Forget Arsenal, Chelsea or Manchester United, the most popular football team in the British Isles is Inter MENAN.
But we're not talking about old ladies enjoying a kick-about. The cheeky club name is the one adopted most often by the tens of thousands of players who enjoy a weekly competitive game with their mates.
Scores of small-sided teams are turning their backs on tradition and choosing hilarious handles in the hope it will inspire them to get pun over their rivals.
And a survey of more than 3,000 teams that turn out weekly to play in Soccer Sixes leagues nationwide has revealed full the extent of the naming craze.
The more inventive teams include: A Game Of Throw-Ins, Club Tropicana Drinks FC, Finding Neymar and AC A Little Silhouette Of Milan.
And variations of the most popular have been compiled into a Names Championship league table that has Bayern Neverlosen and Unathletico Madrid vying for top slot.
Six-a-side soccer is one of the fastest growing sports in the UK. Soccer Sixes operate the UK’s largest network of FA-affiliated leagues, with more than 30,000 active players.
Ross Spacey, Soccer Sixes Managing Director, says: “Our players put a lot of time and effort into their team names. It’s a big thing for them.”
“Whether a name makes them play any better is debatable, but it always puts a smile on people’s faces.”
| S6 Names Championship | No. of Teams |
|---|---|
| Inter Menan | 18 |
| Bayern Neverlosen | 12 |
| Unathletico Madrid | 12 |
| Teenage Mutant Ninja Skrtels | 11 |
| Nottinya Forest | 9 |
| Leave My Arcelona | 8 |
| Puyol Pantsdown | 7 |
| 50 Shades O’Shea | 7 |
| Murder On Zidane’s Floor | 7 |
| Exeter Gently | 6 |
| Tekkerslovakia | 6 |
| Multiple Scoregasm | 5 |
| Petr Cech Yourself | 5 |
| Sex, Drugs & Carlton Cole | 5 |
| Wanyama’s In Pyjamas | 5 |
| Dynamo Kebab | 4 |
| Ivory Toast | 4 |
| Paris Ganjaman | 4 |
| Real Social Dads | 4 |
| Stroke Titty | 4 |
| Beercelona | 4 |
| Substandard Liege | 3 |
| Who Ate All Depay | 3 |
| Borussia Teeth | 3 |
