To start I am biased having 2 daughters who played D-1 soccer (they were also strong high school point guards). I think of soccer as basketball type movement. Passing, cutting, breaking, ball movement, reading each other and speed, defending..... but success is significantly more difficult because it is so much more difficult to do these things with your feet in such a large space and with a man whose job it is to goal tend. But with that difficulty and frequent failure ones determination and confidence are so much a part of success.
To enjoy the game you need to appreciate the athletic difficulty of catching or passing the ball with your feet at a full sprint, the quickness and clean play of the ball can be as beautiful as a basketball shot, play, pass.
Conditioning is also another aspect that keeps me involved. A soccer pitch is 25 yards wider and I think 20 yards longer than a football field. Playing a game of soccer with limited subs is work, conditioning, coordination and possibly more determination than any other sport.
Relegation and promotion in many leagues is also an intriguing notion. Imagine if the bottom 2 MLB, NBA or NFL teams every year were sent to the minors and let's say a G League team from Portland Maine could buy players and play it's way into the NBA.
In fairness poor soccer requires that you have some form of investment--a relative playing or a connection of some sort.