i agree, hobbes, that it is the blatant pandering names that are the most ridiculous. why is everyone dragging Houston's name into this?? i like their name. granted, it's kind of an omage to the Kyiv and the old Soviet sports society. but "Dynamo" is at least a word in the English language. http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=dynamo and i've heard good teams and good players referred to as "Dynamos" with some frequency in the past. so IMHO, that name did not come out of left field. i like it. ReAl Salt Lake, OTOH, is ridiculous pandering. maybe it would make sense if there was a legitimate tie to Real Madrid (there isn't). or maybe if there was a real history of Spanish exploration/settlement/development in Utah (from my understanding, there isn't). it would have made sense in Arizona or New Mexico, but it just sounds ridiculous in conjunction with such a whitebread city like Salt Lake. but since their other pro team is called the "Jazz" which is even more ridiculous ... i guess it all makes sense.
I have never thought that the Padres is a good argument for using non-english names for sports teams because.....There are lots of Spanish words that have become an excepted and commonly recognized words in American English and padre is one of them.
I really feel that all MLS team names should be translated into English. But since you guys say there is no official language...English and Spainish are the two most common languages in the US (English 82.1%, Spanish 10.7% http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/fields/2098.html), and I would rather all MLS team names be in Spainish then some of them be in English, some in Spainsh, some in Italian, some in whatever will be the next Euro-knock off name.
Oringinally the New Orleans Jazz but they didn't bother changing the names as it wasn't the custom for the time. As for Real Salt Lake, it has as much to do with selling itself as soccer as it had with steal a Spanish name.
really?? i thought it was an omage to all the famous blues artists to come out of the mean streets of Utah. I thought Salt Lake City was considered the epicenter of modern jazz. because nothing screams out "soul" more than a mormon on the saxophone.
I guess if they want to call themselves Inter Whatever its fine with me, just make out the check to MLS please and welcome to Canadians. Your a bunch of hotties out there.
No, that would be the Mormon Tabernacle. What did you expect? The previous post you made wasn't necessarily clear that you weren't ignorant of the history of the Utah Jazz. So, someone just took the time to politely point it out. By the way, it is 'homage'. Omage is some kind of speaker brand.
dude, chill out. Doyle is used to the give-and-take on these boards. he doesn't need you to stand up for him like this was some Lifetime after-school special.
What did you check? Because it was wrong, we don't have an official language at federal level. It's part of the whole freedom of speech thing. I sure there are some good ol' boys seeking to change this, but they haven't yet. Yes, English is the major language, and it helps a great deal to speak it, but it's not mandatory.
The British Monarchy does not *rule* anybody. She reigns, although she is still head of state. Not that it makes me feel any less comfortable as a republican Englishman.
Actually, the decision on the part of Jazz management to retain the team's name after the move from New Orleans to Salt Lake City was a simple choice, as opposed to being the result of some "custom of the time". Between 1954 (when the American League's St. Louis Browns moved to Baltimore, becoming the Orioles) and 1978 (the year before the Jazz relocated from New Orleans to Salt Lake City), 10 of the 20 franchise shifts which occurred in the "Big Four" North American professional sports leagues involved a change in team nicknames. In other words, in the "Big Four" a team was just as likely to change its nickname after relocating as it was to maintain the old identity. 1954 - St. Louis Browns became Baltimore Orioles 1961 - Washington Senators became Minnesota Twins 1963 - Chicago Zephyrs became Baltimore Bullets 1963 - Syracuse Nationals became Philadelphia 76ers 1970 - Seattle Pilots became Milwaukee Brewers 1972 - Washington Senators became Texas Rangers 1972 - Cincinnati Royals became Kansas City-Omaha Kings 1976 - California Golden Seals became Cleveland Barons 1976 - Kansas City Scouts became Colorado Rockies 1978 - Buffalo Braves became San Diego Clippers Further, this list doesn't even take into account the twenty-nine franchise shifts which took place in the North American Soccer League (11 moves), American Basketball Association (9 moves) and World Hockey Association (9 moves) between 1968 and 1979, all of which involved a team jettisoning its old nickname for a brand new identity. Those rebranding efforts would easily establish that the "custom for the time" was, in fact, to change a team's nickname upon relocating.
I'm Just curious. Has anyone connected with the teams in Europe ever said anything about the names MLS is using? For example has anyone from Man United, or Leeds for that mater said anything about DC United? Anyone connected with Real Madrid make any statements after Salt Lake announced it's franchise name? Just wondering if anyone knew.
The funny thing is that it's a better name than the one they're allegedly choosing. Even moreso because Toronto is such a cosmopolitan city.
Or Real Betis? The thing is that these terms are fairly generic already. Real for Royal, FC for Football Club or Futbol Club or Fussball Club, United is used by probably dozens of teams in Britain, and there are several Dynamo or Dinamo in Eastern Europe. Since there is no monarchy in Utah that name doesn't make much sense, but I'm sure that point has been beaten to death here. Inter Toronto isn't awful, but what does it really mean? Just another attempt to hitch MLS's wagon to already established clubs. I suppose it could be worse, it could be "Clash" or "Mutiny". They should just be Leafs.
Umm...Err don't go there! The Hockey teams already got the name and it's one of the original 6 NHL franchises. It wouldn't fly. They are on Lake Ontario. Does Lakers work for anyone?
Here's the crap names I suggested on Usector: Lakers was one of them.... Torontonians FC Toronto Monarchs Toronto Tigers Toronto Titans Toronto Thunder Ontario FC AFC Ontario Toronto Towers Toronto Blues Toronto Talismans/Talismen FC Leafs/FC Maple Leafs/Maple Leafs FC Port of Toronto FC (is it a port?) Ontario Lakers FC/Toronto Lakers FC Lakers FC Toronto Tsunami Toronto Talons Toronto Tartan Toronto Tandems Toronto Terriers Toronto Throttle Toronto Tempest Toronto Tackle Toronto Tyrants Toronto Trauma Okay, I give up. Some of those I don't even like, but what the hell. If it helps someone else come up with something my purpose will be served. Personally, I'm happy with something simple, perhaps traditional. Nicknames can always come later. Much classier but I also like Torontonians FC, Lakers FC, Ontario Lakers FC. Thoughts?
I'm liking Toronto Maple Leafs FC. It's not unprecedented to have teams with the same name in different sports (New York Giants, St. Louis Cardinals). Or Toronto Lynx is good too.