The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 5 letter word SIDES
I've seen this crossword clue in The Daily Telegraph
S
I
D
E
S
More clues leading to the result SIDES
- Teams close to abyss on fateful day in Rome
- Faces second date in Rome
- Contesting teams to bring fish aboard?
- Takes part in sports teams
- Edges left out of playground features
- Opinions in Khan’s letters ignored in treatment of skinheads
- Factions meet in confused island uprising
- Slips left out in banks
- Teams with spin bowlers all out bar the tail-ender
- Small fish’s edges
Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "Teams" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case teams = sides.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does SIDES mean?
SIDES noun- A bounding straight edge of a two-dimensional shape.
- A flat surface of a three-dimensional object; a face.
- One half (left or right, top or bottom, front or back, etc.) of something or someone.
- A region in a specified position with respect to something.
- The portion of the human torso usually covered by the arms when they are not raised; the areas on the left and right between the belly or chest and the back.
- One surface of a sheet of paper (used instead of "page", which can mean one or both surfaces.)
- One possible aspect of a concept, person or thing.
- One set of competitors in a game.
- A sports team.
- A group having a particular allegiance in a conflict or competition.
- A recorded piece of music; a record, especially in jazz.
- Sidespin; english
- A television channel, usually as opposed to the one currently being watched (from when there were only two channels).
- A dish that accompanies the main course; a side dish.
- A line of descent traced through one parent as distinguished from that traced through another.
- The batters faced in an inning by a particular pitcher
- An unjustified air of self-importance.
- A written monologue or part of a scene to be read by an actor at an audition.
- A man who prefers not to engage in anal sex during homosexual intercourse.
- To ally oneself, be in an alliance, usually with "with" or rarely "in with"
- To lean on one side.
- To be or stand at the side of; to be on the side toward.
- To suit; to pair; to match.
- To work (a timber or rib) to a certain thickness by trimming the sides.
- To furnish with a siding.
- To provide with, as a side or accompaniment.
- To clear, tidy or sort.