Where did the name soccer instead of football originate from?
407225
In UK there were two forms of football, Rugby football and Association football.  Association Football became soccer for short when it got confused with Rugby.  Now Football is so popular in the uk everyone assumes you mean soccer, but in the US if you say football, everyone assumes Gridiron unless you say otherwise.
1108744
The accepted origin of the word "soccer" is that its a contraction of the word "Association" with reference to "Association Football". The Football Association was formed in October 1863 when the rules were standardised by a meeting of eleven clubs. With one of the written rules now being that the carrying of the ball was not permitted this finally set in stone the biggest practical different between Association Football and Rugby Football.\n\nIn 1889 the word was "socca", later it was "socker" in 1891 and finally seemed to settle on "soccer" by 1895. The word is supposed to have evolved in University slang, created by shortening the word "Association" and adding "er". They had other expressions such as "brekkers" for "breakfast" and "rugger" for "rugby."\n\nWhile this seems a relatively acceptable version of the origin, and it does seem reasonble if these references started appearing in literature a couple of decades after the "association" was formed, there are a couple of things which put doubts in my mind.\n\nFirstly it doesn't exactly follow the established rules for these Oxford contractions. Instead of merely chopping the last syllable off the word and adding "er", they remove the last two syllables, also remove the first letter of the word, then change the soft "c"s in the word to hard "c"s, before adding the "er". Okay, so maybe following the normal rules does produce the less desirable "asser", but why didn't this word become at least "sosser"?\n\nSecondly, there is an alternative theory which fits rather well and, like the game itself, is considerably older than a hundred and fifty years.\n\n"fut ball" edict origin of soccerFootball has roots thousands of years ago across many countries of the world but in England it became taken up by the working classes and frowned upon by those in authority and the upper classes. It was a very rough and dangerous sport at first, known as "mob football" and was little more than a violent street battle. The first use of the phrase "football" or rather "fut ball" was in 1424 in the editc reproduced on the right, but what about "soccer"?\n\nIf you look up at the closest-sounding modern word, "sock", a couple of interesting points appear. The modern word comes from an old English word spelt "socc". More interestingly this was not a snug, fabric covering as it is today, but back then it meant a light shoe and it comes from the Latin "soccus". The word "socc" to mean "shoe" first appeared in 725AD but was there any evidence of it relating to football?\n\nWhen Mary Queen of Scots was imprisoned in Carlisle Castle in Tudor times it is documented that she watched the game of football, indeed her retinue played for two hours "strongly" and "skillfully". And, by an amazing coincidence, on this map of Carlisle Castle, it is remarkable to note that certain fields are labelled "Castle Soceries".\n\nSo could this be proof that in medieval times the game was also known as "soccer" and played by those wearing "soccs" on ground known as "soceries"... with the players "socking" the ball? It is certainly very far from being proof and sadly this circumstantial evidence is all there is to this theory. There appears to be no written evidence putting the word "socc" in the context of football but it remains an interesting mystery.
1078251
It evolved from rugby football which came from soccer (your futbol).
475234
It's the most popular sport in the world.  However, it is really known as football around the world.  American's named it soccer because, well they needed a silly name to call it, since they had a sport named football that really doesn't make sense to call it football.
1156396
In USA they used the word soccer to make a difference with football (american football) , but the word "soccer" is an English (British),  not an  American word.\n "Soccer" was originally called "association football" during the formation of the Football Association in England in the 1860s.  And the word soccer derived from the second syllable of the word "association".\nEnglish public schoolboys loved to nickname things, they had a tendency to add "er" to the end of many words. Association Football was better know as "assoccer" and naturally evolved into "soccer" which is much easier for a schoolboy to say. The word "football", however, was more descriptive of the game (i.e. kicking a ball with the feet!) and was the term more frequently used.  "Football" is the world standard name for "soccer".
571760
Soccer is a wordplay on the word association as in the following text:\n\n"Soccer" was originally called "association football" during the formation of the Football Association in England in the 1860s. This was to maintain a distinction from the other football game being organised in England at the same time based on the handling codes, whilst Association Football conformed to the dribbling codes. The other football came to be known as "rugby" football, named after the Rugby School in England.
69
In the early days of this game, an association was set up in England to codify the rules.  The game was sometimes referred to as "association football," probably to distinguish it from other variations.  "association" was abbreviated to "assoc.," so the game was nicknamed "soccer."\nSince the term "football" was already used in the U.S. to describe a different game, the name "soccer" stuck here.
404106
Brits actually invented the word. "Soccer," when it first appeared in the 1890s, was spelled "socca," which was short for "association" or "association football," meaning football played according to the rules laid down by the British Football Association. It was also called "socker" until the current form "soccer" appeared around 1895.
426214
Here's the answer from The Guardian:\n\n"It's actually fairly dull, Stuart, if you were hoping for some amusing anecdotal reason for Americans calling football 'soccer'. The formal term for football is 'association football', which, even before generation text, was usually reduced to 'assoc', which very quickly became 'soccer'. So now you know."\n\nThe answer is near the bottom of the page of the link below.
632636
The word soccer is a colloquial abbreviation of association (from assoc.) and first appeared in the 1880s. The word is sometimes credited to Charles Wreford Brown, an Oxford University student said to have been fond of shortened forms such as brekkers for breakfast and rugger for rugby football. In the late 19th century the word soccer tended to be used only at public schools; most people knew the game simply as football. Today the term association football is rarely used, although some clubs still include Association Football Club (AFC) in their name. The game is sometimes known colloquially as footy; the term footer was also once used but is now obsolete.
1153179
because "soccer" is only called soccer in the US...everyone around the world calls soccer "football" or "futbol"
598134
The word "soccer" actually comes from England, where the modern version of the game originated. In England, there were two types of football: rugby football and association football. The slang term for rugby football was "rugger," and the slang for association football was "assoc." The word "assoc" gradually evolved into "soccer," which was much easier to say. When association football was introduced to North America, gridiron football (the type played by the NFL and in the Super Bowl) was already well established. To avoid confusion, Americans adopted the British nickname "soccer" for the new sport.
169987
both are same game \namericans call it soccer whereas other world called it football\n\namerican have other sports name football which play with wearing helmet and differ in some rule of soccer
1093191
I wonder why soccer is called soccer and the rest of the world calls it football.  I mean it makes sense, soccer should be called football and american football should be called stupid people sport.
1099097
My sentiments exactly. Football (soccer) has been around far longer than American football, so I fail to see why the rest of the world should start calling football by a different name to fit in with one country. American football involves the hands rather than the feet, so why it is known as football anyway is beyond me.\n\nThe hint is in the quote you gave; ''when is the rest of the world going to get the terminology right?''  I suggest that if the whole world except one country calls them footballers, then this is the correct terminology.\n\nTo me 'soccer players' will always be footballers.
1058693
The word soccer comes came from "assoc.", which is an abbreviated version of "association football".\n\n\n"From alteration of assoc., abbreviation of association football".
41280
American football derives directly from European football and rugby in the late 1800s and most likely, even though the rules changed over the past 120 years, the name stuck. "Soccer" is a contraction for the phrase "association football", a word I believe actually began in England, not America.