Daniel
Change in American English grammar - happening now!

While listening to the World Cup, I have noticed a change in grammar related to sports teams. When talking about a sports team, I have always said:

I hope Washington wins tomorrow,or

I think the US has a <em>chance to at least tie Germany, </em>

But the announcers are saying,

<em>The UShave a chance to tie Germany</em>.

Even the American announcers are using the plural when referring to sports teams now.

I looked at British newspapers, like the Telegraph, and I noticed that that this is the common usage,

<em>"Liverpool are..."</em> etc.

I just wonder if anyone else noticed it. I have watched world cup matches before, but rarely in English. So, to my fellow Amurkins, what do you think? Does it bother you? Do you think the change will seep into other sports, that we will see a headline like, <em>"San Antonio are the NBA champions?"</em>

Jun 25, 2014 10:09 PM
Comments · 1

It seems like they are just copying the British announcers' grammar patterns in the context of soccer.  I do not think it is a larger trend.  Where I live, most people would think I was not a native speaker of English if I used collective nouns as plural nouns.

June 25, 2014