arrow back icon Top Answers

Describe a sports competition you watched: IELTS Speaking Cue Card

You should say

  • What competition it was?
  • When and where you watched it?
  • What was the most exciting moment?
  • And explain how it made you feel.
Show all 152 answers

Cue 1:What competition it was?

  • Begin by naming the specific sports competition you watched, such as a cricket match or a football tournament.
  • Provide a brief background about the competition, including its significance and the teams or players involved.

Example

The competition I watched was the ICC Cricket World Cup final between India and Australia. This match was particularly significant as it was held at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, where India was aiming to win the World Cup on home soil.


Cue 2:When and where you watched it?

  • Mention the date and time of the event, as well as the location where you watched it.
  • Describe the atmosphere of the place, whether you were at home, a friend's house, or a public viewing area.

Example

I watched the match on April 2, 2011, at my friend's house. We had gathered there with a group of friends, and the excitement in the air was palpable. Everyone was wearing blue jerseys, and we had snacks and drinks ready for the big game.


Cue 3:What was the most exciting moment?

  • Identify a specific moment in the competition that stood out as the most thrilling.
  • Explain why this moment was exciting, including any emotions or reactions from the crowd.

Example

The most exciting moment was when MS Dhoni hit a six to win the match. The entire room erupted in cheers, and I felt a rush of joy and pride. It was a defining moment, as it not only secured the victory but also showcased Dhoni's incredible skill and composure under pressure.


Cue 4:And explain how it made you feel.

  • Share your personal feelings during and after the competition, focusing on the emotional impact.
  • Discuss any sense of pride or connection you felt with your country or the sport.

Example

Watching India win the World Cup made me feel immensely proud to be an Indian. I was filled with joy and a sense of unity with my friends and fellow fans. It was a moment that brought everyone together, celebrating our team's hard work and dedication.


Conclusion

    Example

    In conclusion, watching the ICC Cricket World Cup final was an unforgettable experience that filled me with pride and excitement. It reminded me of the power of sports to bring people together and create lasting memories.


    Following this structure will ensure you cover all the essential points while providing a clear and engaging response to the cue card topic.


    Tips to answer this Cue Card

    1: Lack of Specific Details

    Candidates often provide vague answers without specific details about the competition. This can make the response less engaging and informative.

    bulb icon

    Tip

    Include specific names, dates, and locations related to the competition to make your answer more vivid and interesting.


    2: Ignoring Emotional Impact

    Many candidates forget to express their feelings about the competition. This can lead to a flat and uninteresting response.

    bulb icon

    Tip

    Share your emotions during the competition, especially during exciting moments, to connect better with the listener.


    Rushing Through the Answer

    Some candidates speak too quickly, missing important points and making it hard for the examiner to follow.

    bulb icon

    Tip

    Take your time to structure your answer clearly, pausing between points to ensure clarity and coherence.


    calendar icon

    IELTS Cue Cards asked last week

    Reported by Leap students who gave IELTS

    Describe your favourite food at a traditional festival or a special event in your country
    anonymous person icon

    Reported by

    Anonymous student Band 7.5

    location icon

    Pitampura Test Centre, New Delhi

    Answer

    I like to taste different types of cuisine. Here I would like to talk about my favorite dish at my traditional festival of Onam which is Sadya. Sadya is popular in my city. We are experimenting these cuisines on Onam festival day. Onam is a famous festival in my city. All family members get together in my home and we make a delicious Sadya. There are many ingredients includes that Sadya. Moreover, we make a big feast that day as well as we create a lot of memories together and we wear that day the traditional dress called Sari and men wear the Dhotis. That festival is really important to us because the whole day we are conducting different kinds of games at our homes and all the family members came together. It's a memorable day in my life. This is the festival. We are making the Sambar and Aviyal. These all the kinds of foods are making with the vegetables.

    Talk about a toy you liked in your childhood
    anonymous person icon

    Reported by

    Anonymous student Band 8

    location icon

    Sector 34 Test Centre, Chandigarh

    Answer

    The toy which I liked in my childhood was a panda doll, which makes me pleasant and makes me more blush. The pandas are the most beautiful creatures of the world, which looks gigantic and has pooshy cheeks and they are like stars in the clouds and they dream in me. Furthermore, these have been given by my father. My father is a very very beautiful artistic person, who makes me think of that. Every day you will face every difficulties and make you suffer and move forward. Pandas are always seen in Japanese countries. It is my lifelong dream to visit a Japanese country and click a photo with the original pandas, which makes sounds better.

    Describe a time you were in a place where you didn't know the local language
    anonymous person icon

    Reported by

    Anonymous student Band 6.5

    location icon

    Whitefield Test Center, Bengaluru

    Answer

    As India is a very large country full of diversity, so there are many places which have their own language and speak their native language. The place which I visited and I didn't know about their language was Leladakh, which is about 300 km away from my hometown and it is a very good place as it consists of different kind of trees, animals and have many scenic views and I visited over there last year in summers as it was the best time to visit because it has many, it was cold over there and we had summers in our area so it was the best time to visit over there and I went over there with my whole family.

    Describe a time when your friend damaged something you owned
    anonymous person icon

    Reported by

    Anonymous student Band 7

    location icon

    Begumpet Test Centre, Hyderabad

    Answer

    When I was a kid, I had a little pencil box which had these four buttons which gave the pencil box an operative use. When you press the button, the box would open up. When you press the second button, a little part of it would slide out. Basically it was just a little electronical and a fun thing to have and I owned it when I was in 6th. One day after break, I was standing and talking there with one of my friends and another friend of mine was running through the hallway and accidentally she pushed my shoulder and my pencil box hit the ground and it broke into multiple pieces to the point that it was not functional anymore.

    Describe a book you recently read
    anonymous person icon

    Reported by

    Anonymous student Band 7.5

    location icon

    CBD Belapur Test Centre, Navi Mumbai

    Answer

    It Ends With Us is a book I read recently. It's by the author Colleen Hoare. It's mainly a story about two teenagers, Atlas and Lily, and how they just handle their life going through high school, adolescence, and just domestic violence at home. Both of them come from very, very different families. However, they have one common determining factor between them, which is domestic violence. The abuse that they've seen their moms go through is just insane, and they connect through that on a different level. They're actually in the same high school, but they never speak to each other until Atlas actually crashes into an empty house next to Lily's villa. When Atlas is homeless and he doesn't have anywhere to go, he just comes and breaks into the house next to Lily's, and Lily helps him with all the daily necessities like clothes and food, medicines and stuff. Furthermore, their friendship blossoms into love, but it doesn't really fructify as Atlas has to leave. This book really gave me a lot of knowledge about domestic abuse and how to deal with it.

    All Answers

    Here are all the answers by real-users practicing speaking for IELTS Cue Cards on our IELTS Prep App.

    Band 7

    So the sports competition that I have watched and enjoyed the most in my life is actually last year's T20 World Cup, Cricket World Cup. And I do generally like watching cricket, that is one of the few sports that I actually understand and enjoy watching, since I am not a very sport-liking or sporty person in general. But as to the match in question, it was in June 2024 and it actually took place in a different continent, so I had to watch it on my television. But it was the best match, one of the best cricket matches that ever took place that I actually watched from beginning to end. And the most exciting part of the match was when India, which was the country that I supported obviously, since that is my home country, so we won the World Cup in a very exciting match and it was a well-prepared match. Till the very last moment, we were not sure if we were going to win or not, but we did eventually. And it was exciting, I felt amazing, I started jumping from joy, I started crying from joy. And it also gave us a lot of sense, like the fact that we were almost going to lose till the very end of the match and still nobody, the players, the people who were watching, the coaches, nobody actually lost their hopes. We were still praying, we were still trying and we did eventually win by the very end of it. So it is not just a sport, I mean it is a sport, but it is not just for entertainment, it is also for teaching us the value of hope and the value of trying in life. So that is one of the very reasons I watch cricket matches because they are a team play.

    Band 7

    The one sport I really enjoy watching is definitely football. Specifically speaking the Indian Super League seasons of football is really something that makes me want to watch it again and again. Throughout the season I watched it with such an enjoyment that the whole neighborhood could hear my scream. And my whole family really loves football and I think my family really loves how football conveys the sense of brotherhood. Even when Kerala couldn't mourn the season, I think it is about participating and really expressing ourselves and doing the best what we could do was enough. And watching it was really overwhelming for me and I really love how each and every player treats each other in their team and how they respect their coach. And I think there shouldn't be any other reasons.

    Band 7

    Well the most recent competition that I attended was wrestling and this was held in California. The competition was between India versus Australia and Gita Pogat was the one who was competing for India. The most exciting moment about this was when she lifted her opponent 360 degrees on the mat to score a full point of five and that made her win the whole wrestling competition at the end. That was the moment which gave me goosebumps all over my body and it felt like not only her but many Indians had made our country proud of what she had did. Thank you.

    Band 7

    One of the most memorable sports competition I watched was the final match of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 between England and New Zealand. I watched it live on television at home with my family in July 2019. The match took place at Lord's Cricket Ground in London and it was truly one of the most thrilling games in the history of cricket. The most exciting moment came during the Super Over which was introduced because the regular match ended in a tie. Even after the Super Over, the scores were levelled and England was declared the winner based on the number of boundaries scored. It was a dramatic and emotional rush. As a former supporter of England, that day I became a newly added fan of New Zealand. Watching this match made me feel a mixture of excitement, anxiety and amazement. It showed me how unpredictable sports can be and how even the smallest moments can decide a championship. The intensity and sportsmanship on display were unforgettable. Especially Kane Williamson being a gentleman showed the calmness and he kept his cool throughout the game. He was really fun to watch because I remember he scored a century and he was not the man of the match because eventually they lost the game. But still, later on the interview he talked about not their failure but he acknowledged that England team won and it was really amazing and surprising to me that how a person can maintain his posture and keep cool in such hectic situations. All in all, it was a fun game to watch.

    Band 7

    In 2024, I watched the World T20 Cricket World Cup and India won that World Cup. It took place in US and West Indies and it was the most exciting match to see live. It was one of the best moments to see Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma win, finally lift that trophy after so long. It has been a dream of many Indians including me to see them win and it was just a historic moment and it was just amazing. During the last couple of overs when India was losing, we all thought that this is it like South Africa is going to win the game but the Indian bowlers came back and just completely turned the game 180 degrees and the game was in India's hands, especially the catch made by Suryakumar Yadav during the 18th or 19th over was just amazing to watch and all the players and their hard work just completely paid off. They had been winning the whole entire series and they had not lost once so we were all rooting for India to win especially after the loss, the huge loss that they suffered in the previous World Cup by losing to Australia and it was just amazing to watch. It was definitely something that I will tell the future generations about and my little cousins about because it was just one of the most amazing matches to see live or even on TV because it was just amazing and spectacular to see our country to do so well after so long.

    Band 7

    Although I watched a number of sports events like tennis, football, basketball, cricket or for instance multi-sports events like Olympics, Commonwealth and several other competitions but one which I remember the most is the Olympic 2020 in Tokyo which I watched lying around in my home when I was enjoying my vacation here at my hometown Bhunegarh. I remember every bit of the broadcast of the Olympics because I was very enthusiastic for supporting my team and my country India. Indian players participated in variety of events including badminton, hockey, basketball, volleyball and several other events which I enjoy watching the most. For instance, Manu Bhakar, a brilliant shooter who just at age of 22 won a silver and a bronze medal at the Olympic Games this year and I was so very motivated by her because we share the same age and it made me more motivated for the fact we belong to the same age. Also, I was very free at that time because of my vacations. So, I was totally dedicated towards watching the games. I also followed every single update on social media so as I cannot miss anything and I watched the whole series on television.

    Band 7

    One sports competition I watched and truly enjoyed was the FIFA World Cup Final in 2022 between Argentina and France. I watched it live on television at home with my family in December. It was held in Qatar and although I wasn't there physically, the energy even through the screen was electric. The match was unforgettable. Argentina started strong, scoring two goals in the first half but France made a stunning comeback and by the end of the extra time it was 3-3 draw. The game was finally decided by penalty shootout which was incredibly intense. The most memorable moment for me was when Lionel Messi scored his second goal in extra time. It felt like when the whole world held its breath and the highlight was when Argentina's goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez made a crucial save during the penalties that saved basically on the World Cup. Watching that match made me feel a mixed emotion, nervous, excited and deeply inspired. I have always admired Messi as a player.

    Band 7

    So, it was a basketball sports competition last year during my grade 11 midterms and right before my midterms started, I thought of relaxing for some time and going and watching the sports competition nearby my house and oh my god, it was the most thrilling thing I have watched all year. Even the competitions on TV were no match for it. So, in the beginning, I usually vote for the underdogs instead of the stronger teams and guess what? This time, the underdogs had won. The teams, they were selected at random and there was a coin flip done to who would get which side of the court, of course, and in the beginning, the stronger teams, they were obviously winning but then the underdogs, they got a half-time, a half-time tea break, yeah, tea time, tea break, a break, yeah, and their coach came up with this excellent strategy and since I was actually watching from right behind their team, I kind of understood what the coach was talking about and when they started playing from the second quarter onwards, oh my god, their defense was on another level. Like, nobody could get past their wall of defense and the stronger team was not able to shoot at all. They shot no baskets. On the third quarter, the underdogs, they brought out their shooter and let me say, she was amazing. Her height, first of all, she was 6 foot 3. Secondly, her ball control was beyond this world. She got the team, I think, around 50 points and they won. It was crazy. I loved every single moment of it. Like, I...

    Band 7

    I would like to talk about the ICC Cricket World Cup Final that I watched in 2019, a game that completely captivated me from start to finish. I remember it vividly because it wasn't just any cricket match, it was the final showdown between England and New Zealand, and it took place at the iconic Lodz Cricket Ground in England. I watched it live on television with my family and the atmosphere at home was electrifying, we were on the edge of our seats the entire time, cheering, groaning and holding our breath during every key moment. The reason this match stood out so much was because of how unpredictable and emotionally charged it was. Both teams delivered phenomenal experiences and by the end of 50 goals each, their scores were identical that led to a super over, a rare and nerve-wracking tiebreaker in cricket. Even that ended in a tie which is practically unheard of in the sport. Eventually England was declared the winner on the basis of hitting more boundaries, a rule that sparked widespread debate and even a call for reforms in international cricket. Performing beyond the controversy, the match was a masterclass in skill, strategy and mental strength. I was particularly moved by how the New Zealand team handled their loss. Their captain, Kane Williamson, displayed extraordinary grace and dignity, making me admire him even more. It was a moment that highlighted not just competition but character. I also noticed how sports claimed to be about people. Social media was flooded with reactions and discussions continued for days and even for months. Sometimes even among people who are into cricket fans, it reinforced the idea that sports can transcend the language and culture to create shared experiences. Watching the match as a family made it even more special.

    Band 7

    One of the most exciting sports competitions I watched was the FIFA World Cup Final in 2022. Held in Qatar, I watched it live on TV with my family at home. The match was between Argentina and France and it was one of the most thrilling football games I have ever seen. We were all gathered in the living room, cheering and reacting to every goal and penalty. The match ended in a dramatic penalty shootout, with Argentina winning the cup. It was an emotional moment, especially for fans of Lionel Messi, who finally won the World Cup after many years. I enjoyed it not only because of the intense gameplay and high skill level, but also because I was able to share excitement with my family. The energy, the passion of the fans and incredible performance were just unforgettable. It reminded me how powerful sports can be in bringing people together.
    ielts logo

    Get the IELTS Prep App

    Star rating icon

    4.2

    1M+ Installs

    app download banner image

    Get the app link on your phone

    +91

    Or download app from

    google play storeapp store
    master ielts speaking ad