Why is soccer so appealing?

PHOENIX (KSAZ) - Soccer is the most popular game in the world, but the question is: are you a fan, or do you find it boring, thinking there's not enough scoring?

As it turns out, soccer's low scoring may actually be one of the things that makes it so popular.
And such an incredible emotional roller coaster for fans.

If you don't like soccer, maybe you look at it this way: a bunch of players running around, tripping each other, flopping and pretending they're hurt, kicking the ball everywhere but into the net.

"I like playing it, but I am not really into watching the sport," said Diego Lugo. "I guess it could get a little dull."

"It is, like, when they are taking too long to score, and it's like you want to jump in there to take over the game," said Nick Peters.

So, why does the rest of the world go absolutely crazy over soccer, especially now that we're in the knockout rounds of the World Cup? What is it these fans love so much?

Part of soccer's appeal is it's so hard to score, so when you do, it's that much sweeter.

An example would lie in England's game against Columbia. At times, it was a bit like watching trench warfare. An intractable stalemate, but when England finally won in a shootout, there was so much pent-up frustration and excitement the crowd exploded.

Soccer is a game of exquisite pain leading to exquisite pleasure, like baseball. Ballgames can run on for hours, with hundreds of pitches, long pauses, strategy, tension, frustration, and then comes the big hit, and it's thrilling.

Another example would be hockey. Goals are hard to come by, with grueling overtimes, and shootouts, but when your team scores, it's great.

So if you look at soccer the same way, it can be exciting too, especially with the World Cup on the line.