Friday 19 April 2013

P is for .... Penguins

P is for ... Penguins

I was reading a news article which happened to mention that the hockey game between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Boston Bruins had been postponed. I had to do a retake. Really? Penguins? Oh America, you and your silly team names.
This really is not my field to be delving into, and maybe I'm lacking a great deal of American sports knowledge, but you can look at it from all angles, and the names are still silly. Yes, silly. There. I said it.
I had a look on the internet at some more names, and just as I thought, there are more cute little animals playing several different sports. We have some Dolphins, Bobcats, and Cubs all practising their sporting skills.
Then conversely you have the ones that want to sound tough, like the Gladiators, Thunder, Predators, Thrashers, Jaguars, and Lions. At least these ones are trying to make themselves sound like a fierce team. Even so, in England it is the school sports teams who use animal names such as the Lions, or the Jaguars, not professional teams. So to me it still doesn't sound quite right.
Then there are the completely bizarre ones, such as Nuggets, Angels, VooDoo, or Jackets. I just don't understand these ones at all.
I can just imagine the guys in the bar asking if the Angels lost to the Pirates, or if the Ducks beat the Devils. Totally possible, and hysterical.
So why, then do you find FC Dallas and DC United? Why would an American team copy the European soccer naming style? I don't know. I don't think I'll be losing sleep over it though.
Apparently the names are often related to the location somehow, and I get that teams want to show their loyalty to their cities, but somehow I don't think these American team names convey well into the sporting world.
Actually I don't really care. I don't care what the team names are. If they are (in my opinion) silly names, then they will entertain me if nothing else. It's something to write about at least.

2 comments:

  1. Oh, I love this perspective! I have often thought the same thing myself. Although my favorite team happens to be the San Francisco 49ers. Now if you know the why behind that one, I will be extremely impressed!
    All the best and look forward to following you!

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  2. Well penguins are cute? On that note, I became a fan of a football team simply because it's name referenced a really spooky poem! Happy writing:)

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