Many words may have a typical, generalised meaning, yet in other instances, such as sport, the word’s definition and understanding can be slightly altered. A prime example of this is today’s word – aggregate. While most moderate fans of football /soccer understand the concept of an aggregate score and how it works, non-fans often have a hard time wrapping their minds around it. After all, if at the end the score is equal, how can one of the teams actually be the winner?
Before answering that question, perhaps it would be best to look at the word itself. Aggregate is a Latin compound word, coming from the prefix ad (to) and the verb gregare (herd), literally meaning ‘to herd together’ or ‘grouping or collecting of multiple items into a singular unit.’ First used in the late Medieval world (ca. 1400), the term was initially applied to the church sermon Omnis Plantacio (Every Propagation), where is was written that: “In some place in private person, and in sum place in community or person aggregate.” Looking at sport usage, the first use of the term aggregate comes from an unlikely source, E. S. Chambers’ 1887 work Golfing, in which he writes that: “The Glennis Medal for the best aggregate score during the two meetings was won by Mr Leslie Balfour.”
Though many of the rules in soccer can be found far in the past, the first were established in London in 1863, though the aggregate score or away goals rule isn’t one of them. First used by UEFA in 1965, the rule essentially weighs goals scored by visiting teams more favourably than goals scored by home teams. The logic is that home teams have all of the advantage in playing at home and as it is more difficult for a visiting team to score a goal in unfavourable conditions, their goals should carry more weight. So, if looking at series, like the UEFA Champions League, Europa League, or in World Cup qualification playoffs, where 2 teams have a tie, it can be argued that the visiting team actually won the game because their goal carries more weight as a tiebreaker.
Though it is kind of difficult for non-fans to understand, aggregation is one of the factors that can drive aggressive play by visiting teams and make a game more exciting and more interesting for the fans to watch.
