Hey sport fans, what is your favorite sport? If you are a super fan, then naming your dog after your favorite team only makes sense, right?
When we adopted our lab, his name was Vincent Lombardi. If you’re a football fan, then you know who that is. We didn’t keep his name as it didn’t seem to fit. Instead he became our Bear. Our big cuddly polar bear! Funny, I just put two and two together, he technically still has a football themed name!
We’ve covered a lot of sport options here, but the easiest may be to take your favorite name from your favorite team. Or find your favorite player’s nickname!
Table of contents
- Sport dog names
- Baseball dog names
- Hockey dog names
- Football dog names
- Soccer dog names
- Basketball dog names
- Golf dog names
Sporty dog names
If you love all sports then choosing a general sporty name could be the best fit.
- Ace
- Champ
- Game
- Gorilla
- Iron
- Jock
- Mate
- Rain
- Rec
- Rocky
- Sandy
- Sport
- Team
- Victory
- Wilson
Baseball dog names
- Ace – best starting pitcher
- Albert – Albert Pujols
- Angel – Los Angeles Angels
- Ann – Ann Harnett, the first woman to sign with the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League
- Astro – Houston Astros
- Babe – Babe Ruth
- Base
- Bender – curve ball
- Berry Bonds
- Bigs – the Major Leagues
- Blue – umpire
- Bo – Bo Jackson
- Brave
- Brewer
- Brаvо
- Bunt
- Cannon – A powerful throwing arm
- Cardinal
- Caray – Harry Caray
- Casey – Casey Stengel
- Catbird – advantageous position
- Catch
- Champ
- Change
- Chipper – Chірреr Jоnеѕ
- Choke
- Chорреr – a ball hit into the dirt surrounding home plate
- Clark – Chicago Cubs mascot
- Comet
- Cubby
- Curve Ball
- Cuttеr
- Cy – Cy Young
- DH – designated hitter
- Diamond
- Dinger – home run
- Dorothy – Dorothy Kamenshek, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League player
- Duck – runners on second and third base who are in scoring position
- Dоdgеr – Dodger Stаdіum
- Eephus – low-speed junk pitch
- Ernіе – Ernіе Bаnkѕ
- Fastball
- Fenway – Bosten Red Sox ball park
- Fredbir, Rally Squirrel– St. Louis Cardinals
- Fungo: A long, light baseball bat as well as a term used for a ball which has been tossed into the air and hit by the batter.
- Fіеldеr
- Gapper, Mr. Red, Mr Redlegs, Rosie Red– Cincinnati Reds
- Giant
- Griff оr Griffey – fоr Kеn Sr. аnd Jr.
- Hank – Hank Aaron
- Harry – Harry Carey
- Hercules
- Hitter
- Homer
- Hose – strong pitching arm
- Hаnk – Hank Aaron
- Ivy – ivy that grows in Wrigley field
- Jack – a home run or Cracker Jack
- Jackie – Jackie Robinson
- Jay – Toronto Blue Jays
- Joey – Joe DiMaggio
- Kirby – Kirby Puckett
- Lefty
- Loogy – Left-handed One Out Guy
- Lou – Lou Gehrig
- Mate – Teammate
- Mattie – Don Mattingly
- Meatball – pitch that is easy to hit
- Met
- Mia – Miami Marlins
- Mickey – Mickey Mantle
- Miller – Miller Park
- Monster – Grееn Mоnѕtеr
- Moonshot – a home run that is hit extremely high and towering into the sky
- Moose – Seattle Mariners mascot
- Nat – National
- Nolan – Nolan Ryan
- Orbit
- Oriole
- Outfielder
- Ozzie – Ozzie Smith
- Padre
- Paws
- Pea – A baseball traveling at a high velocity
- Peanut
- Penny – Pennant
- Pepper – game played by a baseball team, either pre-game or during practice
- Philly
- Pirate
- Pitcher
- Poppy – pop fly
- Pudge – Pudge Rodriguez
- Ranger
- Ray
- Red
- Ribbie – RBI
- Rocky
- Rod – Rod Carew
- Rookie – first year player
- Royal
- Ruth – Babe Ruth
- Rоѕіе – Pete Rоѕе
- Sandy – Sandy Koufax
- Satchel – Satchel Paige
- Scully – Vin Scully, sportscaster
- Shorty – Shortstop
- Slider
- Slugger
- Southpaw: A left-handed pitcher.
- Sox – White Sox or Red Sox
- Stomper – Oakland Athletics
- Tater – Slang terminology for a home run.
- Teddy – Ted Williams
- Trip – triple play
- Twin
- Ty – Ty Cobb
- Ump
- Vin – Vin Scully, sportscaster
- Vinny – Vince Lombardi
- Wade – Wade Boggs
- Wally – Wally the Green Monster is the official mascot for the Boston Red Sox
- Willie – Willie Mays
- Windup
- Woody – baseball bat
- Wrіglеу – Wrіglеу Field
- Yak or Yakker – curveball with a big break
- Yankee
- Yicketty – To hit a homerun
- Yogi – Yogi Berra
- Yаz – Cаrl Yаѕtrzеmѕkі
- Zinger – a hard, line-drive base hit
- Zip – a pitcher’s fastball
Hockey dog names
If you don’t like any of these hockey theme dog names we listed, here is a great list of hockey player nicknames.
- Apple – an assist
- Barn – rink
- Biscuit – puck
- Bobby – Bobby Mcgee, Bobby Orr, Bobby Hull or Bobby Clarke
- Boomer – Boom Boom, Bernie Geoffrion’s nickname
- Buck – bucket, helmet
- Buff – Dustin Byfuglien’s nickname
- Cam – Cam Atkinson or Cam Ward
- Captain
- Celly – celebration following a goal
- Chara – Zdeno Chara
- Cheese – he top shelf of the net
- Chiclets – teeth
- Chirper – when you talk trash to opposing players
- Clapper – slap shot
- Coast – Coast to coast: taking the puck all the way down the ice
- Crosby – Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins captain
- Cujo – Curtis Joseph’s nickname, also the name of the dog in Stephen King’s Cujo
- Cyclone – Cyclone Taylor
- Dangles – a variety of moves where a player dekes – fakes out a goalie or player
- Dale – Dale Weise
- Gino – a goal
- Goon – a player whose only talent is fighting
- Gordie – when a player scores a goal, adds an assist and gets in a fight in one game
- Gretzky – Wayne Gretzky
- Grinder – a player better known for his hard work and checking than his scoring
- Gump – Gump Worsley
- Hammer – Dave “The Hammer” Schultz
- Hart – NHL MVP
- Hawk – Chicago Blackhawks
- Jesper – Jesper Fast
- Jet – Winnipeg Jets
- Jumbo – Joe Thornton’s nickname
- Kane – Patrick Kane
- Kesler – Ryan Kesler
- Lafleur – Guy Lafleur
- Leo – Leo Komarov
- Lucky – Luc Robitaille’s nickname
- Lumber – a hockey stick
- Mario – Mario Lemieux
- Mika – Mika Zibanejad
- Milan – Milan Lucic, the word milan means “beloved”
- Mitts – hockey gloves
- Moose – Mark Messier’s nickname
- Nash – Rick Nash
- Nolan – Owen Nolan
- Pickles – Marc-Edouard Vlasic’s
- Pipe – goal post
- Pylon – a slow defenseman that often gets skated around
- Roadrunner – Yvon Cournoyer’s nickname
- Rocket – Bottle rocket: when a goal breaks the goalie’s water bottle
- Shea – Shea Weber
- Sidney – Sidney Patrick Crosby
- Sniper – perfect placed shot
- Stripes – referee
- Stone – stoned, when a goalie makes a great save
- Teemu – Teemu Selanne
- Theodore – Jose Theodore, also meaning “divine gift”
- Tiger – Dave “Tiger” Williams Nickname
- Toews – Devon Toews
- Torrey – Torrey Mitchell or Torey Krug
- Turtle – player completely covers himself up as to not be involved in a fight
- Twig – hockey stick
- Zamboni – machine that cleans the ice between periods
- Zezel – Peter Zezel
Football dog names
- Barry – Barry Sanders
- Bear – Chicago Bears
- Bill – Buffalo Bills or Bill Belichick
- Blitz – defensive play
- Blue – blue flag
- Brady – Tom Brady
- Brett – Brett Favre
- Bronco – Denver Broncos
- Buc – Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Bud – Budweiser
- Butkus – Dick Butkus
- Cam – Cam Newton
- Charger – San Diego Chargers
- Chief – Kansas City Chiefs
- Clip – Clipping is a foul that’s called when a player makes contact with an opponent below the waist from behind
- Coach – leader
- Colt – Indianapolis Colts
- Deion – Deion Sanders
- Ditka – Mike Ditka
- Elway – John Elway
- Emmitt – Emmitt Smith
- Georgia – Georgia Bulldogs
- Gill – Gillette stadium
- GOAT – acronym that stands for Greatest Of All Time
- Heisman – best college football player award
- Hike – passing ball backwards
- Jet – NY Jets
- Lambeau – Lambeau Field
- Lincoln – Lincoln Financial Field
- Madden – John Madden
- Manning – Eli and Peyton Manning
- Mary – Hail Mary
- Mike – middle linebacker
- Montana – Joe Montana
- Packer – Green Bay Packers
- Peyton – Peyton Manning
- Pick – pick 6
- QB – Quarterback
- Raider – Oakland Raiders
- Raven – Baltimore Ravens
- Ray – Raymond James stadium
- Red – Red Zone
- Reggie – Reggie White
- Rice – Jerry Rice
- Rose – Rose Bowl
- Shotgun – offensive formation
- Skol – “cheers” or “in good health”
- Soldier – Soldier Field
- Steeler – Pittsburgh Steelers
- Ten – 1st and 10
- Titan – Tennessee Titans
- Tom – Tom Brady
- Vinnie – Vince Lombardi
- Walter – Walter Perry
- Wild – wild card
- Wilson – Russell Wilson
- Zone – Defense
Soccer dog names
- Becks – David Beckham
- Boots – boot the ball in soccer is to kick it hard and long and usually high
- Brandi – Brandi Chastain
- Captain – team leader
- Chelsea – Premier League Club
- Chip – short lofted pass or shot that gets the ball in the air
- Claudio – Claudio Reyna
- Cobi – Cobi Jones
- Cup – World Cup
- Dash – Houston Dash
- Diego – Diego Maradona
- Fifa
- Franz – Franz Beckenbauer
- GOAT – acronym that stands for Greatest Of All Time
- Guard
- Hollywood – an ambitious pass that is only seen in the movies!
- Howard – Tim Howard
- Kasey – Kasey Keller
- Jersey – team shirt
- Landon – Landon Donovan
- Lilly – Kristine Lilly
- Lionel – Lionel Messi
- Lotta – Lotta Schelin
- Messi – Lionel Messi
- Mia – Mia Hamm
- Pablo – Pablo Zabaleta
- Pele – Great Brazilian player
- Pride – Orlando Pride
- Ref – Referee
- Ronaldo – Cristiano Ronaldo
- Rooney – Wayne Rooney
- shadow play – playing without opponents
- Solo – Hope Solo
- Sweeper – defensive position
- Timber – Portland Timbers
- Umbro – soccer gear
Basketball dog names
- Banana Cut – a variation of the regular cut
- Barkley – Charles Barkley
- Big Man – power forward or center
- Bird – Larry Bird
- Blaze – Portland Trail Blazers
- Buck – Milwaukee Bucks
- Bull – Chicago Bulls
- Buzz – Buzzer Beater is a shot that is taken in the final seconds and made before the buzzer sounds
- Cherry – Cherry Picking, a player who hangs back under or near their opponent’s basket
- Dagger – A shot that puts the game out of reach in the final seconds of the game
- Deny – Deny The Ball, defensive player prevents the person he’s guarding from getting the ball
- Dish – Assist
- Duncan – Tim Duncan
- Dunk – player puts the ball directly in the basket
- Granny – underhand method of shooting a basketball
- Grizzly – Memphis Grizzlies
- Gunner – player who shoots the ball often and frequently.
- Harden – James Harden
- Hawk – Atalanta Haws
- Hook – hook shot
- Jab – jab step, a move when the ball handler fakes to one direction, only to move in the opposite direction.
- Jazz – Utah Jazz
- Jordan – Michael Jordan
- Kareem – Kareen Abdul-Jabbar
- King – Sacramento Kings
- Kobe – Kobe Bryant
- Lake – Los Angeles Lakers
- Magic – Magic Johnson or Orlando Magic
- Maverick – Dallas Mavericks
- Nellie – Nellie Ball is an offensive strategy
- Nicky – New York Knicks
- Nugget – Denver Nuggets
- Oscar – Oscar Robertson
- Philly – Philadelphia 76ers
- Pippen – Scottie Pippen
- Princeton – Princeton offense strategy
- Rain – Making it rain, a player is making so many shots it seems like he can’t miss
- Raptor – Toronto Raptors
- Rim – rimshot
- Rocky – Houston Rockets
- Shaq – Shaquille O’Neal
- Sky – skyhook is a variation of the hook shot
- Spur – San Antonio Spurs
- Sun – Phoenix Suns
- Swish – ball goes into the basket without hitting the rim or backboard
- Thunder – Oklahoma City Thunder
- Tri – Trifecta
- Warrior – Golden State Warriors
- West – Jerry West
- Wiggle – Being able to maneuver in and out of defenders with the basketball.
- Wilt – Wilt Chamberlain
- Wolf – Minnesota Timberwolves
Golf dog names
- Ace – hole in one
- Arnie – Arnold Palmer
- Augusta – Home of the Masters
- Balata – material of the outside of golf ball
- Bear – Jack Nicklaus’ nickname
- Ben – Ben Hogan
- Bertha – golf club
- Birdie – one under par
- Bogey – one over par
- Bolt – Tommy Bolt
- Bubba – Bubba Watson
- Bunker – in the trap
- Byron – Iron Byron, mechanical golfer used for testing golf clubs and balls
- Caddie – person carrying the clubs for a golfer
- Callie – Callaway
- Carry – the distance the ball travels through the air
- Chip – short shot
- Chunk – bad shot
- Condor – scoring four under par
- Corey – Corey Pavin
- Daly – John Daly
- Dimple – ball indentations
- Divot – spot on course left after a club strike
- Driver
- Duck – “Duck hook” is considered a severe hook to the left
- Eagle – 2 under
- Flier – shot that sails further than expected
- Freddy – Fred Couples
- Fuzzy – Fully Zoeller
- Happy – Happy Gilmore
- Hogan – Ben Hogan
- Huck – Tom Watson’s nickname
- Jack – Jack Nicklaus
- Jaws – the small area surrounding the hole
- Links – golf course style
- Master – Masters Tournament
- Mickey – Phil Mickelson
- Monty – Colin Montgomerie’s nickname
- Muff – missed hit
- Mulligan – hitting a second ball without penalty
- Nuke – hitting the ball to the max
- Obie – out of bounds
- Old Dog Morris – Old Tom Morris
- Palmer – Arnold Palmer
- Par
- Putter
- Rain – rainmaker, a ball hit so high seems to hit the clouds
- Rocket – Hosel rocket, shank shot
- Rory – Rory Mcilroy
- Ryder – Ryder Cup
- Sandy – sand bager
- Scratch – even par
- Shank – a shot that is contacted by the hosel of the club, rather than the club face
- Shooter – Shooter Mcgavin
- Squirrel – With-The-Squirrels, when playing either a “Par 4 or 5” and your Tee shot does not land in the Fairway but instead ends up in the rough
- Taylor – Taylormade
- Thunderbolt – Tommy Bolt’s nickname
- Tiger – Tiger Woods
- Torrey – Torrey Pines
- Watson – Tom Watson
- Wedge – short iron
- Whiff – big miss
- Wilson – sporting good manufacture
- Yip – swing issues
Want more dog name ideas? We have a full library of fun dog names grouped by theme, check out the list and let us know what you decide!
Get your free PDF copy of the 3-3-3 rule poster
along with other invaluable adoption resources in our Rescue Dogs 101 From Rescue to Home – Your Survival Checklist.
If you have a better dog sport name to share, please let me know in the comments below and I will add it to the list!
