at a world cup final

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It’s the World Cup Final, and a man makes his way to his seat right next to the pitchTHE FIELD WHERE FOOTBALL IS PLAYED. He sits down, noticing that the seat next to him is empty. He leans over and asks his neighbourPERSON LIVING OR SITTING NEXT TO YOU if someone will be sitting there.

“No,” says the neighbour. “The seat is empty.”

“This is incredibleUNBELIEVABLE ↔ AMAZING,” said the man. “Who in their right mindTHINKING SENSIBLY would have a seat like this for the Final and not use it?”

The neighbour says, “Well, actuallyIN REALITY ↔ IN FACT, the seat belongs to me. I was supposed to come with my wife, but she passed awayDIED ↔ PASSED ON,. This is the first World Cup Final we haven’t been to together since we got married.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry to hear that. That’s terrible…. But couldn’t you find someone else, a friend, relative or even a neighbour to take her seat?”

The man shakes his head. “No,” he says. “They’re all at the funeralA CEREMONY FOR SOMEONE WHO HAS DIED.”

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Let's look at these three: pitch, passed away, and in their right mind. A pitch is the field where football (or other field sports) is played. Passed away is a polite way to say that someone has died. In their right mind means thinking or behaving in a sensible and reasonable way.

• The players ran onto the pitch for the final match.
• He was very sad when his grandmother passed away.
• Who in their right mind would turn downREFUSE free tickets to the World Cup?

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This joke uses the past simple tense to tell a story about an event that happened in the past, such as “a man made his way to his seat” and “she passed away.” The punchline relies on dark humour and surprise: instead of attending his wife’s funeral, the man chose to go to the match, and everyone else is at the funeral.

• He asked his neighbour about the empty seat.
• She explained why she was alone.
• They laughed at the unexpectedNOT ANTICIPATED ending.

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