Four Ways to Enjoy Soccer Beyond the World Cup

There's just one match left in the 2010 World Cup. If you're one of the Americans bitten by the soccer bug, what do you do now that the spectacle is over?

The good news is, there's plenty. There's never been a better time to be an American soccer fan. We have thriving domestic leagues, all sorts of cable TV stations, the Internet and international sports media to keep us connected to The Beautiful Game. Here are a few ideas for the soon-to-be soccer-starved in the United States.

Start Reading FourFourTwo

If you're used to the bland sports journalism baby food that is Sports Illustrated, then FourFourTwo is going to shock your system. Rather than genuflecting to the sports establishment, FFT loves to challenge it. It's political. It's bawdy. It's opinionated. And the photography is great. This imported-from-England magazine focuses mostly on the English leagues, but features a few good spreads per issue from leagues around the world. In the time I've read it, I've learned about the fiercest soccer rivalries in Vietnam, the roots of the heated Milan derby and the legends of the game from all over the planet.

Follow a Local Pro or Semi-Pro Team

Major League Soccer is the top league in the United States. You'll find teams in many major cities from coast-to-coast, including one in Toronto and another to follow in Vancouver. One step down is the United Soccer League's First Division, with teams in markets such as Austin, Puerto Rico, Portland and Orlando. If you want to support women's pro sports, give Women's Professional Soccer a shot. The teams feature many of the mainstay's of the dominating U.S. national team. I love women's pro soccer because you'll see a high level of skill, but the players have a bit more time and room to operate. Don't live in a market with a team? Check out a match when you visit, or even just hit one of the team shops to order a shirt.

Check Out The Champions League

If you liked the World Cup action, check out the UEFA Champions League. All the best teams from Europe's leagues get a chance to vie for the title. The action here is arguably better than the World Cup standard of play: These are players that train and play together year-round. Some have lined up next to each other for years. That familiarity breeds high-quality action. It's an often-unpredictable league - sometimes smaller teams sneak in and snatch the top prize from higher-profile sides. The nice thing about the Champions League is that most matches are played mid-week, adding meaningful matches to the calendar aside from domestic league matches.

Go to Where the Goals Are

If you like goals - and who doesn't? - you'll love the Bundesliga. This is Germany's top league, and it features more goals per game than any of the major European leagues. And remember that entertaining Germany side that just took third place after wiping out Argentina and England by a combined scoreline of 8-1? Most of its players star in the Bundesliga. It's 90 minutes of concentration, probing for chances and using skill and teamwork to pop in the highest number of goals per game in the big leagues - 2.83 goals per game, according to highly regarded German soccer journalist Uli Hesse.