You may have heard the phrase before, “Behind every great man there’s a great woman.” Or as Jim Carrey said, “Behind every great man is a woman rolling her eyes.”

While we’re rolling out of bed at indecent hours or sacrificing a part of our life in the name of football, there is often a girlfriend, wife or significant other who is left wondering what this whole soccer madness is all about.

Does this sound familiar?

For me, I’m lucky that my wife is a soccer fan like me, but she’s not nearly as passionate about the sport as I am. I met Debbie about 10 years ago on an indoor soccer field during a co-ed scrimmage game. We needed an extra player and she volunteered. She played hard and wasn’t afraid to get stuck in when defending against men that were twice her size. She hit it off immediately as friends.

To make a long story short, I ended up proposing to her in the center circle during halftime of a match between Miami Fusion and Tampa Bay Mutiny. She tackled me to the ground, said yes, and then we both did a lap of honor around the pitch in front of 12,000 strangers.

We got married a year later, now have three children together and are happily married.

However our passion for soccer has forked. Mine has become more intense. She still enjoys soccer, coaches an AYSO team but very rarely watches a game. I’m sure when the World Cup comes around this summer, she’ll definitely watch some games. But it’s obviously hard work watching the kids and finding time to watch soccer games on television. With the World Cup around the corner, I’m sure she’ll get a chance to watch some matches.

But like the phrase, “behind every great man there’s a great woman,” and that’s especially true with my wife. She’s, for the most part, understanding of my passion and supportive. But still, she doesn’t “get it” sometimes! Nevertheless, if it wasn’t for her, there would be no EPL Talk. She makes a ton of sacrifices to give me the time to help me pour my passion into this site and the business, as well as the sport I love.

What about you? Tell us about your old lady, the better half, the missus or your significant other. Who is the great woman behind you? How did you meet, and does she understand your passion for the sport? Does she think you’re loony? And does she “get it”?!

Photo credit: DIETER NAGL/AFP/Getty Images