Manchester United...

[MinnieBar]

... is the most hated team in the country

OR

... are the most hated team in the country?

I suspect the former. But I think the latter might be used more. But then is it like a mass noun where it's ok to use the plural??

"is". Just the one team. Not a mass noun, just a singular one.

For "are" it would be:
"MU players ARE the most hated...."

hth

Both.

Are you talking about the grammar BelfastBloke. Or do you just not Manchester United?

I'm with MardyBra.

Sorry - should read: "Or do you just not like Manchester United?"

I suppose technically "team" is singular and therefore it should be "is".

But there are many times when you are referring to the collection of individuals making up the team (or the company).

Without bothering to say "MU players", I think it's acceptable to say "are", given that you are sort of referencing both players and the unit they make up AT THE SAME TIME.

BelfastBloke - 'I think it's acceptable to say "are".'

Certainly, the form "Man United are..." is common in colloquial speech, but it's incorrect. I'm more than happy to let it pass without comment in most circumstances, but since we are in Pedants' Corner, I think YABU .

Grammatically it's singular so should be "is", especially as teams are often considered as the main countable units when discussing the game.

MardyBra: you're right: there is a class of singular nouns which encompass a plural meaning (other examples include Army and Government) for which a plural verb is often used.

ominolap - that's not what I'm saying . (I was quoting BelfastBloke to reply to him.)

The correct form is the singular ("The Government is...) but I agree that the plural is widely used in informal speech.

Is.

The team is singular.

But according to the OED 'government' could be singular or plural.

Actually so can 'team'.

So both forms are correct. Which sounds better?