I remember the MLS Inaugural Season well. I was 8-years old. It was so cool that there was a league IN THE USA with a team in my city, Washington, D.C. I’d watched the U.S. Men’s National Team in the World Cup. I knew all the players. Alexi Lalas who had red hair like me. John Harkes who played my position. Cobi Jones, the cool guy. Eric Wynalda who scored all the goals.

I don’t know exactly how many games I went to that season or in the ones that followed, but my family made the trek to RFK many, many times. I went just father & son, we went the four of us, we went with friends, and a few times, my entire soccer team went together. We even played a game on the field before one match, which for a young soccer player, felt like the pinnacle of my career.

And D.C. United were great. We had USMNT players in Jeff Agoos and John Harkes. We had Latin American stars like Marco Antonio “El Diablo” Etcheverry and Raul Diaz Arce. We had a young Bolivian player named Jaime Moreno who would go on to become the highest-scoring foreign player in MLS history. I loved my club (United winning the first two titles and three of the first four probably didn’t hurt things either). The atmosphere inside RFK felt like soccer was supposed to feel. There were horns, there were drums, the stands literally shook from supporters jumping up and down the entire game. It was awesome.

Before MLS, I was vaguely aware of international club soccer — I knew of Real Madrid, Manchester United, and AC Milan, that last one mostly because my Dad loves Italian soccer. But I really didn’t understand the extent to which the game existed outside of the World Cup, my weekend morning games, and kicking the ball around in my front yard. MLS changed that. It introduced me to the CONCACAF countries, their top players, and even a few stars from other federations. Honestly, who could forget Carlos Valderrama and his wild hair? MLS introduced me to players like D.C. United’s own Eddie Pope and Brian Mcbride before they were called up to the USMNT, which was a neat “I watched him when” feeling when they put on the red, white, and blue.

Over time, I fell out with MLS. The combination of the increasing availability of the European game, the marked decline of D.C. United, and generally having less free time as I grew up eventually stopped me watching the league altogether. I tried a few times to get back into it, but it was difficult for me to watch soccer that I perceived as less than the other soccer available to me.

But I’ve adjusted my outlook, and I’m ready to dive back in.

It seems appropriate, as somebody who has such distinct memories of MLS’ first season, that I’ve chosen the 25th anniversary season to rekindle my interest. But that’s more of a happy coincidence than the reason I’m going to watch more MLS.

I’m watching more because I want that introduction to the USMNT and CONCACAF again. I feel like I don’t know them anymore, and I’ll be honest, that makes me feel like a bad U.S. Soccer fan. I feel as if I’m letting the game here down somehow. I’ve been so focused on the European game that I’ve lost sight of soccer in my own backyard. With World Cup Qualifying kicking off this fall and the men’s team at a critical crossroads, I want to know where we stand. I know the Christian Pulisics, the Weston McKinnies, the Europe-based players, but I’m woefully unfamiliar with the U.S.-based side of things.

I’ve also heard that regardless of what you might think about the comparative quality of play, MLS is fun. I’m all for fun. Let’s go.