Why I Love This Beautiful Game Part 3: Year Round Play

I will be the first to tell you that I am not a huge fan of the MLS. I started watching the beautiful game and saw nothing but European teams to start out with.

This spoiled the hell out of me.

The MLS is almost always touted in serious football circles as being a pansy league. Even with David Beckham trying to change that, it is unlikely that the MLS will ever reach great heights in the States, let alone worldwide.

You know what I figured I liked about MLS though? It's on during the summer — when the rest of Europe is taking a holiday from the sport. I get a game that has seen its level of quality increase slowly over the last five years.

It isn't La Liga, the EPL, or even the Australian leagues, but it is a perfect reprieve from the lack of European football in the off months.

That is a truly beautiful thing. There is always some incarnation of the beautiful game on at some time during the year. Granted most of it is on during the fall to spring, there is still football on.

American football, baseball, basketball, and hockey — none of these sports have counterparts that play on a yearly basis. Even if they do, the leagues and the competitions aren't wide enough to receive public acclaim.

There is always a championship going on somewhere in the world. It never fails. Be it the Copa Libertadores or one of the many global competitions that FIFA hold every year. As a football fan, you are never really in a drought when it comes to games.

While it might not always be the best football in the world, it's football none the less. I love the beautiful game not for the teams or the players but because of what it is — a simple game that can unite war-torn countries and restore national pride.

With its continuous schedules and its ability to keep me critiquing teams even when Chelsea is not on the pitch, this is why I love the beautiful game.

Part 4 will deal with the structure of the leagues, and why I love that aspect of the game.