I use to think the way you do about soccer, and I grew up playing traditional American sports, but I am totally into soccer now, and it is definitely not boring. Two 45 minute periods, with no time outs, and players routinely running 10Ks every game, is hardly boring. It is, however, like hockey in that if you don't know the rules and the strategy you probably won't like it very much.
We played a variant in High School 50 some years ago. The running conditioned us for real sports; i.e. American football; baseball, basketball and track.