Hey everybody, welcome to this A1 English listening practice video. You can use this video to practice your listening and comprehension as I speak. Before we start, remember to subscribe to the channel, click on the bell and follow us on Instagram.

大家好，欢迎观看初级英语听力视频。你可以用这个视频练习英语听力和理解能力。在开始之前，点选、关注、评论，一键三连。

You ready? So today I’m gonna talk about American sports. Many foreigners don’t know much about American sports. That’s why this is a good topic to discuss. I’m gonna talk about three American sports, basketball, baseball, and football. These are the most popular sports in the US.

准备好了吗？所以今天我要谈谈美国的体育。许多外国人对美国的体育了解不多。这就是为什么这是一个好的讨论话题。我将谈论三项美国运动，篮球、棒球和橄榄球。这些是美国最受欢迎的运动。

First, let’s talk about basketball. Actually, this sport is popular in some other countries, too. For example, it’s popular in some European and Asian countries, but it’s more popular in America. In the US, our professional basketball league is called the NBA. The NBA has 30 teams, 29 American teams and one Canadian team, the Toronto Raptors. You probably know some of the famous NBA teams, like the Los Angeles Lakers and the Golden State Warriors. When I was younger, I was a big Lakers fan. I started watching their games when I was 6 years old. My favorite players were Shaq and Kobe. You might know those names.

首先，让我们谈谈篮球。实际上，这项运动在其他国家也很受欢迎。例如，在一些欧洲和亚洲国家很流行，但在美国更受欢迎。在美国，我们的职业篮球联赛被称为NBA。NBA有30支球队，29支美国队和一支加拿大队，多伦多猛龙队。你可能知道一些著名的NBA球队，比如洛杉矶湖人队和金州勇士队。当我年轻的时候，我是湖人队的忠实粉丝。我六岁开始看他们的比赛。我最喜欢的球员是沙奎尔和科比。你可能知道这些名字。

So the rules of basketball are pretty simple. You try to shoot the ball into the hoop and you defend your hoop. If you score from close, it’s two points. If you score from far away, it’s three points. And if you score a foul shot or free throw, it’s one point. The team who scores more points wins. Easy, right?

所以篮球的规则相当简单。你尝试将球投进篮筐，同时防守你的篮筐。如果你近距离得分，那是两分。如果你远距离得分，那是三分。如果你得分是罚球或罚篮，那是一分。得分多的队获胜。简单，对吧？

When I was a kid, I played basketball a lot. I was tall, so this really helped me. If you’re tall, you have an advantage. Nowadays, I don’t play basketball anymore.

小时候，我经常打篮球。我很高，这对我帮助很大。如果你高，你就有优势。现在，我不再打篮球了。

Okay, now let’s talk about baseball. In the past, baseball was the most popular sport in America. But today, more Americans watch football. In the U.S., our professional baseball league is called the MLB. The MLB has 30 teams, just like the NBA.

好的，现在让我们来谈谈棒球。在过去，棒球是美国最受欢迎的运动。但今天，更多的美国人观看橄榄球。在美国，我们的职业棒球联盟被称为MLB。MLB有30支球队，就像NBA一样。

Baseball is popular in some countries outside the US. For example, people in the Caribbean love baseball, and it’s also popular in some Asian countries. How about you? Do you like baseball?

棒球在美国以外的一些国家也很受欢迎。例如，加勒比海地区的人们热爱棒球，在一些亚洲国家也很流行。你呢？你喜欢棒球吗？

So, the rules of baseball are complicated. There’s no time in baseball. We don’t have two halves or four quarters. Instead, there are nine innings. In each inning, both teams have the chance to play on offense and defense. I won’t try to explain all the positions, but I will talk about the pitcher and batter. The pitcher is the person who throws the ball, and the batter is the person who hits the ball. The batter tries to hit the ball hard and far. The pitcher doesn’t want the batter to hit the ball. There are many more rules and they’re very complicated. But if you watch a few baseball games, you’ll start to understand.

那么，棒球的规则很复杂。棒球里没有时间限制。我们没有上下两个半场或四个小节。相反，有九个回合。在每个回合中，两个队伍都有机会进行进攻和防守。我不会尝试解释所有的位置，但我会谈谈投手和击球手。投手是投球的人，而击球手是击球的人。击球手试图用力和远地击球。投手不希望击球手击中球。还有更多的规则，它们非常复杂。但如果你观看几场棒球比赛，你就会开始理解。

I’m not good at baseball, but I like going to baseball games. It’s really fun to watch a baseball game in a baseball stadium.

我不擅长棒球，但我喜欢去看棒球比赛。在棒球场观看棒球比赛真的很有意思。

Okay, lastly, let’s talk about football. Remember that in the US, football is not soccer. When we say football, we’re talking about American football. Today, football is the most popular sport in America. More people watch football than any other sport. Nowadays, It’s becoming popular in other countries, too. Is American football popular in your country? So the rules of football are really complicated, and the rules change often.

好的，最后，让我们谈谈足球。记住，在美国，足球不是足球。当我们说足球时，我们指的是美式足球。今天，足球是美国最受欢迎的运动。观看足球比赛的人数超过了其他任何运动。现在，它在其他国家也越来越受欢迎了。美式足球在你们国家受欢迎吗？所以足球的规则非常复杂，而且规则经常变化。

If you don’t know the rules of football, it can be hard to understand what’s happening when you watch a game. However, the objective of the game is simple. You wanna score more points than the other team. You can score touchdowns, which are six points. You can score field goals, which are three points, and you can score extra points, which are one point. One team is on offense and one team is on defense. The most important player is the quarterback. He’s the player who throws the ball. And of course, the championship game is called the Super Bowl. This is a very popular event every year.

好的，最后，让我们谈谈足球。记住，在美国，足球不是足球。当我们说足球时，我们指的是美式足球。今天，足球是美国最受欢迎的运动。观看足球比赛的人数超过了其他任何运动。现在，它在其他国家也越来越受欢迎了。美式足球在你们国家受欢迎吗？所以足球的规则非常复杂，而且规则经常变化。

Okay, now I’m gonna ask you some questions about the video to see if you understood. Write your answers in a comment down below.

好的，现在我要问你一些关于视频的问题，看看你是否理解了。把你的答案写在下面的评论中。

No.1, how many Canadian teams are in the NBA? No. 2, in baseball, what does the batter do? No. 3, in football, who is the most important player?

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