SECTION 2. MLS & INTERNATIONAL FOOTBALL TERMINOLOGY
MLS CLUBS
Below you will find the proper spelling for each MLS Club, with first and second references, stadium name, city they play in, as well as their Tricode (three-letter code used for broadcast).
- Only first and second reference are allowed and only known and approved nicknames should be used; never make up a nickname for a club (e.g., “The Pigeons” for NYCFC)
- Write all team names as plural nouns. This is contrary to AP style but similar to international wires. (e.g., “Atlanta United are playing on Saturday night”)
- Clubs have teams. “Atlanta United 2” is not a club, it is a team within Atlanta United FC.
- You can refer to an MLS club as “club” or “team” or “squad” or “side” - never use “franchise”.
TRICODE | FIRST REFERENCE | SECOND REFERENCE | STADIUM | CITY |
ATL | Atlanta United | ATL UTD, Atlanta | Mercedes-Benz Stadium | Atlanta, GA |
ATX | Austin FC | Austin | Q2 Stadium | Austin, TX |
CLT | Charlotte FC | Charlotte | Bank of America Stadium | Charlotte, NC |
CHI | Chicago Fire | Chicago, the Fire | Soldier Field | Chicago, IL |
COL | Colorado Rapids | Colorado, the Rapids | Dick's Sporting Goods Park | Commerce City, CO |
CLB | Columbus Crew | Columbus, the Crew | Lower.com Field | Columbus, OH |
DC | DC United | DC | Audi Field | Washington, D.C. |
CIN | FC Cincinnati | Cincinnati | TQL Stadium | Cincinnati, OH |
DAL | FC Dallas | Dallas | Toyota Stadium | Frisco, TX |
HOU | Houston Dynamo | Houston, the Dynamo | PNC Stadium | Houston, TC |
SKC | Sporting Kansas City | Sporting KC, KC, SKC | Children's Mercy Park | Kansas City, KS |
LA | LA Galaxy | Galaxy | Dignity Health Sports Park | Carson, CA |
LAFC | Los Angeles FC | LAFC | BMO Stadium | Los Angeles, CA |
MIA | Inter Miami | Miami | DRV PNK Stadium | Fort Lauderdale, FL |
MIN | Minnesota United | Minnesota, MNUFC | Allianz Field | Saint Paul, MN |
MTL | CF Montréal | Montréal | Stade Saputo | Montreal, Quebec |
NSH | Nashville SC | Nashville | Geodis Park | Nashville, TN |
NE | New England Revolution | New England, the Revolution | Gillette Stadium | Foxborough, MA |
NY | New York Red Bulls | Red Bulls | Red Bull Arena | Harrison, NJ |
NYC | New York City FC | NYCFC, City | Yankee Stadium | Bronx, NY |
ORL | Orlando City | Orlando | Exploria Stadium | Orlando, FL |
PHI | Philadelphia Union | Philadelphia, the Union | Subaru Park | Chester, PA |
POR | Portland Timbers | the Timbers, Portland | Providence Park | Portland, OR |
RSL | Real Salt Lake | RSL, Salt Lake | America First Field | Sandy, UT |
SJ | San Jose Earhtquakes | the Earthquakes, San Jose, the Quakes | PayPal Park | San Jose, CA |
SEA | Seattle Sounders | the Sounders, Seattle | Lumen Field | Seattle, WA |
STL | St. Louis City | St. Louis | CITYPARK | St. Louis, MO |
TOR | Toronto FC | Toronto | BMO Field | Toronto, Ontario |
VAN | Vancouver Whitecaps | the Whitecaps, Vancouver | BC Place | Vancouver, British Columbia |
home opener | |
MLS regular season | “regular season” and “season” can be used as second references |
Audi 2023 MLS Cup Playoffs | "playoffs” can be used as second reference |
If there’s a mention to playoffs from other sporting or soccer competition that is also mentioned in an article or press release, “MLS Cup Playoffs” should be used as a second reference | |
MLS Cup | |
MLS Cup Championship | "MLS Cup title” can also be used |
MLS Cup Champion | |
MLS Eastern Conference | "Eastern Conference” can be used as a second reference |
MLS Eastern Conference Championship | |
Leagues Cup | |
Leagues Cup Champion | |
Supporters' Shield | |
Supporters' Shield winner | |
MLS SuperDraft 2023 presented by adidas | "SuperDraft” can be used as a second reference |
MLS All-Star Game presented by Target | "All-Star Game” can be used as a second reference |
"ASG” should never be used editorially, only on social copy when relevant | |
the Major League Soccer Players Association | MLS Players Association (2nd ref.) |
the Players Association (also 2nd ref.) | |
MLSPA (3rd ref.) | |
Professional Referee Organization (PRO) | (PRO) should always be included in the first reference |
"PRO” can be used as a second reference | |
MLS Heineken Rivalry Week | "Rivalry Week” can be used as a second reference |
2023 AT&T 5G MLS Goal of the Year | "Goal of the Year” can be used as a second reference |
AT&T Goal of the Week - MLS Week XX | "Goal of the Week” can be used as a second reference |
MLS Save of the Year presented by Allstate | "Save of the Year” can be used as a second reference |
MLS Player of the Week | |
MLS Team of the Week presented by Audi | "Team of the Week” can be used as a second reference |
MLS Golden Boot presented by Audi | "Golden Boot” can be used as a second reference |
MLS Newcomer of the Year | "Newcomer of the Year” can be used as a second reference |
Landon Donovan MLS MVP Award | "MLS MVP Award” can be used as a second reference |
MLS Best XI | |
eMLS | |
eMLS Cup presented by TikTok | "eMLS Cup” can be used as a second reference |
eMLS League Series 1 presented by Coca-Cola | "League Series 1” can be used as a second reference |
eMLS League Series 2 presented by Coca-Cola | "League Series 2” can be used as a second reference |
MLS NEXT Pro | Second-tier competition |
MLS NEXT Pro Champion | |
MLS NEXT | Academy competition |
FIFA World Cup 26™ | "FIFA World Cup™" can be used as a second reference |
FIFA World Cup 26 Host City™ | |
#WeAre26 | Official hashtag for FIFA World Cup 26™ |
Concacaf Champions League | CCL (2nd ref.) |
Never "Concachampions" | |
Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup | U.S. Open Cup (2nd ref.) |
Concacaf Gold Cup | |
Leagues Cup 2023 | |
FIFA World Cup 26™ Qualifying | |
UEFA Champions League | Champions League (2nd ref.) |
UCL (3rd ref.) | |
UEFA European Championship | UEFA Euro (2nd ref.) |
CONMEBOL Copa América | Copa América (2nd ref.) |
CONMEBOL Libertadores | Copa Libertadores (2nd ref.) |
Libertadores (3rd ref.) | |
FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia / New Zealand 2023 ™ | |
FIFAe | FIFAe World Cup |
FIFAe Club World Cup | |
FIFAe Nations Cup | |
FIFAe Continental Cup |
INTERNATIONAL AND DOMESTIC SOCCER ORGANIZATIONS
FIFA (1st reference and preferred)
If using the whole name of the governing body, it must be written in French and always include the abbreviation at the end: Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA).
For the following confederations affiliated to FIFA, use their abbreviation:
Concacaf
- The whole name can be used, but it’s not necessary: Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football
CONMEBOL
- The whole name can be used, but it’s not necessary: Confederación Suramericana de Fútbol (in Spanish); South American Football Confederation(in English)
UEFA
- The whole name can be used, but it’s not necessary: Union of European Football Associations
For the following confederations affiliated to FIFA, use their whole name in English as a first reference, and their abbreviation as a second reference:
Asian Football Confederation
- AFC (2nd reference)
Confederation of African Football
- CAF (2nd reference)
Oceania Football Confederation
- OFC (2nd reference)
US Soccer
- “US Soccer Federation” can also be used
- “US Men’s National Team” and “USMNT” can be used interchangeable
- “US Women’s National Team” and “USWNT” can be used interchangeable
Mexican Football Federation
- “Mexican Federation” and “Federación Mexicana” can be used as a second reference
For international leagues, the first reference should always be their full name, and when applicable the abbreviation should be next to it. Next, we enlist the proper spelling for the most common international leagues:
- Premier League (EPL)
- LaLiga
- Bundesliga
- Liga MX
- Serie A
For leagues with ambiguous names or names with sponsors attached to it, the country of origin should be specified, as the examples below show:
- Argentine Primera División
- Colombian League (preferred), Colombian Liga BetPlay (official name)
If more than one league with similar names are included in the same text, the most globally recognized one should prevail. For example:
- The striker began his career in the Ecuadorian league and was the top scorer in the Brazilian first division, before being transferred to the Italian Serie A (DO)
- The striker began his career in the Ecuadorian Serie A and was the top scorer in Brazil’s Série A, before being transferred to the Italian Serie A (DON’T)
- The striker began his career in the Ecuadorian league and was the top scorer in Brazil, before being transferred to Italy (also valid)
For Colleges, the first reference should always be the name of the institution. Team’s or mascots’ nicknames can be used as a second reference, when relevant. For institutions where the abbreviations are widely recognized, either the full name or the abbreviation are valid as a first reference. For example:
- University of Akron (1st reference), Akron (2nd reference), Zips (3rd reference)
- University of California Los Angeles, UCLA (both valid as 1st reference)