In recent years, sports terminologies, trophies, and related facts have gained significant importance in the SSC and railway papers. Well, this topic has always been an integral part of the general awareness section.
Sports terminologies, trophies, and related facts are considered one of the easiest topics to score in competitive exams. You only need to revise the topic multiple times before the exam.
If you are a sports lover or you have some knowledge about a few sports, then you can eliminate the options to find out the correct answer. For example:
Question: Jab is associated with which sports?
- Boxing
- Cricket
- Football
- Hockey
Answer: Boxing
Solution: Cricket, football, and hockey are three of the most popular sports in India. If you have ever played these sports or watched, you can easily understand that ‘Jab’ terminology cannot relate to either of them. Hence, boxing will be the correct answer.
What types of questions may you expect from sports terminology, trophies, and related facts?
Generally, the examiners ask straightforward questions related to sports terminology. For example,
Question: Offside is related to which of the following sports?
- Cricket
- Football
- Tennis
- Cycling
Answer: Football.
However, in recent years, especially the SSC, has asked questions that delve into the depths of the topic. Questions like the dimension of the field, the duration of the game, the number of players in each team, etc, are asked in the examination.
Question: What is the duration of a men’s kabaddi match?
- 4 Quarters of 15 minutes each
- 2 halves of 15 minutes each
- 2 halves of 20 minutes each
- 4 quarters of 10 minutes each
Answer: 3. 2 halves of 20 minutes each.
Hence, it is advised to study the entire topic, not only the terminologies, if you want to score full marks in the general awareness section.
Similar questions can also be asked about trophies. However, examiners sometimes ask current affairs-related questions about trophies, such as winners, runners-up, or the host.
Questions: Ranji Trophy is related to which sport?
- Cricket
- Football
- Hockey
- Golf
Answer: Cricket
Question: Who were the runners-up of the Ranji Trophy in 2024-25?
- Maharashtra
- Mumbai
- Karnataka
- Kerala
Answer: Kerala
Here we will provide you with practice questions that not only help you to memorise the topic easily but also help you to revise and understand which types of questions you can expect in the future.
Important Sports Terminologies, Trophies, & Related Facts:
Cricket:
Cricket is one of the most popular sports around the world. It is a bat-ball game, played between two teams of eleven players and at the centre, two wickets are separated by a 22-yard (20m or 66 feet) pitch.
Origin:
Cricket originated in the 16th century in South-east England. However, the International Cricket Council (ICC), the global governing body of cricket, was established in 1909.
Number of Players:
11 players from each team, with a total of 22 players, and 3 umpires (2 on-field umpires and one third umpire) to officiate the match.
Duration:
Cricket is played in three formats: Test Cricket, One-day International, & T20 Cricket.
Test cricket: 5 days (90 overs each day).
One-day International: 50 overs each innings (100 overs total).
T20 cricket: 20 overs each innings (40 overs total).
Largest Cricket Grounds:
- Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad (opened in 2020)- capacity 1.32 lakh.
- Melbourne Cricket Ground.
- Eden Garden, Kolkata.
(based on capacity in 2025).
Terminologies:
Bouncer, Boundaries, Over-boundary, stump, runout, bowled, catch, gully, slip, mid-on, mid-off, timed-out, powerplay, death over, mankad out, yorker, etc.
Trophies:
Ashes Series, C. K. Naidu Trophy, Deodhar Trophy, Duleep Trophy, Irani Trophy, Nehru Cup, Ranji Trophy, Sahara Cup, Vijay Hazare Trophy, Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
Also Read: 19+ Musicians & Related Gharanas For SSC, Railway, & Other State Exams
Football (Soccer):
Football, the most popular sport around the world, is played using a single ball between 11 players of two different teams. Football is considered the most-watched sport in the world.
Number of Players:
11 players from each team, or 22 total players, with 5 substitute players from each team.
Duration:
Two halves of 45 minutes. If the scores are equal in big competitive matches, then 30 minutes are also added (two equal halves of 15 minutes) and after that penalty shoot-out decides the winner.
Weight Of The Ball:
The standard weight of a football is between 410g and 450g, or 14-16 ounces.
Top Football Tournaments & Most Successful Teams:
- FIFA World Cup: Brazil (5 times)
- UEFA Champions League: Real Madrid (15 times)
- UEFA Europa League: Sevilla (7 times)
- Copa America: Argentina (16 times)
- UEFA European Championship: Spain (4 times)
Dimension of Field:
The football ground is rectangular. Its length is 100-110 meters (110-120 yards) and its width is 64-75 meters (70-80 yards).
Terminologies:
Corner kick, goal kick, red card, yellow card, assist, offside, penalty, clean sheet, counter attack, midfield, defence, forward, winger, dribble, etc.
Trophies:
Bandodkar Trophy, Colombo Cup, Dr. B. C. Roy Trophy, Durand Cup, F. A. Shield, FA Cup, G.V. Raja Memorial Trophy, Kalinga Cup, Santosh Trophy, Subroto Cup.
Hockey:
Hockey is a type of stick sport that is played between two teams using hockey sticks to propel a disc or ball into the goal.
Number of Players:
11 players in each team.
Duration:
The duration of a hockey match is 60 minutes: four quarters of 15 minutes.
Dimension:
The hockey field is rectangular with a length of 91.4m or 100 yards and a width of 55m or 60 yards.
Weight:
The weight of a standard hockey ball is 156-163 g (5.5-5.75 ounces). The average length of a hockey stick for an adult player is 89–95 cm (35–38 in), but the maximum length can be 105 cm.
The maximum permitted weight of a hockey stick is 737 g. However, most players use a hockey stick weighing between 538 g and 623 g (19-22 oz).
Terminologies:
Bully, Short corner, Hattrick, Goal, Penalty Corner, Penalty stroke, Halfback, Astroturf, Sudden death, Striking circle, Undercutting.
Trophies:
Agha Khan Cup, Dhyan Chand Trophy, Guru Nanak Championship, Indira Gold Cup, Lady Ratan Tata Trophy, MCC Trophy, Modi Gold Cup, Nehru Trophy, Rangaswami Cup, Rene Frank Trophy.
Table Tennis:
Table tennis is also known as the Ping Pong sport, a racket sport derived from traditional tennis, as it is played on the surface of a stationary table.
Number of Players:
In single matches, the number of players is one from each side, but in doubles, two players contest from each side.
Duration:
Table tennis matches generally consist of 3, 5, or 7 games in which players have to score 11 points. There is no fixed duration of the game.
Dimension:
A standard table tennis table is 2.74m long, 1.525m wide, and 0.76m tall. The table is divided into two halves by a 15.25 cm high net.
Terminologies:
Volley, Late service, Drive spin, Half volley, Backhand, Chop, Backspin, Sidespin, Skunk, Smash, Topspin, Pips-in, Pips-out.
Trophies:
Barna Bellack Cup, Corbillion Cup, Rajkumari Challenge Cup, Ramanujan Trophy.
Lawn Tennis:
Also known as Tennis, originated in Birmingham, England, and is a racket sport played between two teams consisting of one or two players in each team using a string racket to hit the ball.
Number of Players:
In singles, 1 player from each team.
In Doubles, 2 players from each team.
Duration:
There is no fixed duration for Lawn tennis matches. Some last around 90 minutes, whereas many last over 3 hours.
Dimension:
A standard lawn tennis court is 78 feet (23.77 m) long and 27 feet (8.23 m) wide. But in doubles matches, the width increases to 36 feet or 10.97 m.
Weight:
According to the International Tennis Federation (ITF), the weight of a tennis ball is 56-59.4 g (1.98-2.1 oz).
Different Tournament & Court:
Australian Open: Hard court
French Open (Roland-Garros): Clay court
Wimbledon: Grass court
US Open: Hard court.
London Open: Grass court.
Terminologies:
Ace, Deuce, Match point, serve, Advantage, Game Point, Grand Slam, Break, Grass Court, Drop shot, Netplay.
Trophies:
Davis Cup, Rajendra Prasad Cup, Ramanujan Trophy, Thant Cup, Wightman Cup, Wimbledon Trophy.
Kabaddi:
Kabaddi is a contact sport, played between two teams consisting of seven players, one of the oldest games of Southeast Asia.
The raider has to come back within his half within 30 seconds without being tackled.
Dimension:
A standard size Kabaddi ground must be 13m in length and 10m wide (for men). For women, the length is 12m and the width is 8m.
Number of Players:
In each team, 7 players are present.
Duration:
The duration of a Kabaddi match is 40 minutes ( 2 halves of 20 minutes).
Terminologies:
All out, Cover, Centre, Dash, Do-or-Die raid, Dubki, Raid, Lobby, Tag.
Trophies:
Federation Cup, Pro Kabaddi League.
Badminton:
Badminton is a racquet sport, played in either singles or doubles, using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net.
Number of Players:
Badminton is played either in singles (1 player in each team) or doubles (2 players in each team).
Duration:
There is no fixed duration for a badminton match.
Dimension:
A badminton court is 13.4m long and 6.1m wide. However, for singles, the width decreases to 5.18m.
Terminologies:
Service court, Double fault, Forehand, Backhand, Smash, Hit, Love.
Trophies:
Divan Cup, Lady Ratan Tata Trophy, Maharaja Ranjit Singh Gold Cup, Narang Cup, Thomas Cup, Tunku Abdul-Rahman Cup, Uber Cup (Women).
Other Sports:
| Sports | Number of players in each team | Terminologies | Trophies |
| Basketball | 5 | Free throw, Common foul, Underhead, Overhead, Lay Upshot, Double dribble foul, Airball. | Bangalore Cup, Todd Memorial Trophy, Williams Cup. |
| Baseball | 9 | Homerun, Base runner, Perfect game, Throw, Strike, Put out, Pinch hitter. | NA |
| Athletics | 1 | Relay, Track, Lane, Shot Put, Discus Throw, Hammer Throw, High Jump, Triple Jump. | NA |
| Boxing | 1 | Southpaw, Spar, Orthodox, Jab, Hook, Rounds, Technical Knockout (TKO), Knock Out (KO), Glass jaw, Cutman, Upper cut, Eight Count. | NA |
| Cycling | 1 | Sprint, Time trial, Track race, Point race. | NA |
| Golf | 1 | Ace, albatross, double eagle, all square, putt, birdie, blind shot, bogey, Four-Ball. | Canada Cup, Eisenhower Cup, Prince of Wales Cup, Ryder Cup, Walker Cup. |
| Horse riding | 1 | Three-day Event, Dresses, Showjumping, Faults, Punter, Jockey. | NA |
| Chess | 1 | Gambit, move, resign, stalemate, capture, checkmate, Grandmaster, international master, pawn. | NA |
| Swimming | 1 | Freestyle, Backstroke, Breaststroke, Butterfly stroke. | NA |
| Shooting | 1 or 2 | Rapidfire Pistol, Standard rifle, Free pistol, Air rifle, Range, Bull’s eye, Marksmanship. | NA |
| Wrestling | 1 | Freestyle, Point, Hal Nelson. | NA |
| Vollyball | 6 | Spikers, Booster, Deuce, Smash, Libero, Attack block, Cross-court shot. | NA |
| Kho-Kho | 12 (9 in the field and 3 extra). | Poleby, Runner, Chaser. | NA |
Top 50+ MCQs on Sports Terminologies, Trophies, & Other Facts
Chess.
Lawn Tennis.
Polo.
Gonzalo García (Real Madrid). Cole Palmer was awarded the best player of the tournament, and Desire Doué was named the best young player. Robert Sanchez was the best goalkeeper.
Sachin Tendulkar (1992).
Angelo Mathews (Sri Lanka).
Bridge (A card game).
Horse Riding.
Shooting.
Golf.
60 minutes ( 4 quarters of 15 minutes).
Clay court.
13 metres long and 10 metres wide.
Cricket.
56-59.4 grams.
Lionel Messi (Argentina)- 8 times.
Magnus Carlsen is a popular chess player from Norway.
6 players.
Football.
Badminton.
1877.
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