It happens every four years in the US: Hesitant soccer fans emerge from the shadows, emboldened, confident, unashamed, and–let’s be honest–a little bit pretentious.

It’s not easy being a fan of an elegant and oft-mocked european ball game that shares a similarly-sounding name of a very popular impact sport from the US in which kicking the ball with the foot is actually quite rare. Unless you’re the 2011 San Francisco 49ers, am I right?

As Americans–living in a young country, with a rather limited world view–it’s easy to think that the FIFA World Cup is the only time soccer is ever played. I think we also believe that gymnasts practice for three and a half years, shoot their McDonalds commercials, and then show up at the Olympics. In reality, for those gymnasts, there are countless local, regional, state, national, and international meets and championships in between those internationally-televised events in host countries. A gymnastics fan can benefit from those events. The same is true for soccer fans.

How do I–as a soccer fan living in America–continue getting the sport I love in front of my eyeholes? Here is a I’m-not-a-sports-guy list of ways to put more soccer in your life, and keep that “World Cup Fever” burning strong:

Learn The Language

Start with Wikipedia. Learn what the “offside” rule is. Learn what “the pitch” is. Look for fouls that happen inside the box. Learn what constitutes a corner kick, and why it’s a valuable thing. Find a soccer fan who doesn’t turn their nose up at you when you ask a question (they are out there).

Learn The Strategy

Look for the formations. This isn’t a game of free-for-all running around, it’s a strategy game of positions and tactics. There are intentional roles for each player and when he does his job and communicates well, really beautiful things can happen.

Find A Favorite Style

Now that you’ve watched some World Cup matches, maybe you’ve noticed the differences in play. Perhaps you enjoyed watching the very technical German team over the flair of the Brazilian team. Maybe you enjoyed the energy of The Netherlands over the possession-focused style of Spain. Having an affinity for a style that is inherent to a region or player will be helpful when it comes time to…

Pick A Favorite Team

Let’s simplify this entire thing, and only focus on professional clubs (teams) instead of the FIFA International Confederations (countries). The World Cup for Soccer is like the All-Star game for Baseball. All you need to know right now is that professional players who play for pro teams will also represent their home countries for cups and titles. That’s fun, but it gets complicated, so we’re going to skip it and only deal with pro clubs for now.

Leagues are made up of different clubs in different geographical regions. For example, the very popular club “Arsenal” is in the very popular “English Premier League” in England. They play against other clubs in the EPL. Let’s bring this all back home with this example: “Seattle Sounders FC” is part of “Major League Soccer” in the United States, and they play against other MLS teams such as the “San Jose Earthquakes” and the “Los Angeles Galaxy.”

A good method for picking someone to root for as suggested by my friend Eric: Pick a style, pick a league, pick a team, pick a player, buy their jersey. Eric says–and I’m paraphrasing, “It doesn’t matter how much you like the sport on the whole, it’s hard to be just a ‘fan’ of soccer. You need to pick a club to own.” On that note, here’s a very funny Bill Simmons guide to picking a favorite EPL team.

Pick A Favorite Player

Do you like the quiet, reserved, humble team-player? You’ve picked the wrong sport. I kid. But seriously, the best players are the most paid players are the most arrogant players. But damn, they are fun to watch. If you’ve already picked a favorite team, then cheer for the entire team until you connect with a player. If you’re still trying to decide what team to align with, find a player that you love to watch. So if you like Lionel Messi and Neymar Jr., you’ll like to watch FC Barcelona. Clint Dempsey? Seattle Sounders. Do you like biters? Liverpool has Luis “Jaws” Suarez.

Get A Schedule

Soccer is ALWAYS being played, and there is always another tournament right around the corner. The Major League Soccer season in the US runs from March to August, with the Premier League in England–along with most of the European leagues–picking up from August and going until May. South American leagues run some variation of Spring to Fall like the MLS. Bottom-line: seasons change, but soccer remains.

Find A Way To Watch

Because TV providers in the US are the worst kind of scum, it’s really hard to watch any sport without paying for all of the sports. It’s better in other countries, so one way to watch international soccer using the power of the internet is to pretend your computer is in another country. That’s simple with a VPN service like Hola Better Internet. If you do have a cable or satellite subscription you can use services like ESPN or NBC Sports Extra, but my favorite way to watch is the local pub. Watching at the local pub gives you a better chance of surrounding yourself with people who understand the game and can educate you.

It’s also worth checking to see if you have a local MLS, NPSL, USL, or even college NCAA team that you can support by physically going to a game and purchasing tickets.

Be A QUALITY Fan

Part of being a soccer fan is understanding the beautiful game, but the rest is enjoying the beautiful game. Get excited about that heel pass. Be nervous when there is a penalty kick. Scream and cheer when your team scores. But don’t tip cars over, set things on fire, and be a drunken idiot. Leave that to the basketball fans.