own goal

American  

[ohn gohl] / ˈoʊn ˌgoʊl /

noun

1. Soccer, Ice Hockey. an unintentional goal scored to the offense when the ball struck by a defensive player goes into the defensive team’s net: o.g.

   The goalkeeper's own goal was a stunningly bad moment.

2. an unintentional harm or disadvantage to oneself or one’s associates, brought about by one’s own action, often when the intention was to harm or disadvantage someone else.

   The prosecution’s relentless badgering proved to be an own goal, and a much-relieved defendant went free.

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own goal British  

noun

1.  o.g.  soccer a goal scored by a player accidentally playing the ball into his own team's net

2. informal any action that results in disadvantage to the person who took it or to a party, group, etc with which that person is associated

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Etymology

Origin of own goal

First recorded in 1920–25

Example Sentences

They lost at Stadium of Light before Christmas, when Woltemade scored an own goal, so they simply cannot let the Black Cats do the double over them.

From BBC • Mar. 19, 2026

The low point came on Feb. 18, when it hosted Wolves, the worst team in the league: Arsenal cruised to a 2-0 lead before settling for a draw due to a 94th-minute own goal.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 1, 2026

A Ricardo Calafiori own goal in the 94th minute gives Wolves a point. as the Premier League's bottom side come back from two goals down against leaders Arsenal at Molineux.

From BBC • Feb. 18, 2026

They enjoyed the ideal preparation for a pivotal week by scoring four times in the first 27 minutes against Wigan through Noni Madueke, Gabriel Martinelli, a Jack Hunt own goal and Gabriel Jesus.

From Barron's • Feb. 15, 2026

In a mix-up, a Regal player ran back of his own goal line, and was grabbed for a "safety," which added two points to Stanley's score.

From A Boy Knight by Scott, Martin Jerome