A couple of days ago, I realized that I don’t watch any sports. A lot of my friends do, and they have a sport that they follow and like, such as football, Formula 1, basketball, and so on. That made me feel like the odd one out.

However, recently I developed a knack for watching soccer. I remember it took me a couple of days to understand how the sport works. and I would spend endless hours scouring the internet just so I could understand the basics of the game. Lucky for me, I have Verizon home internet that allows me to stream highlights, matches, and a lot more without worrying about my connection giving up in between.

If you’re starting with watching soccer, too, then here’s everything you need to know to get started:

·       Understand the Basics of the Game

The first thing you need to do is to familiarize yourself with all the basic concepts of the sport.

For instance, one of the things that you need to know about the game is how you can score a point. There are two goals on two distinct sides of the soccer field, and to score a point, you have to shoot the ball into the opponent’s goal. There is a goalkeeper who prevents the ball from going in with whatever they’ve got.

You must also learn about the key actions in the game, such as corner kicks, throw-ins (when the ball goes out of bounds), penalties (a free kick), and off-sides (something that took me a long time to understand, but the internet can help you there).

You also need to understand about fouls and the card system. Some actions are against the rules and are considered fouls in the game. Fouls can lead to penalties as well. Once you understand what fouls are, you should also familiarize yourself with yellow and red cards and what purposes they serve.

Each player has a certain position in the game, and you must play your part in fulfilling that role. For instance, there are defenders, midfielders, forwards, and goalkeepers. The goalkeeper can only touch the ball while they are within their designated bounds, while the defender focuses on defending the goalpost.

·       Choose a Team to Support

You can’t aimlessly start watching soccer; there’s no fun in it if you don’t have a team to support in the first place. Therefore, it is necessary that you pick a team to support. You can start off by rooting for a local team. This will pave your way to supporting international teams once you understand how the whole system works.

After that, you can pick a team that has a star player, or it could be anyone whose playing style you like the most. For instance, the whole world is obsessed with Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi; you can start from there. You can observe their playstyles and then try to determine which one is better. That will help you pick out an international team to support.

Better yet, you may also choose a team that has a good history and memorable rivalries. You can read up on the recent history of soccer and also read a couple of redemption stories to see which soccer team you should support.

·       Start Watching Matches

The next thing to do is to start watching matches regularly so that you can stay up to speed with the latest events. You can watch games on TV and pay close attention to the commentary so that you can make sense of what is going on in the match.

You may also head online to YouTube and watch a couple of highlights to understand how a game of soccer progresses. Highlights are always to the point, which is why they will take less of your time. They can also teach you a thing or two about player tactics, so that if you end up playing the sport yourself, you will have something to follow.

You should also keep track of all the live matches so that you don’t miss out on the latest events. Plus, it’ll also give you an insight into the energy and enthusiasm of live matches. With time, you’ll develop a love for that energy, and that is the part of soccer that makes it so addictive to watch.

However, do keep in mind that you don’t have to delve into the strategies right away; you should first learn to enjoy watching the game. You should keep your focus fixed on the excitement and drama at the start.

This is everything you needed to know to get yourself started. Once you follow all of these things, you’ll be discussing soccer-talk with your like-minded friends in no time.