Ever wondered how sports commentators know how to pronounce players' names correctly? Whether in US baseball games or Euro 2020, a commentator blundering over a sportsperson's name will show them up in front of millions of people. Watch how one baseball commentator manages to get it right here:
TikToker Sammy Levitt (@sammylevitt) revealed he has a pronunciation guide on the team's roster in front of him to avoid errors.
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The same applies for footy, but these commentators have a slightly different way of ensuring everything's correct.
Back in 2019, BT Sport and Prime Video reporter and presenter Danny Jamieson took to Twitter to explain that he learnt the correct pronunciations by getting Premier League players to sit down on camera and say how they want their names pronounced so sports broadcasters can get it right.
He wrote on Twitter: "We get every Premier League player to sit down on camera and say how they want their name pronounced - and there's LOADS I did wrong. So here's a thread so you don't make the same mistakes I did!"
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Top of the list is Manchester City and Belgium star Kevin de Bruyne, a man who has long left Brits guessing the correct way to say his name. As Jamieson points out, there isn't really a sound in English that equates to the one in his surname.
"Kevin De Bruyne is a really tough one for British people as the sound in his surname doesn't really exist in English - it's sort of 'de BRERRR-neh' rather that pronouncing the 'y' in the middle," Jamieson tweeted.
That's somewhat different from how many people pronounce it, which is often heard as 'de Broin' or 'de Brooner'.
How about his former Manchester City teammate - now at Bayern Munich - Leroy Sané?
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According to Jamieson, "Leroy Sané has more of a 'z' sound at the start of his surname - 'ZAH-nay' - instead of an 's'."
Others to look out for are Arsenal's potentially departing midfielder and captain Granit Xhaka. The Swiss international's name is often pronounced 'Zaka' in Britain, presumably because we read the X at the beginning like we would for a word like Xylophone.
Apparently though, the current pronunciation is "Granit Xhaka ('CHA-ka')".
Another one that might throw people is Finland and Norwich forward Teemu Pukki. You'd think the pronunciation of his forename would be obviously, but apparently not.
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"His first name is actually pronounced 'TAY-mu'" according to the commentator.
There is also the surprising case of Newcastle goalkeeper Martin Dúbravka. You don't actually pronounce that 'v' in his surname, instead you should say 'du-BRAW-ka'.
Surely, though, we can at least get the names of players from the home nations correct. However, that might not be the case either. Think you've been saying the name of Scotland and Southampton striker Che Adams correctly? Think again.
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As Jamieson himself admitted: "Southampton's new forward Che Adams I've been saying wrong for years - his first name has a soft 'ch' so it's 'SHAY' Adams."
Stunned, just stunned.
Featured Image Credit: PATopics: SPORT, News, Football, Euro 2020