サッカーが好きです
sakkā ga suki desu
To say "I like football" in Japanese, use サッカーが好きです (sakkā ga suki desu).
The phrase is used to express a personal fondness for the sport of soccer. In Japanese, サッカー is more commonly used in conversation than フットボール to describe the sport. You can increase the intensity of your statement by using the adverb とても (very) or the word 大好き (really like).
What does it mean word for word?
The word 好き is a na-adjective meaning "liking" or "fond of," rather than a verb like the English "to like."
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
サッカーが好きです is a formal way to specifically say you like football. To make the phrase informal, you can replace desu with da or omit it entirely, resulting in サッカーが好きだ.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In the Kansai region, people often use サッカー好きやねん to say "I like football."
How does it change in a sentence?
The particle が is used to mark the thing that is liked, whereas in English "football" is the direct object.
How do you pronounce it?
sakkā ga suki desu
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often mistakenly use the particle を (the object marker) instead of が when using 好き.
Did you know?
- While サッカー is the standard word for soccer, saying フットボール in Japan often refers specifically to American football.
- Japanese fans often use the English word 'supporter' (サポーター) to describe themselves, rather than the word 'fan' (ファン), which is used for celebrities.
- When expressing a preference for a team, Japanese speakers often use 応援しています (I am cheering for) instead of saying they 'like' the team.
Examples in context
- サッカーが好きです。I like football.Tatoeba #1218108 by mookeee, translation #858100 by miravalles
- 具体的には、フットボールが好きですSpecifically, I like football.
- サッカーが好きです。お気に入りのチームはありますか？I like football. Do you have a favorite team?
- スポーツが好きだよ。特にサッカーが一番好き！I like sports, especially football!
- サッカーが好きだ！一緒に試合を見に行こうよ！I like football! Let's go watch a match together!
- とてもサッカーが好きです！I really like football!
- 子供の頃からサッカーが好きです。kodomo no koro kara sakka- ga suki desu.I have liked football since I was a child.
Example conversation
Two friends are talking about their hobbies at a cafe.
- 美咲 Misaki健太さんは、スポーツは何が好きですか？kenta-san wa, supo-tsu wa nani ga suki desu ka?Kenta, what sports do you like?
- 健太 Kentaサッカーが好きです。sakka- ga suki desu.I like football.
- 美咲 Misakiそうなんですね！私もサッカーが好きですよ。so- nan desu ne! watashi mo sakka- ga suki desu yo.I see! I like football too.
- 健太 Kenta本当ですか？嬉しいです。hontou desu ka? ureshii desu.Really? I'm happy to hear that.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
