Okay, so you've decided to participate in the "Soccer Revolution" and give the world's game a shot. Admirable of you, but soccer is one of those things that will take a little effort to get the most out of it. That said, I've put together a little list based on my personal experience to ensure your setup for the upcoming European football season.
Step 1--Choose a club(s) to follow.
You shouldn't let people influence this decision (unless she's really hot) and don't be discouraged if people label you as a bandwagon jumper, etc. Choose a club you can get behind whatever the reason and stick too it. Remember, everyone was a newbie at some point.
In choosing a European club, the main piece of advice I have is to pick someone you can actually watch on a regular basis (see step 3 below). My favorite team (Arsenal) plays in the English Premier League (now the Barclay's Premier League or BPL) and they come highly recommended. But for more objective recommendations, a guy named Bill Simmons has written a niece piece for ESPN's Page 2 outlining the process he went through in choosing an BPL team--a must read for potential fans. If you are more interested in the Spanish league (I follow Valencia a bit) or the Italian league, the biggest names are Real Madrid, Barcelona, AC Milan, Juventus, Inter Milan, etc. My only strong recommendation is to choose a club that will participate in the Champions League as this is one of the most exciting competitions in all of soccer.
Step 2--immerse yourself in the club
Check the your teams website, wiki, fansites, blogs, etc...you'll find all kinds of useful info and it's a good way to come up to speed quickly. Armed with a basic knowledge of your team, I recommend joining a discussion forum. For me, I didn't really start to learn about Arsenal until I read the discussions of more experienced fans. I recommend BigSoccer.com. You don't have to post yourself, but reading the opinions of other fans is perhaps the best way to get to know your newly adopted club. Here, you'll quickly find out your teams strengths, weaknesses, tendencies, who the biggest rivals are, etc.
Step 3--make sure you're setup to view as many games as possible
The BigSoccer forum will help you in this regard, but I'll give you a general synopsis of European soccer on TV in the U.S. Basically there are two types of games in which your club will play--eague games and tournament games (a.k.a. Cup Ties). For EPL fans in the U.S., the league games will be split between Fox Soccer Channel (FSC) and Setanta. While FSC is available from both satellite and most cable operators, currently Setanta is only available via Satellite or ITVN. The Spanish league will be covered by GolTV (satellite and cable) and FSC will provide U.S. coverage of the Italian league, and ESPN typically covers the Champions League. Many domestic tournament games (cup ties) are only shown as pay per view--the easiest way to see these is a local soccer bar (see step 4).
There are also several not-so-legal, free ways of watching European soccer, and I'll not facilitate their use, but the enterprising individual will not find them hard to discover (If your that broke, just ask any liverpool fan in the forums mentioned in step 2).
Step 4--find your local soccer bar (er-pub)
One of the best things about soccer is the enthusiasm of it's supporters. When your club plays a big rival, plays in significant cup tie or reaches the latter stages of the Champions League there is nothing like being in a bar with a bunch of like minded fans swapping stories, drinking, cheering, booing, and singing. Also, like the NFL on Sundays, several matches will usually be going on simultaneously, and in a pub, you'll be able to catch several games at once. The best way to find your local pub, is to get recommendations from other fans that live in your area (again, check forums from step 2 above). And, as an added bonus--because we are 5 hours behind Europe, it's a good excuse to drink in the morning.
Step 5--stay updated
Although, the European soccer season lasts from August to May, there is always something going on and it's important that you stay up to speed. My 10 minute daily ritual see's me visiting the following sights:
Step 1--Choose a club(s) to follow.
You shouldn't let people influence this decision (unless she's really hot) and don't be discouraged if people label you as a bandwagon jumper, etc. Choose a club you can get behind whatever the reason and stick too it. Remember, everyone was a newbie at some point.
In choosing a European club, the main piece of advice I have is to pick someone you can actually watch on a regular basis (see step 3 below). My favorite team (Arsenal) plays in the English Premier League (now the Barclay's Premier League or BPL) and they come highly recommended. But for more objective recommendations, a guy named Bill Simmons has written a niece piece for ESPN's Page 2 outlining the process he went through in choosing an BPL team--a must read for potential fans. If you are more interested in the Spanish league (I follow Valencia a bit) or the Italian league, the biggest names are Real Madrid, Barcelona, AC Milan, Juventus, Inter Milan, etc. My only strong recommendation is to choose a club that will participate in the Champions League as this is one of the most exciting competitions in all of soccer.
Step 2--immerse yourself in the club
Check the your teams website, wiki, fansites, blogs, etc...you'll find all kinds of useful info and it's a good way to come up to speed quickly. Armed with a basic knowledge of your team, I recommend joining a discussion forum. For me, I didn't really start to learn about Arsenal until I read the discussions of more experienced fans. I recommend BigSoccer.com. You don't have to post yourself, but reading the opinions of other fans is perhaps the best way to get to know your newly adopted club. Here, you'll quickly find out your teams strengths, weaknesses, tendencies, who the biggest rivals are, etc.
Step 3--make sure you're setup to view as many games as possible
The BigSoccer forum will help you in this regard, but I'll give you a general synopsis of European soccer on TV in the U.S. Basically there are two types of games in which your club will play--eague games and tournament games (a.k.a. Cup Ties). For EPL fans in the U.S., the league games will be split between Fox Soccer Channel (FSC) and Setanta. While FSC is available from both satellite and most cable operators, currently Setanta is only available via Satellite or ITVN. The Spanish league will be covered by GolTV (satellite and cable) and FSC will provide U.S. coverage of the Italian league, and ESPN typically covers the Champions League. Many domestic tournament games (cup ties) are only shown as pay per view--the easiest way to see these is a local soccer bar (see step 4).
There are also several not-so-legal, free ways of watching European soccer, and I'll not facilitate their use, but the enterprising individual will not find them hard to discover (If your that broke, just ask any liverpool fan in the forums mentioned in step 2).
Step 4--find your local soccer bar (er-pub)
One of the best things about soccer is the enthusiasm of it's supporters. When your club plays a big rival, plays in significant cup tie or reaches the latter stages of the Champions League there is nothing like being in a bar with a bunch of like minded fans swapping stories, drinking, cheering, booing, and singing. Also, like the NFL on Sundays, several matches will usually be going on simultaneously, and in a pub, you'll be able to catch several games at once. The best way to find your local pub, is to get recommendations from other fans that live in your area (again, check forums from step 2 above). And, as an added bonus--because we are 5 hours behind Europe, it's a good excuse to drink in the morning.
Step 5--stay updated
Although, the European soccer season lasts from August to May, there is always something going on and it's important that you stay up to speed. My 10 minute daily ritual see's me visiting the following sights:
- BBC football front page
- SkySports front page
- ESPNsoccernet
- BigSoccer team specific forum
- Google news search on my team's name
I also highly recommend subscribing to the World Soccer Daily podcast (search on iTunes) or The Two G's. You may also want to subscribe to a podcast dedicated to your team. If you chose Arsenal from step 1--I recommend Arsecast (also available on iTunes).
That's it, you should be set for the season. Good luck if you chose Arsenal from step 1, if you didn't I wish you plenty of hamstring injuries and twisted ankles ;)
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