Football club names are a part of the sport's culture, reflecting century-old traditions. Club names may reflect geographical, cultural, religious or political affiliations — or simply be the brand name of a club's primary sponsor. Because of the British origin of the sport, many clubs, even outside Europe, have their names written in English.
Formation of the name
Common components
A club's name is usually composed of two or more of the following elements, in most cases in the language of the club's home country:
- a word describing the type of entity that runs the club (or ran it when it was founded), such as "Club", "Association", "Society", "Centre", "League", "Union", etc. More recently some clubs are regular commercial enterprisescitation needed and may have this reflected in their names.
- a word indicating that the club is associated with some sport(s), usually (but not always) including football. Examples are "football", "athletics", "exercises", "sports", etc.
- a geographical name associating the club with some place (usually the town or region where it plays home matches). Examples: "Paris", "Milano", "Recife", "Croatia", "Goiás" or, alternatively, a word that associates the club with something else (a religious, cultural or political tradition). Sometimes the name of the town or the country may be written as in English (AC Milan).
- a proper name, mascot or nickname, like "Cruzeiro" "Betis", or "Crusaders".
- in Belgium, Spain and the Netherlands some clubs are associated with the monarchy like Real Madrid.
Official names often also contain common component (prepositions, conjunctions, etc.) (See List of common club name components section).
In Europe, many (if not most) clubs are named after their towns or cities (e.g. "Deportivo La Coruña", "Liverpool FC", "Hamburger SV", etc. In South America, clubs are more likely to have proper names than to bear the city's name. Some clubs, like Hansa Rostock or Torpedo Moscow may have both.
Common versus official usage
- See also: Lists of nicknames in football (soccer)
It is not uncommon for a club to be known in common usage by a name other than its official name, or the name on the badge.
Official names may reflect the instances where two different clubs with exactly (or more or less) the same name, prompting one or both to be suffixed with a geographical distinction. Famous instances of this are PFC CSKA Moscow and CSKA Sofia; Dynamo Moscow, Dynamo Kyiv, Dynamo Dresden and Dinamo Tbilisi; América de Cali (Colombia) and Club América (Mexico).
Other clubs are more usually known by nicknames or contractions of their full names, for instance, Vasco da Gama is usually called simply "Vasco", F.C. Internazionale Milano is contracted to Inter, Sporting Clube de Portugal are often called Sporting. Manchester United is ofted shortened to Man United (or even Man U), and Lyon used instead of Olympique Lyonnais.
Some clubs are commonly referred to by their initials, such as QPR, for Queens Park Rangers.
In a few cases there are even common misconceptions about the official name of the club. A common example being Glasgow Rangers and Glasgow Celtic, where their proper official names are simply Rangers F.C. and Celtic F.C. Another misunderstanding is Belfast Crusaders where the proper name is just Crusaders F.C.
Club names referring to a profession or education
Club names referring to a profession
| Topic |
Meaning |
Country |
Clubs |
| Armed forces |
For sport clubs affiliated with the armed forces of a country. See also CSKA. |
 Bhutan |
Royal Bhutan Army FC |
 Botswana |
Botswana Defence Force XI |
 Cambodia |
Army Division of Logistics, Royal Cambodian Air Force, Royal Navy |
 Myanmar |
Army |
 North Korea |
Haeju Army |
 Pakistan |
Pakistan Army, Pakistan Navy |
 Singapore |
Singapore Armed Forces Football Club |
 Trinidad and Tobago |
Defence Force |
| Arsenal |
Factories creating weapons |
 Argentina |
Arsenal de Sarandí |
 England |
Arsenal |
 Honduras |
Arsenal Roatán |
 Ukraine |
FC Arsenal Kiev |
| Beer |
|
 Eritrea |
Asmara Brewery |
 Ethiopia |
Harrar Beer Botling |
| Cobre- |
Spanish for copper, after association with copper mining |
 Chile |
Club de Deportes Cobreloa, Club Deportes Cobresal |
| Company name |
Club names containing the name of a company. These clubs were either founded as works teams by a company for its employees (e.g. PSV) or bought by a company (e.g. Red Bull Salzburg) |
 Austria |
Red Bull Salzburg |
 Colombia |
La Equidad |
 Germany |
Bayer 04 Leverkusen |
 Mexico |
Cruz Azul |
| England |
Vauxhall Motors, Rolls Royce Leisure, Billingham Synthonia (An ICI fertiliser brand), Sunderland Nissan, Cammell Laird |
 Netherlands |
Philips Sport Vereniging |
 Russia |
Lada Togliatti, FC Torpedo-RG, FC Torpedo-ZIL |
 Turkey |
Türk Telekomspor |
 USA |
Red Bull New York |
 Wales |
Airbus UK |
| Electrical |
Bargh: Persian for Electricity |
 Iran |
Bargh Shiraz F.C., Bargh Tehran F.C. |
| United States |
Houston Dynamo (Refers to Houston's energy-based industrial economy) |
| Germany |
1. FFC Turbine Potsdam(The club was initially supported by the local energy supplier.) |
| Industrial Revolution |
formed during the late Victorian Industrial boom |
England |
Middlesbrough Ironopolis F.C. |
| Metallurgy |
Foolad, Zob Ahan, and Mes: Persian for Steel, Steelworks, and Copper. Vasas: "Vas- és Fémmunkások" Hungarian for "Iron and Steel Workers" |
Iran |
Foolad F.C., F.C. Zob Ahan, Mes Kerman F.C. |
 Hungary |
Budapesti Vasas Sport Club |
 Latvia |
FK Liepājas Metalurgs |
| Russia |
Metallurg Krasnoyarsk, Metallurg Lipetsk, Metallurg-Kuzbass Novokuznetsk |
| Ukraine |
Metalurh Donetsk, Metalurh Nikopol, Metalurh Zaporizhia, FC Stal Alchevsk |
 Poland |
Stal Mielec |
| Germany |
Stahl Eisenhüttenstadt |
|
Stålkameratene |
| Mining |
Górnik: Polish for miner
Zagłębie: Polish for coalfield
Minero: Spanish for miner
Colliery: Coal mine |
England |
Atherton Collieries, Bentley Colliery, Harworth Colliery Institute, Pontefract Collieries, Thoresby Colliery Welfare, Thorne Colliery, Welbeck Colliery Welfare |
| Blackwell Miners Welfare, Calverton Miners Welfare, Gedling Miners Welfare, Holbrook Miners Welfare |
| Poland |
Górnik Łęczna, Górnik Polkowice, Górnik Wieliczka Górnik Zabrze, Zagłębie Lubin, Zagłębie Sosnowiec |
 Venezuela |
Atlético Club Mineros de Guayana |
| Municipal |
Indicates a club formed by workers of, or associated with, a city hall or otherwise related local government unit. |
 Guatemala |
CSD Municipal |
 Peru |
Deportivo Municipal |
 El Salvador |
Once Municipal |
| Navy |
Malavan: Persian for Sailor |
Iran |
Malavan F.C. |
| Petroleum |
Naft: Persian for Petrol |
 Angola |
Académica Petróleo Kwanda Soyo, Atlético Petróleos do Huambo, Atlético Petróleos do Namibe, Atlético Petróleos Luanda |
 Bolivia |
Oriente Petrolero |
| Colombia |
Alianza Petrolera |
 Ecuador |
Esmeraldas Petrolero |
| Iran |
Sanat Naft F.C. |
| Police |
For football clubs affiliated with a police force |
Botswana |
Police XI |
| Cambodia |
Military Police |
 China |
Vanguard Hubei Police Academy |
| Ecuador |
Escuela Superior de Policía (ESPOLI) |
| England |
Metropolitan Police, West Midlands Police |
 India |
Punjab Police |
 Iraq |
Al-Shorta |
 Lithuania |
Sostinės Policija Vilnius |
 Isle of Man |
Police |
 Nepal |
Mahendra Police Club |
 Uganda |
Police FC |
| Railroad workers |
Rah Ahan (Persian), Ferro Carril (Spanish), for Railroad (noun). Ferroviário (Portuguese) for Railroad (adjective). |
Argentina |
Ferro Carril Oeste, Rosario Central (from Central Argentine Railway) |
 Brazil |
Ferroviário Atlético Clube, Associação Ferroviária de Esportes |
| England |
Darlington Railway Athletic, Harrogate Railway Athletic, Leigh RMI |
| Iran |
Rah Ahan F.C. |
 Mozambique |
Clube Ferroviário da Beira, Clube Ferroviário de Maputo, Clube Ferroviário de Nampula |
| Ship-building |
After the Cammell Laird ship yard |
England |
Cammell Laird F.C. |
| Textile |
Nassaji: Persian for Textile Industry |
Argentina |
Textil Mandiyú |
 Croatia |
NK Varteks Varaždin |
| Iran |
Nassaji Mazandaran F.C. |
| Mozambique |
Grupo Desportivo da Companhia Têxtil do Punguè |
| Tractor manufacturing |
|
Iran |
Teraktor Sazi F.C. |
| Russia |
Rotor Volgograd |
| General |
|
 Italy |
SPAL 1907 (Società Polisportiva Ars et Labor) |
Club names referring to education
| Topic |
Meaning |
Country |
Clubs |
| Academical |
Affiliation with academics. See also Estudiantes, University, Polytechnic. |
 Bulgaria |
Akademik Sofia, Akademik Svishtov |
 Denmark |
Akademisk Boldklub |
| Germany |
Akademischer BC 1897 Charlottenburg, Akademischer SC 1893 Berlin |
| Mozambique |
Associação Académica de Maputo |
 Portugal |
Académica de Coimbra |
 Scotland |
Hamilton Academical |
| Old Boys |
Named by ex-pupils of the English High School of Rosario in homage to its director and football coach, English immigrant Isaac Newell |
Argentina |
Newell's Old Boys |
| Young Boys |
Named in contrast to nearby club Old Boys Basel (see Old Boys above) |
 Switzerland |
BSC Young Boys |
| Polytechnic |
Affiliation with academics. See also Academical, Estudiantes, University. |
 Moldova |
FC Politehnica Chişinău |
 Romania |
FC Politehnica Iaşi, Politehnica Ştiinţa Timişoara |
| Students |
Affiliation with students. See also Academical, Polytechnic, University. |
Argentina |
Estudiantes de La Plata, Estudiantes de Río Cuarto, Estudiantes de Buenos Aires |
| Brazil |
Estudantes Sport Club |
| Peru |
Estudiantes de Medicina |
| Romania |
Sportul Studenţesc |
| Venezuela |
Estudiantes de Mérida |
| University |
Affliation with universities. See also Academical, Estudiantes, Polytechnic. |
Bolivia |
Club Universitario |
| Brazil |
Sport Club Ulbra, Universidade Estácio de Sá Futebol Clube |
| Chile |
Club Deportivo Universidad Católica, Club de Fútbol Universidad de Chile, Club Deportivo Universidad de Concepción |
 Costa Rica |
Club de Futbol Universidad de Costa Rica |
| England |
Cambridge University A.F.C., University of Exeter, Oxford University A.F.C. |
 Ireland |
University College Dublin A.F.C. |
| Mexico |
Universidad Autónoma de Guadalajara, Club Universidad Nacional, Club Deportivo UANL |
| Peru |
Universitario de Deportes, Universidad San Martín de Porres |
| Romania |
FC Universitatea Craiova, Universitatea Cluj, Universitatea Craiova |
| Scotland |
Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh University |
 South Africa |
Pretoria University FC |
 Spain |
AD Universidad de Oviedo, Universidad de Las Palmas CF |
| Venezuela |
Universidad de Los Andes Fútbol Club |
Club names referring to days and dates
| Topic |
Meaning |
Country |
Clubs |
| Days of the week |
Clubs named after a specific day of the week |
England |
Sheffield Wednesday |
| Wales |
Abergavenny Thursdays |
| Independence Day |
Clubs named after the day of independence of the country |
Argentina |
9 de Julio de Rafaela, 9 de Julio de Morteros, Sportivo 9 de Julio Río Tercero (July 9) |
| Ecuador |
Club 9 de Octubre (October 9) |
| Portugal |
Sociedade União 1º de Dezembro (December 1) |
| Labour Day |
|
Angola |
Estrela Clube Primeiro de Maio |
| Portugal |
Associação Naval 1º de Maio |
| Political change |
|
Brazil |
Clube 15 de Novembro, Esporte Clube XV de Novembro (Piracicaba), Esporte Clube XV de Novembro (Jaú) (November 15, 1889) |
 Yemen |
May 22 San'a' (May 22, 1990) |
| Year of establishment |
Club names containing a reference to the year in which the club was established
(clubs are listed in chronological order by country) |
 Belgium |
Eendracht Aalst 2002 |
 Finland |
Pallokerho-35, Tampereen Peli-Pojat-70, Klubi-04 |
| Germany |
1860 München, Hannover 96, 1899 Hoffenheim, Schalke 04, Mainz 05, 1. FFC Turbine Potsdam 71, SG Wattenscheid 09, SV Darmstadt 98 |
| Netherlands |
Be Quick 1887, UDI '19, ADO '20, Quick '20, HSC '21, Be Quick '28, CSV '28, Achilles '29, Zwaluwen '30, Excelsior '31, PKC '83 |
| Other |
For unidentified and unclassified days and dates in club names |
Angola |
Clube Desportivo Primeiro de Agosto (August 1) |
| Bolivia |
Club 27 de Mayo (May 27), 31 de Octubre (October 31) |
 Paraguay |
Club 12 de Octubre (October 12), Club Atlético 3 de Febrero (February 3), Club 2 de Mayo (May 2) |
Club names referring to the club's specific origins
| Topic |
Meaning |
Country |
Clubs |
| Angels |
After their original home ground, the Angel Ground, itself named after a nearby hotel. |
England |
Tonbridge Angels F.C. |
| Argyle |
Named after The Argyle Tavern or Argyle Terrace, both in Plymouth. |
England |
Plymouth Argyle F.C. |
| Ittihad |
Arabic for "the union", meaning the merger of clubs or clubs founders |
 Saudi Arabia |
Al-Ittihad (Jeddah) |
 Libya |
Al-Ittihad (Tripoli) |
| Dons |
Named after the nickname of MK Dons' predecessors, Wimbledon F.C. |
England |
Milton Keynes Dons F.C. |
| North |
Clubs that originated 'north' of a specific place |
England |
Glossop North End A.F.C., Preston North End |
| East |
Orient = from the East, Leyton is in East London |
England |
Leyton Orient |
| Park Avenue |
The club originally played at the Park Avenue ground |
England |
Bradford Park Avenue A.F.C. |
| Rangers (Glasgow) |
The club founder saw the name Rangers in a Rugby annual |
Scotland |
Rangers F.C. |
| Homeless |
Rovers, Wanderers. Excursionistas translates roughly as "The Voyagers". Originally a team without a home ground |
various |
Blackburn Rovers, Bristol Rovers, Tranmere Rovers, Albion Rovers, Bolton Wanderers, Bray Wanderers, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Sliema Wanderers, Montevideo Wanderers, Santiago Wanderers, Excursionistas, Wanderers F.C., Wycombe Wanderers |
| Republic of Ireland |
Sligo Rovers |
| Scotland |
Raith Rovers |
| Trinity |
The club was formed in 1873 by the vicar of the Holy Trinity Church |
England |
Gainsborough Trinity F.C. |
| United |
Often (but not always) refers to the result of a merger. "Pers-" is short for "Persatuan," Indonesian for "United". |
 Indonesia |
Persib, Persik Kediri, Persipura Jayapura |
| various |
Manchester United, Newcastle United, West Ham United, D.C. United, Colchester United, Sheffield United, Carlisle United, Leeds United, Limavady United, Ayr United, Dundee United, KVSK United, Tampere United, Yerevan United, Unión de Santa Fe, União de Leiria, União São João |
| Stanley |
Named after the Stanley Arms on Stanley Road, Accrington. |
England |
Accrington Stanley |
| Villa |
Named after Villa Cross Wesleyan Chapel in Aston, Birmingham. |
England |
Aston Villa |
Club names referring to an ethnic, social, national or religious background
| Topic |
Meaning |
Country |
Clubs |
| Ahly |
Arabic for "national" |
 Egypt |
El-Ahly |
 Qatar |
Al-Ahli (Doha) |
| Albion |
Archaic name for Great Britain |
England |
Brighton & Hove Albion, Burton Albion |
| Scotland |
Stirling Albion |
| Arabi |
Al-Arabi is the Arabic for "Arab". |
 Kuwait |
Al Arabi Kuwait |
| Qatar |
Al-Arabi Sports Club |
 Panama |
CD Árabe Unido |
| Armenia |
Clubs founded by and for members of the Armenian diaspora. |
Argentina |
Club Deportivo Armenio |
| Assyria |
Clubs founded by and for members of the Assyrian diaspora. |
 Sweden |
Assyriska Föreningen |
| Beitar |
Refers to Betar, for "Brit Yosef Trumpeldor", a Zionist youth movement founded in 1923. |
 Israel |
Beitar Jerusalem F.C., Beitar/Shimshon Tel Aviv F.C. |
| Bohemians |
After Bohemianism |
Republic of Ireland |
Bohemians |
| Bohemians |
After Bohemia |
 Czech Republic |
Bohemians 1905 |
| Borussia |
Latin name for Prussia. |
Germany |
Borussia Dortmund, Borussia Mönchengladbach, Borussia Fulda, Borussia Neunkirchen |
| Celtic |
Clubs founded by and for members of the Irish diaspora. |
England |
Farsley Celtic A.F.C., Stalybridge Celtic F.C. |
| Ireland |
Cork Celtic, Wayside Celtic F.C. |
 Northern Ireland |
Donegal Celtic, Lurgan Celtic F.C. |
| Scotland |
Celtic F.C. |
| Chief |
Reflecting tribal origins of home town |
South Africa |
Kaizer Chiefs |
| United States |
Atlanta Chiefs |
| Croatia |
Clubs founded by and for members of the Croatian diaspora. |
 Australia |
Adelaide Croatia Soccer Club, SC Croatia, Sydney Croatia, North Perth Croatia, Newcastle Croatia, Whyalla Croatia, Fremantle Croatia, Gwelup Croatia |
 Canada |
Toronto Croatia, |
| Germany |
Croatia Berlin |
| Español |
Refers to the Spanish people. |
Argentina |
Club Social, Deportivo y Cultural Español |
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