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Sport
Titles
Sports writing is notoriously vulnerable to cliché and jargon. Apart from
direct quotes, avoid the type of language used by players and television
commentators.
GENERAL STYLE
All England Club
baseball inning not innings
Blue (cap) from Oxford, Cambridge, for the award or the sportsman or
woman
cross country hyphenate only adjectivally, as in cross-country trials
Cup Final the FA Cup Final, but l/c final for World Cup final, Carling
Cup final and all other sporting cup finals (also FA Cup semi-final, l/c
because by definition more than one)
divisions, groups, sections etc in a sporting context always take l/c.
Thus, World Cup group A, Nationwide League first division, European
Championship section D etc
England Under-21 etc
first division, second division etc (not Division One, 2, etc or any
variant)
hat-trick cricket, football etc
Olympics can be used as a short form of the Olympic Games. Similarly,
the Games (always capped) can be used (same rule for Games in Commonwealth
Games etc). Always cap Olympics and Olympic even when used adjectivally, eg,
an Olympic athlete. Note International Olympic Committee (no final “s” on
Olympic).
In reference to the London Olympics of 2012, no need to capitalise venues that
do not yet exist, eg, the Olympic (note no -s) aquatic centre. Tessa Jowell
is the Olympics (note -s) Minister (caps) as well as the Culture, Sport and
Media Secretary
racecourse, racehorse, but horse race, (horse) racing
avoid stretchered off; say carried off on a stretcher instead
Super Bowl (American football), two words
refer to women's (not ladies') competitions, championships, events etc
World Cup (caps), also World Championship (caps) in all sports
Boxing
featherweight, heavyweight, light-heavyweight etc; knockout(s)
Cricket
wicketkeeper, mid-off, mid-wicket; follow on (verb) but the follow-on;
hat-trick; hit-wicket; mis- hit; third man; extra cover; off break;
leg-before; no-ball; a four (not 4); Norwich Union League; Cheltenham &
Gloucester Trophy
An off spinner is a bowler who bowls off breaks. Delivery in cricket is a
bowling action, not a ball: “Qadir has a puzzling delivery”, not “Warne
bowled Gatting with his first delivery”
From January 1, 1997, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) took control
of all levels of the domestic game, and the Test and County Cricket Board
(TCCB) was no more.
MCC (Marylebone Cricket Club) is concerned with the laws of cricket and
matters at Lord's. Do not refer to the MCC
Football
By itself, football means the association code. Soccer is an alternative to be
avoided except in direct quotes, or in the American context.
American football should always be described thus, unless the context is so
obvious that football on its own is enough
General terms: goalkeeper, kick-off (noun), Arsenal (not the), midfield,
offside, play-off, shoot-out
Fifa (not FIFA), football's governing body; similarly Uefa (not UEFA)
Champions League (European football), no apostrophe. Historically, the
competition's forerunner was the European Cup
the Football Association (or FA), never the English Football Association
St James' Park (both Newcastle and Exeter); St Andrew's, Birmingham (unlike St
Andrews, golf)
Premier League the top division of English football, formerly known as the
Premiership. In Sport, and perhaps in Business contexts, but rarely in News,
it may be appropriate to refer to the sponsor at first mention, eg, the
Barclays Premier League. The organisation running it remains the FA Premier
League.
At the next level, the Championship, League One and League Two are all
sponsored by Coca-Cola and run by the Football League. Again, News will not
normally need to refer to the Coca-Cola Championship, but this may be
appropriate for Sport and perhaps in Business at first mention.
In non-league football, the Blue Square Premier is the name for what used to
be the Conference. Below it are the Blue Square North and the Blue Square
South
Rugby union, rugby league
Both rugby union and rugby league take l/c in general usage (though not, of
course, in titles)
Never use the word rugger
Six Nations Championship, formerly the Five Nations
General terms: full back; scrum half; fly half; dropped goal; knock on (verb)
but a knock-on (noun); scrummage; threequarter; open-side flanker; wing (not
winger); lineout(s); 22-metre line, the 22; touch judge; triple crown; grand
slam; the British Isles, not the British Lions (though Lions on its own is
acceptable at second mention). NB: stand-off half in rugby league; also
replacements (not substitutes) in rugby union
Golf
The holes should appear in both text and results as 1st, 2nd, 10th, 18th, but
write the “third extra hole” after that. In matchplay use “Jones beat Brown
2 and 1” (not two and one). Usual Times style for numbers (spell out from
one to ten, figures thereafter) in sentences such as “Faldo holed from eight
feet/15ft”
General terms: the Open Championship (not British Open); bogey; birdie; eagle
(no quotes); dormy, only if the match can be halved - a player cannot be
dormy if the match can be taken to, say, the 19th hole to reach a decision;
the Masters (not US Masters)
Motor racing
the British Grand Prix, Japanese Grand Prix etc (cap as specific); but grand
prix racing etc (l/c, unspecific); plural grands prix
Formula One motor racing (two caps, One spelt out)
pitstop (one word)
Sailing
sailing correspondent (not yachting correspondent)
America's Cup
Volvo Ocean Race; formerly the Whitbread Round the World Race (caps, no
hyphens)
Swimming
freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke (no hyphens)
Tennis
Lleyton Hewitt
Carlos Moyà (note accent)
Flushing Meadows (not Meadow), New York, home of the US Open tennis
championships
Last edited: March 23, 2009
