soccer or football? The origins of the word

[Gandalf]

Soccer is an ugly term though. Football is much more apt. It's football and shall always be football.

[Oggie]

I guess it depends where you are from. If you have a country with another sport that is bigger that also involves balls and feet, chances are you will give priority to the bigger sport. In Ireland, football refers to Gaelic Football generally. Soccer is more often used to distinguish between the two.

But I do find it strange that American football even includes the term 'football'. Wouldn't American handball have been more appropriate considering the ball spends 99% of the time in the players hands?

[HattonTheHammer]

if you call football "soccer" you are indeed a c*nt



end of argument.....

[Nameless]

Yeah I am not sure either why american football is labeled as "football". Perhaps because handball exist for a longer time and that the term was already in use... dunno. It could have something to do with the first who did brought the sport to North America or something but it doesn't effectively look clear why soccer did pan out so widely in Canada and US and why american football has been called "football"