# foul



## jancho

Hello. How would you say "foul" (in soccer) in Finnish language? It is meant to be a noun describing an action in which one player hurts some other player, usually from the other team.


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## Grumpy Old Man

I'm not a soccer fan but I think _virhe_ is the word. It's also used in basketball.


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## dinji

Grumpy Old Man said:


> I'm not a soccer fan but I think _virhe_ is the word. It's also used in basketball.


 
The word _virhe_ sounds very generic to me (also means 'error'). What would native speakers think of _rike_, would it fit the given sports context as a more specific equivalent of _foul_?


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## Grumpy Old Man

_Rike_ sounds fine and is actually used by many commentators. I checked the Finnish Football Association's website for the official word, which is _rikkomus._ I think commentators use all three words. The official word isn't perhaps the most common since it is longer  (three syllables) than the others.


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