The UEFA Champions League is an annual soccer competition pitting the top teams from each individual European country’s league against one another. Each team must first qualify for the tournament by ranking within one of the top slots designated for their league and overall competitive value the previous year.

In North American sports, The U.S. and Canada more specifically, all four major sports (football, baseball, basketball, and hockey) feature playoffs or championships that contain teams inside of just two countries, with immediate proximity to each other.

The Champion’s league format compared to the United States’ playoff system also contains critical differences: the competition is completely separate from individual countries’ league play, the competition spans the full length of a season, there is a group stage before sudden death rounds, and the knockout rounds are not seeded according to any specific ranking, making the competition random. This allows smaller market teams to potentially progress through easier scheduling, and at least ensures that an arduous, season-long campaign of continued winning is the only way a team can win the competition.

Giving smaller fan bases and teams with less money a chance to earn more due to their success is good for all involved; one year of success could propel a small market organization to a different level. This is evident by success stories like Leicester City of the English Premier League in 2015. While monetary discrepancies will still exist between larger teams, adding a second competition gives further incentive for teams to perform well, even if they still are not in the hunt for first place, similar to the way Major League Baseball has added a second wild card game in recent years.

Both baseball and basketball have shown continuous steady growth in other countries; basketball throughout the world and baseball being particularly in South America. After viewing the success of the European competition and realizing that globalization of business, including sports, is the future of much of our entertainment, it would be fatuous to limit ourselves to such a small region. Creating larger geographic divides among teams while inadvertently incorporating aspects of nationalism and diverse styles of play adds innovative elements to a playoff system that should interest anyone in the U.S.

Soccer is a nascent sport in the U.S. but certainly is not a huge draw yet, or even in most American’s list of favorite sports. This should not deter you from watching European soccer, especially The Champion’s League, even if the basic reasoning is that the level of play is drastically better.

Aside from your personal feelings about the sport of soccer, take into consideration the possibilities that incorporating a multitude of countries into your favorite sports could bring. While being among the top five teams in the National Basketball Association would still be thrilling, having them face off against other teams who have done the same throughout the world creates a completely different dynamic in the competition.

It creates a whole different way of staying engaged with sports from a fan’s perspective, you are no longer limited to cheering for one competition within one region while the stakes of winning or lose are increased exponentially. Failure in your country’s league games does not dictate your success in other competitions, and vice versa. Recall the immense pride and interest created every four years when our country is involved in The Olympic Games or The World Cup, and apply that to your favorite city’s sports team on an annual basis. As a sports fan what is there not to love about that?