You wouldn’t say The Mets is my favourite team, would you? It’d be wrong, and sound strange, wouldn’t it?

But what about this:

Manchester United is my favourite team, or Manchester United are my favourite team?

I imagine that some of you chose the first, and some the second. And as is often the case with English, both are correct. Though how natural it sounds depends on where you’re from. Generally in British English, groups are referred to as plural words, but in American English they’re treated as singular words (unless the words are clearly plural with an s at the end, like the Mets or The Beatles). Continue reading →