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Euro 24 Football Language Phrase (Day 16): Whimper
The knockout phase of the competition has started and day 16’s Euro 24 football language is ‘whimper’, from the Italy v Switzerland match. Don’t forget we have hundreds more explanations of football language in our football glossary and we also have a page full of football cliches. If you have questions or comments about this or any other phrase then email us at: admin@languagecaster.com.
Whimper
On Day 16 of the Euro 24 competition the hosts Germany beat Denmark 2-0 and the Swiss beat the reigning champions, Italy, by the same score. The surprising thing about Italy’s defeat was how easy it was for Switzerland. Of course the Swiss team played extremely well, and scoring a second goal early in the second half might have knocked the air out of Italy, but the Azzurri offered virtually nothing in attack and struggled to keep the ball.
It was a very poor performance by the Italian side. They left the competition with a whimper. A whimper is a sound a person or animal makes when they are sad, frightened, or hungry. It is a weak sound connected with young children or dogs.
It is used in football a lot when a team loses or is knocked out of a competition without trying, without showing any kind of spirit. Of course, the players probably did try, but to the fans it looks like a sad display with no energy or will to win.
So, Italy went out with a whimper. It is used mainly in this way: a verb (go out, bow out, go home) + ‘with’ + ‘a whimper’. Here are some examples:
- Example: Spalletti made six changes from the side that toiled against Croatia and, not for the first time at this tournament, changed his formation too. It had little effect, and his side went out with a whimper. (BBC.co.uk, June 29, 2024)
- Example: Italy bowed out of EURO 2024 with a whimper after a dismal performance in their 2-0 defeat to Switzerland. (Football-Italia, July 24, 2024)
Euro 2024 Football phrases – Group Stage