and the reason it mattered is stated quickly.
Vocabulary: Clear match vocabulary ("quarter-final", "a header", "the final whistle"), but some errors in word choice: "interested about football" takes the wrong preposition and "so happy like that" is not natural English. Band 7 needs more precise words for the atmosphere than "incredible" and "very nervous".
Grammar: A mix of simple and complex structures, but past forms slip under pressure: "the referee blow" and "everyone run outside" lose the past tense, and "nobody expected that Morocco can win" keeps the present inside a past report. Errors this frequent are Band 6.

Pronunciation is the fourth criterion; it is judged from your voice, so a written sample cannot show it.

247 words · about 1:54 spoken at a Band 7 pace

The match I'll always remember is Morocco against Portugal in the quarter-finals of the 2022 World Cup. Hardly anyone outside Morocco gave us a chance, because Portugal had a squad full of household names, and we'd never got that far in the tournament before.

I watched it on the tenth of December in a café in Maarif, which is a busy neighbourhood in Casablanca. The owner had put up a huge screen in the back wall, and by kick-off the place was so packed that people were watching from the pavement, peering through the windows.

I went with my flatmates, Yassine and Hamza, who are both fanatical supporters, and then, to our amazement, my dad turned up at half-time. He normally couldn't care less about football, but even he'd been swept up in it.

What made it so memorable was obviously the result. Just before the break, En-Nesyri rose above the defenders and headed the ball in, and the whole café went completely wild; someone's tea ended up all over my jeans. The second half was agonising. Every time Portugal pushed forward, you could hear people muttering prayers under their breath. When the final whistle went and we realised we'd become the first African team ever to reach a World Cup semi-final, everyone poured out into the street. Car horns were blaring, strangers were hugging, and there were flags hanging out of every window until sunrise. I don't think I've ever felt part of something that big.

The slips

in the back wall should be on the back wall

Why this is Band 7, not Band 8

Fluency and coherence: Speaks at length without effort and handles the climax well ("Just before the break", "The second half was agonising", "When the final whistle went"). Not Band 8 because the final bullet is introduced with a stock frame ("What made it so memorable was obviously the result") and the result gets more weight than the reaction.
Vocabulary: Less common and idiomatic items used naturally: "household names", "couldn't care less", "swept up in it", "under their breath", "went completely wild". Band 8 would add more precise words for the feelings; the ending ("part of something that big") is clear but general.
Grammar: A good range with frequent error-free complex sentences: the past perfect ("we'd never got that far", "even he'd been swept up in it"), the past continuous for the scene, a time clause with two verbs. One slip, "in the back wall", where a screen goes on a wall; that is Band 7.

Pronunciation is the fourth criterion; it is judged from your voice, so a written sample cannot show it.

268 words · about 1:51 spoken at a Band 8 pace

I'm going to talk about Morocco's quarter-final against Portugal at the 2022 World Cup, which, for anyone from my country, is probably the most talked-about ninety minutes of football in living memory. On paper it was a mismatch: they had some of the best-paid players on the planet, and we'd scraped into the knockout rounds as underdogs.

I watched it on a Saturday afternoon in December, in a little café in Maarif, in central Casablanca, and calling it crowded would be an understatement. The owner had rigged up a projector, the tables had been pushed against the walls to fit more chairs in, and latecomers were three deep on the pavement, craning to see through the glass.

I was there with Yassine and Hamza, my flatmates, both of whom treat football as something close to a religion. The real surprise was my father, a man who has spent decades insisting the sport bores him, squeezing through the door at half-time and refusing to sit down for the rest of the match.

What makes it unforgettable is partly the goal itself, En-Nesyri hanging in the air for what felt like a full second before nodding the ball in just before the break, and partly the forty-five minutes of collective agony that followed. When the final whistle blew, it dawned on us that we'd just become the first African side ever to reach a World Cup semi-final, and the café emptied into the street in seconds. Casablanca simply didn't sleep that night. I've watched countless matches since, but I doubt I'll ever again feel an entire city exhale at once.

Why this is Band 8, not Band 9

Fluency and coherence: Fluent and coherent, with each bullet given a scene and the answer building to a precise final image ("feel an entire city exhale at once"). Short of Band 9 because the last paragraph's "partly the goal itself" frame is a little neat for spontaneous speech.
Vocabulary: Wide and idiomatic: "in living memory", "scraped into the knockout rounds", "would be an understatement", "three deep on the pavement", "it dawned on us". The occasional stock phrase ("something close to a religion") is the only gap to Band 9.
Grammar: Flexible and accurate: passives for the scene ("the tables had been pushed against the walls"), a long participle phrase describing the goal, a relative clause with a quantifier ("both of whom treat football"). No errors.

Pronunciation is the fourth criterion; it is judged from your voice, so a written sample cannot show it.

Rounding-off questions

Why do people enjoy watching sport?: Partly the drama, because nobody knows how it will end, and partly the sense of belonging. Supporting a team gives you millions of people to share the highs and lows with.
Is there too much money in professional sport?: At the top, probably. Wages and transfer fees have reached absurd levels while grassroots clubs struggle. Still, the money pays for better facilities and lets talented players from poor backgrounds earn a living.