[Insert favorite club]
[Insert favorite player]
[Insert why you chose that club]
[Opinion on how there season is going]
[Reason as to why soccer is still a niche sport in America]

Arsenal FC

Thierry Henry (Followed by Cesc Fabregas and Lionel Messi.)

Thierry Henry caught my attention during the World Cup in '06 so I followed him back to Islington.

I expected a top 4 finish but I thought we could have at least won a trophy. I doubt we will in either the EPL or Champions League once again.

The pace of the game demands too much attention from the viewer. Our most popular sports here are produced far too differently to match 45 minutes plus extra time of game-action with no commercial interruption.

Liverpool

Steven Gerrard

They wear red and Steven Gerrard.

They are playing well. Rafa is crazy, but they have a ton of talent. We are first in the Prem and I believe we can win it. And we play some of our best football in the Champion's League, so I think we can win that too.

The United States does not have the best league in the world. TV coverage for other leagues is hard to find consistently. And baseball, hockey, football, and basketball are better sports (not meant to offend as it is just my opinion).

Arsenal

Current? Gael Clichy. Ever? Hard to say, Pires, Bergkamp or Henry. The attacking players on the Invincibles made an impression!

Read Fever Pitch when I was younger. They reminded me of the Mets, and I loved the book, so I decided to be an Arsenal fan. This was around the dawn of the Wenger era, so from day one, Arsenal have ceased to remind me of the Mets. On the other hand, it was rather fortunate that the team I picked based on "1-nil to the Arsenal" turned out to play such attractive football.

I think we'll wind up 4th in the Premiership. I don't want to give a treatise on the current state of the squad, but lack of depth is hurting, and weakness at the holding midfield role has contributed to a lack of form for Fabregas. If we can strengthen that role during January, then I think we've got a shot at third and could make a run in the Champions League (we did in '05, and that was a team not in form and marred by injury).

I think it is a bunch of reasons. It has associations with Europe, which presents an initial hurdle. Another, and more important, initial obstacle is that Americans generally have too many sporting commitments already. The most common complaint with the game is that it is "boring." Well, I can understand that to be honest. People who have been watching the game for awhile develop an appreciation for the flow and movement of the game, which can make even a well played 0-0 interesting. That's a fine point though. That requires sustained interest. That's hard to develop if you do not have a team. Soccer thrives on the escalating tension, you get more and more nervous as it goes. It is similar to baseball in that respect. Yet, in both cases, if you do not have a rooting interest, the tension is absent. These make it hard for people new to the game to get into it right away. I think, however, that the ever increasing number of kids playing in youth leagues is changing the tide.

A) Liverpool in EPL

B)Fernado Torres (although my fav player in the world is Lionel Messi of Barcelona)

C) As a kid in the 70's, growing up on Long Island, I was a Huge Cosmos fan....And one night I stumbled across English soccer ( I believe it was a PBS station 13 or 21) and loved it...The English fans were amazing to watch to this kid....And honestly, I think I chose Liverpool A) because thats where the Beatles were from and B) the crowd singing "You'll Never Walk Alone" impressed the hell out of me

D) couldn't be happier

E) a few reasons of many

our best athletes don't play soccer as their 1st sport & the salaries don't encourage a multi sport talented kid to pursue soccer

lack of tradition...Kids are just now starting to grow up where Dad is a huge fan of so and so... A lot of kids become interested in teams & sports that Dad watched

no legitimate star like Pele to get the casual fans interest ...A midfielder like Beckham may get folks to watch a game or 2 as a curosity, but a world class goal scoring striker would put fannies in the seats

no legitimate media coverage...even your average hardcore sports fan in the US couldn't name 5 players , yet even those who don't follow hockey probably could name 10 hockey players just because of Sportscenter highlights

People will watch World Class soccer events like the World Cup or Olympics, but until the US has it's own homegrown star (either here or starting for a World power), things will remain as is.... small but steady growth

One thing I expect to continue is the marketing to the ever growing Hispanic/Latino community here in the US.... You can go to any park on any weekend here in Los Angeles and it's wall to wall Latino soccer games...Kids leagues, adult leagues (complete with refs & uniforms, just like bar league softball games), whole families picnicing and making a day out of it. It's clearly is the Latino community's favorite game her and I imagination it's the same in many other places...

Couple that with the growth of the game in non Latino communties & that just may be how the US develops its first major star

and I must add, the advent of Fox Soccer channel, GOLTV, & the internet have made following EPL, La Liga, & even the Bundesliga easier

1. AS Roma

2. Francesco Totti - always been my favorite soccer player since I watched him burst onto the international scene in Euro 2000. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2bBN6D9nBY (Favorite Totti moment, loved that penalty)

3. Mainly because of Totti. I've always been more of an international soccer fan (Forza Azzurri) over club soccer, but in Euro 2000 Totti really caught my eye and I've followed his career with Roma ever since.

4. They got off to a disastrous start in Series A - mainly because Totti was hurt and their entire offense runs through him - but they've rebounded and won their group in Champions League. Hopefully, they get a favorable draw in the next round. I would love to see them make the Champions League final (it's in Rome), but I hope at least one Italian team makes it.

forza why is that kick so great? kinda looks like he kicked it one way and the goalie guessed wrong. what am i missing?

It was just a cool penalty. Big time pressure spot (semi-final game of Euro 2000 against host Netherlands) and Totti chips it in with ease. It's probably just the situation that makes it stand out to me, but when I think of Totti I always remember that penalty kick.

+1

Ray Hudson's commentary makes Gus Johnson look sedate.

Forza, Arsenal and Roma are facing off twice for Champions League the 24th and later on March 11th. Good luck.

Black Monday of sorts. Portsmouth fired Arsenal legend Tony Addams while Chelsea fired Scolari after a draw with Hull City (remember they were the last team to enter the premiership through playoff). Abramovich probably regrets pushing out Morinho who has done a fine job at Inter. Chelsea is falling fast (Arsenal can most definitely overtake them for 4th place). Wasted money with a lot of overpriced veterans. I can definitely see a fire-sale considering all the money Abramovich lost.

Anybody else feel bad for Beckham getting stuck with the LA Galaxy (Team #2 for MLS) and not remaining at AC Milan?