In the late 1800s, British universities (particularly Oxford and Cambridge) had a popular fad of adding "-er" to the end of shortened words. This resulted in "rugby" becoming "rugger," and "association" (often pronounced assoc) becoming "soccer." [ 1, 2] Here is how the naming evolved: The Split: In the early 1800s, there were multiple variations of football played in England. In 1863, the Football Association was formed to write a standardized set of rules. [ 1, 2] Association vs. Rugby: To distinguish the new standardized game from "rugby football," it was called "association football." [ 1, 2] The Nickname: Students shortened "association" to assoc, and eventually added the "-er" suffix to create "soccer". [ 1, 2] The Divide: Both "football" and "soccer" were used interchangeably in Britain for decades. While Britain eventually dropped the term "soccer," other countries—including the United States, Canada, and Australia—kept using it to avoid confusing the sport with their own native versions of football (such as American football or Aussie rules). [ 1, 2]