Do I use "has" or "have" when talking about a sports team?

Asked Mar 02 '15 at 07:19

Active Mar 02 '15 at 08:50

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For example, if I want to talk about a team's chances of winning a competition, which of these would be correct?

What do I say?

United have the best chance of winning.
United has the best chance of winning.

The team is made up of many players so I think it should be plural; therefore, I think have sounds correct. But someone told me it should be has as the team is just one thing.

edited Mar 02 '15 at 08:50

Em1

5,123

asked Mar 02 '15 at 07:19

cantsay

The duplicate question certainly answers the OP questions but for somebody who is not a native speaker, the answer is not clear. In brevis, it depends on the speaker. If he or she is BrEng, the word team might be considered singular or plural. Singular if I think of a team as being a collective whole, plural if I think of the players that make up a team. An AmEng speaker will usually interpret "team" as being singular. – Mari-Lou A Mar 02 '15 at 08:58
related:'Team of economists': singular or plural? and Pluralisation of sports teams in British and American English – Mari-Lou A Mar 02 '15 at 09:01

Do I use "has" or "have" when talking about a sports team?

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