siai no ato de, aite ni arigatou to iimasita.

試合のあとで means after the match/game.

• 試合 = match, game, contest
• あと = after, afterward
• の links 試合 and あと, so 試合のあと literally means the after of the match
• で marks the time setting here, giving the sense of at/after that time

So:

• 試合のあと = after the match
• 試合のあとで = after the match / at the time after the match

In everyday Japanese, 試合のあと and 試合のあとで can both work, but で is very common in this kind of sentence.

Because に marks the person you say something to.

In this sentence:

• 相手に = to the opponent

With 言う (to say), the pattern is often:

• A に B と言う = say B to A

So here:

• 相手に = to the opponent
• ありがとうと言いました = said thank you

Together: said thank you to the opponent.

と is the quotation particle.

It marks the exact content of what was said or thought. With 言う, it often works like “...” in English.

So:

• ありがとうと言いました = said thank you = literally, said “thank you”

This pattern is extremely common:

• 「おはよう」と言いました = I said good morning
• 「はい」と言いました = I said yes

Even without visible quotation marks, と shows that ありがとう is the spoken content.

Because Japanese sentences normally put the main verb at the end.

So the sentence builds up like this:

• 試合のあとで = after the match
• 相手に = to the opponent
• ありがとうと = “thank you”
• 言いました = said

This final-verb structure is one of the biggest differences from English.
English says:

• I said thank you to my opponent after the match.

Japanese more naturally goes:

• After the match, to my opponent, “thank you” said.

That sounds strange in English, but it is normal in Japanese.

相手 literally means the other person / the person on the other side / partner / opponent, depending on context.

Because the sentence begins with 試合 (match/game), 相手 is most naturally understood as:

• opponent
• the other player/team

So in this context, 相手 is best understood as the opponent.

The subject is omitted.

Japanese often leaves out subjects when they are clear from context. So this sentence could mean:

• I said thank you to my opponent after the match
• He said thank you to his opponent after the match
• She said thank you to her opponent after the match

If this were in a beginner textbook or if you were talking about your own actions, it would very often be understood as I.

This is very normal in Japanese: if the listener can figure out who is acting, the subject is often not stated.

Because the action is being described as a completed event.

• 言います = say / will say
• 言いました = said

Since the sentence describes something that happened after the match, Japanese uses the past form to show that the action is finished.

So ありがとうと言いました means:

• said thank you
• not say thank you or will say thank you

Yes.

The Japanese sentence literally says:

• After the match, I said “thank you” to my opponent.

But in natural English, that is often simply:

• I thanked my opponent after the match.

So both ideas match the Japanese well. The Japanese wording focuses on the actual spoken words ありがとう.

Because ありがとう is treated as quoted speech here, not as a normal direct object.

Japanese usually says:

• ありがとうと言う = say thank you
• literally, say “thank you”

Using を with 言う is less natural in this kind of expression.
The standard pattern is:

• [words spoken] と 言う

So ありがとうと言いました is the normal way to say it.

Both are possible, depending on tone and situation.

• ありがとう = thank you
• ありがとうございました = thank you very much / thank you (more polite, more formal)

In sports, people often say ありがとうございました to show extra politeness or respect, especially to an opponent, coach, or audience. But ありがとう is still grammatically fine and understandable.

So this sentence is correct, but in a more formal or respectful real-life situation, you might also hear:

• 試合のあとで、相手にありがとうございましたと言いました。

It is read:

しあい の あと で、あいて に ありがとう と いいました。

Word by word:

• 試合 = しあい
• あと = あと
• 相手 = あいて
• 言いました = いいました

So the full reading is:

しあいのあとで、あいてにありがとうといいました。

No. Normally, Japanese is written without spaces.

So the natural written form is:

試合のあとで、相手にありがとうと言いました。

Spaces are often added in beginner materials to make the structure easier to read. They are just a learning aid.