Names for association football

The sport of association football has a variety of names in English. The most common names for the sport are "football" and "soccer", depending on the country.

International organisations such as FIFA and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) use the term "football" when referring to international events. This is because the sport is most commonly called "football" in most countries. However, the term "soccer" is more common in some countries, including the United States, Canada and Australia. In some countries where the sport is more commonly called "soccer" the official bodies use "football" in their names, even if most people call it "soccer" in that region. Despite this, even in countries where "soccer" is the most common term, most association football clubs use the abbreviation "FC" (which stands for "Football Club").

By language and region

English

Countries where it is called "football"

In most of the English-speaking world, including most countries in the Commonwealth of Nations, the sport is called "football". This includes the United Kingdom. However, the term "soccer" was actually coined in the United Kingdom, where it wad first used as a nickname for the sport. The term "soccer" was mostly used by the upper and middle classes, while the lower classes (including the working class, who had a big following in the sport) mostly used "football". However, as British society became less influenced by the upper class, "football" replaced "soccer".

Countries where there has been a somewhat successful shift from "soccer" to "football" include Ireland and New Zealand. In those countries, both terms are used, with "football" becoming more and more popular due to official branding and advertising but "soccer" still being used due to it traditionally being the more common name in those countries.

Australia

In Australia, most people call the sport "soccer", as that is the traditional name for the sport in Australia, despite the fact that the official body, now called Football Australia, has used the term "football" since 2005. This is because there are three major football codes in Australia: Australian rules football, rugby and soccer. Australian rules football is commonly called "footy", "football", "Aussie rules" or "AFL" (after the Australian Football League); rugby is commonly called "rugby", "footy", "football", "league" (when referring to rugby league) or "union" (when referring to rugby union); and association football is commonly called "soccer".

Even though Football Australia officially refers to the sport as "football", the Australian men's national team is still commonly and officially nicknamed the "Socceroos" (with the women's national team commonly and officially nicknamed the "Matildas") and the series between the Australian and New Zealand national teams still being called the Soccer Ashes (the trophy for which was rediscovered in 2023).

Names of football codes in Australia
Sport	Common name(s)
American football	American football, football, gridiron
Association football	Soccer
Australian rules football	AFL, Aussie rules, football, footy
Rugby league	Football, footy, league, rugby
Rugby union	Football, footy, rugby, union
Touch football	Football, footy, touch

Canada

In Canada, due to the dominance of American football and Canadian football, the sport is commonly and officially known as "soccer".

Papua New Guinea

In Papua New Guinea, the sport is most commonly known as "soccer" due to Australian influence. However, although the official body is known as the Papua New Guinea Football Association (PNGFA), the country's highest league is called the Papua New Guinea National Soccer League (PNGSL).

South Africa

The sport is most commonly called "soccer" in South Africa, however official bodies use the term "football" in English.

United States

In the United States, due to the dominance of American football, the sport is commonly and officially known as "soccer". However, Inter Miami CF, a Major League Soccer club based in Miami, Florida, uses the term "fútbol" on its website. The term fútbol is the Spanish name for association football and comes from the English word "football". The majority of people in Miami speak Spanish as their first language and English as their second language, and the club itself is officially known as Club Internacional de Fútbol Miami (lit. 'Miami International Football Club').

Other languages

In French, the most common name for the sport is football, which is borrowed from English. However, in North America, the most common name in French is soccer (which is also borrowed from English).

In Japanese, the word for the sport is サッカー (sakkā), derived from the English word "soccer" (due to American influence), with フットボール (futtobōru) being used for other football codes. However, the Japan Football Association uses sakkā in its Japanese name and "football" in its English name.

On Wikipedia

The debate over the sports name has expanded to Wikipedia. Because of this, the English Wikipedia and the Simple English Wikipedia have guidelines on which term should be used in articles relating to each country. In articles related to Australia, Canada, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, South Africa and/or the United States, "soccer" is used, but in other articles, either "football" or "association football" are used. On the French Wikipedia, articles written in North American French (i.e those related to Canada and/or the United States) use "soccer" while others use "football".