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shoes. We even played soccer in our break-time whilst wearing our school uniform, although our mums probably didn't appreciate the constant need to replace or mend our school trousers!

4. The rules are simple:

Okay son, you can kick the ball, you can hit it with your head. In fact you can use anything as long as it's not your hands. And the aim is to put the ball between those two posts'. That's more or less it, you've just told little Johnny or Jenny all they need to get started. They can learn about offside rules and other additional complexities later.

Some other sports, and I'm thinking especially of American football and rugby, are perhaps not as straightforward for a kid to pick up.

5. It's fun and fast paced and it's a team sport:

I'm not saying that other sports aren't fun. I'm all for sports diversity and there are loads of great team sports such as rugby, American football, ice hockey, field hockey and basketball. However, like these other sports, once you've got out there and started playing you don't want to stop. The adrenalin's pumping, the action hardly ever stops and you want to beat the other bunch of guys or girls. Being a team sport also makes it attractive as you can play it with your friends.

Sports that are slower paced (like baseball or cricket) involve long periods of time when you're either sat on the sidelines doing nothing or else are stood on the pitch waiting for the possibility that the ball might be hit in your direction.

And individual sports like golf or tennis lack that team element.

6. It's the world's biggest sport:

This is kid of the Coca Cola effect. Everyone knows the Coke brand and the drink has spread to every corner of the globe. Is the actual fizzy drink beverage any better than some of the lesser brands? Maybe or maybe not. What's certainly true is that people like doing things that other people like doing. It's popularity gives it a coolness factor that is perhaps not there with some less global sports.

7. It gives you the chance to cheer on your country:

Most of the things I've mentioned so far are about what makes people want to play soccer. However, an important additional factor is what makes people want to become soccer fans, as the two usually go hand in hand.

I think soccer's biggest appeal (and advantage) over the mainstream US sports is that it is a truly global sport and means that you can see your nation competing against other nations. Certainly, I know that there's something great about hearing my country's national

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