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The UEFA EURO 2004™ tournament will open on the 12 June 2004 with hosts Portugal playing Greece at the Dragão stadium, Porto. Lisbon will stage the final on Sunday 4 July 2004.

And so the Euro cup football season begins again - and this time it is taking place in the beautiful country of Portugal (that bit of land lying tucked onto the left-hand side of Spain as you look at your map!). EXPO 98 proved to be a huge success for Portugal and was the perfect gateway for people from the rest of the world to sample its many delights. The UEFA EURO 2004™ will be the biggest ever sporting event to be held in Portugal which, for a football mad population, the Portuguese are proud to be hosting.

The Portuguese team is a force to be reckoned with and may prove to be quite a challenge during the EURO 2004. So we might all like to learn this word 'felicitações' meaning 'congratulations' before the tournament is up!

We can't let you go over to Portugual - or even let you sit and watch the football from your armchair (or bar stool) - without giving you a few pointers. These few words will give you the chance to understand what the Portuguese fans are shouting from the crowd - or the local bar if that is as far as you get!

Football - futebol
Ticket - bilhete
Goal - o golo
Penalty - um penalty
Corner kick - um canto
Yellow card - cartão amarelo
Red card - cartão vermelho
Referee -o árbitro
Goalkeeper- o guarda-redes
Good game - jogo bom

If you're going over to Portugal, then you really should make the effort to learn a bit more Portuguese. At the very least it could be useful and may help you to at get a couple of beers and something to eat - and even find somewhere to stay. And it's not too late - even now you can tuck your phrase book into your hand luggage and have a quick peek while you're travelling out to Portugual.

Make your trip memorable and enhance your time in Portugal by learning the language and getting to know the culture. English is understood in Portugal, but don't just speak English! Portuguese is a rich language and becoming popular to learn in the UK and is widely spoken in other parts of the world, especially Brazil (another football mad nation). However, it is NOT Spanish, but if you do speak some Spanish, then it will help you to learn the Portuguese language.

Here are our top 5 recommended courses for learning a bit of holiday Portuguese before you go - or while you are there!

1. pigeon Portuguese

2. teach yourself instant Portuguese

3. quick & simple pimsleur Portuguese

4. bbc get by in Portuguese

5. teach yourself Portuguese language, life & culture

And if you really have run out of time, then you could just print out this page and carry it with your passport. Andrea Martins, who is bilingual English/Portuguese, has picked out our top 20 words and phrases in Portuguese to get you started! They're mostly centred around getting food, water & beer and getting to and from a football match - or situations you may find yourself in as a football fan!!


Yes - sim
No - não
Hello - olá
Goodbye - adeus
Thank you - obrigado
Excuse me/I'm sorry - desculpe
Where is? - onde é
How much is it? - Cuanto é?
euros - euros
Toilet - casa de banho
Food - comida
Drink - bebida
Water - água
Beer - uma cerveja
Big - grande
Small - pequeno
1 - um/uma
2 - dois/duas
3 - tres
Can I have a ticket please? - posso eu ter um bilhete por favor?

If you're inspired while you're out there, then get learning Portuguese when you return. Have a look at our Portuguese language page to find the best and most innovative ways of learning Portuguese.

If you'd like to find out more about Portugal and Portuguese:

Search for flights, accommodation and car hire in Portugal

Search for Portuguese music

Find out about Portuguese culture

Search for a language jobs using Portuguese

more information

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