RealGM

I've been interested in following the sport more, but it's a bit overwhelming to have so many different teams and leagues. Can anyone give me a rundown on the top leagues to follow? Maybe the best teams? I always get really into soccer when the World Cup is on, but the big championship game today got me excited a bit earlier than usual. And on the subject of the WC, who are the favorites and does USA have a chance to make any noise? I know who Messi is and I saw a headline that said even he couldn't propel this USA team out of group stages, so I'm guessing no.

No need to answer all of the questions. Any info is appreciated.

soccer can be difficult for new fans to grasp due to the many different leagues and teams but once you get the hang of it , its easy to follow. Every country has its own domestic league and domestic tournaments. The top leagues include the EPL(england) , Bundesliga(germany) , La Liga (spain) , Serie A(italy) , Ligue 1 (france) , and Liga(portugal).

Top teams from each league
England:Manchester City(champions) , Manchester United , Chelsea , Liverpool , Arsenal
Spain: Real Madrid , Atletico Madrid(champions) , Barcelona
Italy:Juventus(champions), Roma , Napoli. Ac Milan and Inter Milan*
Portugal: Porto , Benfica(champions)
Germany: Bayern Munich(champions) , Borussia Dortmund
France: Paris St.Germain(champions)

There are also decent to good teams in other leagues that aren't as big as the one's I listed including
Ajax(dutch) , Galatasaray(turkey) , Celtic(scotland) , Shaktar(ukraine) , CSKA(russia) , Zenit(russia)

every league is different and each have their own unique style in the way they run things and the way they play. Some leagues have teams with a lot more money and others leagues are filled with teams with financial issues. The styles of play and speeds of the game are also different in each league and it's up to you which one you prefer.

The USA are in a very tough group this summer so i don't expect them to make much noise. They have portugal and germany in their group and a decent team in ghana so I wouldn't expect too much from the americans. But its soccer , anything can happen. If messi was on the US they'd get better but still it's a game that heavily depends on the other pieces of the puzzle so if they are outmatched then there's nothing messi can do.

EDIT: *= Inter were a great team over history but have been struggling recently and dont look like they have a clear way out.Milan might be approaching that territory but I think they get out. Some of the other clubs i've listed have also been through some tough times but look to be passed that now.

Germany, Spain and England are the top leagues right now, Italy and France are a notch below at the moment. The EPL is more physical-ability dependent, and basketball like in that it's all up and down the field all of the time, simplistic tactics and limited control through the midfield. The spanish game is slower and much more technical. Germany kinda walks the middle, the game's not as physical as the EPL and is highly technical, but it's a lot more high speed than La Liga.

The favorites for the WC are Spain, Germany, Italy, Portugal and Brazil if they can channel that crowd support, although I don't really see it happening. And the US will be lucky not to come in last in that group, two of the favorites and a strong Ghanian squad all but guarantee the US goes out in the group stage.

I'd just try and catch some games from different teams in different leagues and see who catches your interest. In italy Roma are probably the most entertaining team, in Germany it's probably Dortmund, in England I'd say Liverpool are the most pleasing to a neautral and I don't even know who to suggest in Spain. Those aren't the best teams in any of those leagues and outside of Dortmund I'd be shocked to see any of them win the CL in the next few years, but all play a very fun style with good coaches leading exciting young squads who seem to be heading for bigger and brighter things.

EDIT: Don't confuse the guy by bringing up teams like Inter, they were huge but are dying a swift death and with their financial situation don't figure to return to relevance any time soon.

I was thinking about leaving inter out , but they're a huge team falling apart. But have been pretty damn good over their history so I just listed them. I'll put a disclaimer then I guess

if youre new to soccer the world cup is a great place to start followed by big tournaments.
If theres one league you should watch its the EPL. In my opinion it is faster paced and more enjoyable to watch. After I would watch the champions league or the euro cup.

Premier League is the easiest to follow if you're American because of the language.

The World Cup is a great starting point, b/c you can see all the stars. Brazil, Spain, Argentina, Italy and Germany are the traditional power houses. In NFL terms, a rough comparison:

Brazil => Green Bay Packers, the original strong team, but not as successful as decades ago
Spain => Seattle Seahawks, recently won everything, superb everywhere, the team to beat
Argentina => New England Patriots, have the big superstar (Messi), but the big W is decades ago
Italy => New York Giants, can crash in the group stages but also win it all
Germany => Denver Broncos, always strong but always fail in the big games

The US just ditched their most famous player (Landon Donovan), but traditionally are more team- than star-oriented anyway. No stars, but they have a lot of players who play in the strong German and English leagues.

The EPL and Bundesliga are the best leagues to watch. Just watch as much games as you can and let that guide you. Something will attract you then just ride that wave.

Bundesliga is not really that 'sexy' for a American football fan.

You only have Bayern and Dortmund as "Marquee teams". And Bayern usually wins the league by double digit points.

They play very entertaining football and there's a lot of interesting teams you can watch. Some of the best young talent play in the BuLi and they're doing a fantastic job of getting new viewers. Their online presence is the best of the big leagues. They don't price out their fans. They invest in homegrown players. There's a lot to like there.

I tried to catch two BuLi games every week this year and I was disappointed. Gladbach, Wolfsburg, Hoffenheim, Leverkusen & Schalke are worth the investment.

No_20 wrote:Bundesliga is not really that 'sexy' for a American football fan.

You only have Bayern and Dortmund as "Marquee teams". And Bayern usually wins the league by double digit points.

Are you serious man? Have you ever watched a Bundesliga season? Great football down to the last weeks. You sound incredibly ignorant with a statement like that. Premier League and Bundesliga are hands down the best leagues for a casual fan to watch, even my girlfriend finds Bundesliga matches entertaining as hell and she hates most sports other than bball. She actually finds it more entertaining to watch the BPL.

You sound like you started watching football this year.

truth18 wrote:

No_20 wrote:Bundesliga is not really that 'sexy' for a American football fan.

You only have Bayern and Dortmund as "Marquee teams". And Bayern usually wins the league by double digit points.

Are you serious man? Have you ever watched a Bundesliga season? Great football down to the last weeks. You sound incredibly ignorant with a statement like that. Premier League and Bundesliga are hands down the best leagues for a casual fan to watch, even my girlfriend finds Bundesliga matches entertaining as hell and she hates most sports other than bball. She actually finds it more entertaining to watch the BPL.

You sound like you started watching football this year.

I personally don't like the bundesliga outside of the top two teams.
The EPL is the most enjoyable followed by La Liga, but the latter is just my team bias.
Im like whatever about the Italian league, but I feel like its lost its luster recently.

I would watch La Liga more if they had someone other than Ray Hudson commentating.

bundesliga might be fun if it didn't turn into bayern vs. washington generals.

5DOM wrote:I would watch La Liga more if they had someone other than Ray Hudson commentating.

the beauty of knowing Spanish to watch the commentators.

Pretty sure the germans feel the same way.
When I watch the world cup, I always watch it in Spanish.

EArl wrote:

5DOM wrote:I would watch La Liga more if they had someone other than Ray Hudson commentating.

the beauty of knowing Spanish to watch the commentators.

Pretty sure the germans feel the same way.
When I watch the world cup, I always watch it in Spanish.

I don't understand a word of Spanish, but I always try to watch La Liga matches in Spanish myself. Most times, I just mute it, because the whistling is insane in La Liga.

Wow, I didn't expect so much discussion to quickly. Thank you all for the information. I have a good starting point to build on now.

Also I notice there are a bunch of different titles to win. Obviously the World Cup is the greatest prize, but how would you rank the prestige of the other big ones?

High 5 wrote:Wow, I didn't expect so much discussion to quickly. Thank you all for the information. I have a good starting point to build on now.

Also I notice there are a bunch of different titles to win. Obviously the World Cup is the greatest prize, but how would you rank the prestige of the other big ones?

This man is baiting us!

It goes FA Cup first, and then CL and EPL titles...

No_20 wrote:Bundesliga is not really that 'sexy' for a American football fan.

You only have Bayern and Dortmund as "Marquee teams". And Bayern usually wins the league by double digit points.

on point.