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The proper name of what most the world call "football" and the Americans call "soccer" is association football. The word "soccer" comes from an alteration of "assoc.", which is an abbreviation of "association football" (as opposed to Rugby or Gaelic football, etc).
The use of the term can be traced back to about 1880: it's documented as soccer or socca in 1889, and socker in 1891. Soccer seemed have become the most common phrase by 1895. Originally it was only university slang; it was habitual for English university students in the 1880s to abreviate any word and then add on 'er' or 'ers' to it (so breakfast became brekkers, or rugby became ruggers). Because this linguistic habit belonged to an elite social group is probably why the name soccer never caught on among the masses in most of the world. Perhaps it would never have caught on in the United States, except that Americans already had their own preferred 'football' game.
The use of the term can be traced back to about 1880: it's documented as soccer or socca in 1889, and socker in 1891. Soccer seemed have become the most common phrase by 1895. Originally it was only university slang; it was habitual for English university students in the 1880s to abreviate any word and then add on 'er' or 'ers' to it (so breakfast became brekkers, or rugby became ruggers). Because this linguistic habit belonged to an elite social group is probably why the name soccer never caught on among the masses in most of the world. Perhaps it would never have caught on in the United States, except that Americans already had their own preferred 'football' game.
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Foot ball mean splayed with the foot... Why is then any oval ball game called football? When the foot is used rarely... Its like a minority making rules for the majority...not logical.
Rugby stayed Rugby full stop. If it is league then just say so. If its Aussie rules so be it, etc... Or American "yankee" football if they want to but US Rugby is more suited for such a bastardised sport...Simple, really even for yanks...
Rugby stayed Rugby full stop. If it is league then just say so. If its Aussie rules so be it, etc... Or American "yankee" football if they want to but US Rugby is more suited for such a bastardised sport...Simple, really even for yanks...
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