Q: What do “Real, FC, and SC” mean when part of soccer team names? Real Madrid and Real Salt Lake, for example.
—Karen Ermutlu, Alpharetta
A: Real (pronounced ree-AL) is a Spanish word meaning royal. Spain's King Alfonso XIII granted the title to Club Español de Madrid, changing it to Real Madrid, in 1920.
The team emblem features a crown, but other Spanish teams also have a royal designation.
Dave Checketts, then owner of the Salt Lake franchise, received permission from Real Madrid to use the name when it entered Major League Soccer in 2004.
“I wanted to draw on Real Madrid’s brand credibility,” he told the New York Times in 2007.
FC, as in FC Dallas or Seattle Sounders FC, is short for Futbol (or Football) Club. SC, as in Columbus Crew SC, stands for Soccer Club.
Q: What happened to Karyn Greer? She was one of my favorites and I haven’t seen her on the news in quite a while.
—Mira Mills, Doraville
A: Greer left 11 Alive after 15 years at the station on March 15.
The AJC reported that she was offered less money in a new deal and Greer decided to leave.
“You just have to move forward,” she told the AJC. “I’m a good communicator. I will see what options are out there, who’ll be knocking at the door.”
Greer was the morning host before moving to the afternoon when Vinnie Politan was hired.
She has worked for Atlanta stations since 1989.
Andy Johnston wrote this column. Do you have a question about the news? We’ll try to get the answer. Call 404-222-2002 or email q&a@ajc.com (include name, phone and city).
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