Why is football called 'soccer' in the US and Canada?

 

Why is football called 'soccer' in the US and Canada?

 

Football is a favorite sport of millions of people around the world, but interestingly, it is called ‘soccer’ in the two host countries of the 2026 World Cup, the United States and Canada.

This difference often becomes a topic of debate among fans as to what the real reason for this name is.

According to economist Stephen Szymanski, the word ‘soccer’ was also commonly used in England in the past and no one had any particular objection to it until the 1970s.

According to him, the roots of this term can be found in the nineteenth century when football was called

‘association football’ to distinguish it from rugby football.

At that time, there was a tendency among Oxford University students to shorten words and add ‘e, r’ at the end, as rugby was called ‘rugger’.

In the same way, the term ‘soccer’ came into existence from the middle part of ‘association’, ‘soc’ i.e. S, O, C’.

According to historical evidence, the word had also appeared in written form in the 1880s.

Over time, the word be

came popular in different parts of the world, especially in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Canada.

In the United States, the word ‘football’ became specific to American football, which is influenced by both rugby and soccer.

Although ‘football’ is more commonly used in the United Kingdom, ‘soccer’ was also used for a long time.

This debate continues even today, but according to experts, the roots of both words are connected to the same language and history.