You don't choose your club. Your club chooses you.

You need to look for a connection. Something based on where you live is a good start (a New Yorker could choose to follow York FC, for example). Support is often inherited (I'm a 3rd generation Everton fan) so if there's a family connection go for that. If you're family can trace itself back to an English location, that could work. Plymouth Argyle, for example.

Don't make the wrong choice, as it can have a profoundly negative impact on your life. I recall the sorry tale of an American member of this very site. Full of joy and love for his fellow man, the heart and soul of his local Conservative Club. Never a bad word to say about anyone...

...then he became a Leeds fan...

That's very possible. If we had an open system here in the states then that would be one thing, but with a closed system rooting for the home team just doesn't feel the same.

I know my name root and family go back to Eccles, England and other areas in the UK, but there are so many hundreds of clubs it's hard to process for someone that didn't grow up there.

I actually started off on a bandwagon (I didn't know any better...). I started following around 2008 and saw Chelsea play here in the states, and got to go to a game while they were here in 2014 I think. But as I've become educated I don't like how the are owned, managed on the field or front offices, etc. That's what has started this process for me.

Eccles? The cake place? I used to live there for a while.

Yeah, avoid the teams near Eccles :p

Eccles is in Greater Manchester, only a couple of miles from Manchester United's Old Trafford stadium, so you could pick them if you want a big English club. If you want to go for a more "grass roots" club you could pick Salford City.

Octavius: yep, the cake place. (Although I've never had any, but would love to try some)

Jamiet99uk: I like the idea of a more grassroots team, but not so grassroots that I won't ever get to see them play live in the States. Unfortunately I did develop a hard hatred for all things Manchester United and Manchester City over the time that I have been watching, so I guess my "heritage" big clubs are out lol.

Eccles cakes are the best. Manchester teams are the worst

Whilst it is frowned upon to support more than one top tier side, it is generally accepted that you can support a Premiership team and a team in the lower divisions without being considered some sort of Devil worshipping scumspawn.

I met a Yank at uni who claimed to be a fan of both Liverpool and Everton. Deary me... Not good...

Yeah, that definitely doesn't work. I like the idea of having one team to root for, but realistically to get a team that I can actually watch I'll probably need 2.

When you see something like this and don't know where to start, it's a bit overwhelming...

http://www.footballgroundmap.com/grounds/england/fullscreen

I can imagine...

What we need are more starting points than just Eccles... Although Salford might do you as a lower tier team...

What kinds of things other than geographic genealogy would be good qualifiers? What makes a local club something you stand behind besides the fact you are from there, or have generational ties to it?

Have you ever been to the UK, Eccles?

Erm...

Tricky one. I spent a couple of bleak years nominally supporting Yeovil because my girlfriend's cousin played for them...

What about patriotism? Find a club Yanks play for and root for them. Tim Howard and Everton, for example?

Your new club JEccles

44:30

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxlYVJ1VHMA

Unfortunately no. London has been a dream trip of mine, but the timing and funds just have never aligned.

Octavious, that reminds me of a stipulation. I don't mind a team that has Americans on it, but I don't want to support one owned by Americans. They don't know anything about running a club without it being a protected franchise.

Everton maybe, but Tim is on his way out I feel so maybe not.

Nikola, that looks amazing!

Thanks man!

Hmm, if you want to go down the more romantic form of ownership path then I'd recommend Exeter City. Owned by the fans, and a great history. The first English side to play Brazil. You do have to put up with the nickname "The Grecians".

Or you could go the full Bernie Sanders and support Forest Green Rovers. Great name and run by a left wing hippy lunatic. The only side to my knowledge that refuses to sell any form of meat products in their pies as a matter of principle.

I recommend watching the Champions League or the Premier League and just waiting for a team whos style (not results; style) captivates you. I became a Manchester United fan after watching their Champions League Quarter Finals against Real Madrid back in 2003 when I first started watching football. Two of the best football matches I have ever seen, and when I was given a United members' yearbook shortly afterward by a family friend, I became a United fan for life.

You need a team you can fall in love with, and that requires style, personality, and passion. Not just results. If you don't have the local factor to help you there, then watching a truly special game is the best way to find that.

Octavious: I like the idea of Exeter City. The Grecians doesn't sound too bad, but I'll have to watch and see what they look like.

Hellenic Riot: That's great advice. When I first started watching I didn't know much about soccer/football, so playing style wasn't something that mattered much to me.

I guess the thing I wish I had the most is a connection and a reason to back a team. I love tradition and history, having a lineage and a group of people that stand behind the team whether they are up or down. It feels unnatural to pick and choose who I want to support because I have always supported local teams here, but I don't have that ability with England/Europe.

If I was looking for an English team that had grit, determination, and a tactical approach that wasn't entirely appealing to the casual viewer but that got the job done, what club would I be looking at? (Not a team with flash, but a team that is fundamentally sound and has the tactics/approach to get the job done in an efficient manner.)

Leicester City are the fairytale club of the season, but their football, whilst not especially beautiful, is pretty much the epitome of teamwork and work rate. Stoke City and West Ham United sort of fit that bill, too.

I'm only recommending Premier League teams because I don't believe you'll ever be able to watch anyone below PL level in America; and watching anyone below Championship level is tough here.

It depends what you want.

For a team that thinks it's big, has devoted fans, and has actually won nothing in living memory - Newcastle United are your team. Think Toronto Maple Leafs

For a team that has a style that is basic and (sometimes) effective, look to Tony Pulis or Sam Allardyce as managers, so West Bromwich Albion or Sunderland.

For a team with an undeserved reputation for stylish football, West Ham United

For a team with a more deserved reputation, Tottenham Hotspur

Efficient, stylish - this season, Leicester City

And for a lifetime of frustration, poor choices, and general crappy luck - pick my team, Sheffield United, currently in the third tier

"If I was looking for an English team that had grit, determination, and a tactical approach that wasn't entirely appealing to the casual viewer but that got the job done, what club would I be looking at?"

That sounds like any team coached by Tony Pulis. He currently is manager of the Baggies (West Brom). Although he might leave at the end of the season. He has a reputation for overperforming using the kind of tactics you describe. He was at Stoke for a while and against all odds kept Crystal Palace up as interim manager.

If you want a socially minded club that is community focused and won't rip off its fans, and had the strongest football player in the world, AFC Wimbledon is your club.

Well, he did say "got the job done", and I'm too convinced West Brom have been doing that this season. And Sunderland definitely haven't. ;)

If you're not a glory hound, really detest Manchester United, want to be part of a rapidly loyal fanbase that is hardcore that opposing teams want their fans banned, and aren't afraid of supporting a club that has been royally screwed by its owners and the FA, I recommend LUFC.

#MOT

*rabidly loyal fanbase that is so hardcore...ugh phones.