It won’t be hard to find a public place to watch the World Cup in Houston. In fact, if you venture into area bars and restaurants between the Friday opener (South Africa v. Mexico) and the July 11 final (U.S. v. Brazil — just kidding!), you’ll be hard pressed to avoid the madness.

But a generous handful of bars and pubs can be expected to draw the passionate and knowledgeable expat crowd. There’s nothing like watching a World Cup match in a public place filled with noisy partisans of both sides. But don’t be worried about soccer hooliganism. The droogs will either be in South Africa, attacking the police, or back home busting up their own pubs.

(Though if the U.S. could somehow beat Mother England in their Saturday match, some bars might get interesting. But that won’t happen, will it?)

Here’s a no-doubt incomplete list of places that show soccer year round, and a few other places that will great for World Cup.

The Bull & Bear (11980 Westheimer) is a soccer bar with its own unique identity as the local stronghold of Glasgow Celtic supporters. The pub food is good here, and for the early games you can wash down your English breakfast with an expertly poured Guinness — always $3.50 a pint.

This is how good an international soccer town Houston is.

We also have a pub that caters to supporters of Glasgow Rangers, the blood rivals (often literally) of Glasgow Celtic. I’m referring to Big John’s Bar (6150 Wilcrest), which draws an expat crowd from all over the world. Not long ago I watched Barcelona-Real Madrid there in the company of Africans. It’s a big, dark place with 50 high definition TVs. (Maybe it was the dark that led them to overcharge me by $10. The bartender readily corrected her error.)

Downtown has its own action spot — albeit a low-key one. The Brewery Tap (717 Franklin) is a soccer bar that is home to a small band of Chelsea supporters. (They’re in a good mood at the Tap these days — Chelsea won the English Premiere League.) They don’t serve food, but you can bring in your own eats if you want to catch a pre-work match.

I’m saving the best for last. Richmond Arms (5920 Richmond) is surely one of the great places in America to watch soccer, or football, if you prefer. Be warned, though. Richmond Arms is fairly big, but it will likely fill up faster than any place in town. Getting in for U.S.-England will require a very early arrival. I’ve watched a number of big matches there over the last four years, and the atmosphere is truly electric.

I managed to wedge in for the Manchester United-Chelsea Champions League final in 2008, and somehow struck up a brief conversation with the Brit (a Newcastle supporter) who was pressed against me.

“It’s just like being in a pub back home,” he told me. Then he took a look around the roaring bar and said, “No, it’s better.” The next year I got there very early for the Barcelona-Man U Champions League final, and had one of my all-time great sports watching experiences. With all the chanting and singing, I felt like a spear carrier at the opera.

I’d invited a friend who had no interest in soccer, and he stood there with his mouth hanging open the whole time. When the match ended, and I was cheering for Barcelona’s win, the disappointed Brit standing in front of us turned and said to my friend, “You don’t look Spanish. Are you a Manchester or a Barcelona man?” When my friend stammered, “Neither one. I don’t even know what’s going on," the Brit shot back, “Well, fuck you then.”

We froze for a second; my friend’s mouth opened even wider. Then the Brit laughed and put out his hand. “Just having some fun.” All this on a Wednesday afternoon.

But, again, you don’t have to go to a true soccer bar to have a great World Cup experience. Mexican restaurants will certainly be hopping when their beloved (but anxiety provoking) Tri play.

Brian O’Neill’s (5555 Morningside) Irish pub was such a fantastic place to watch in 2006 that my sister-in-law came in from California just to see the France-Italy final. The crowds were often divided between the two nationalities, making for a great atmosphere. I’ll never forget the tension in the air in the moments leading up to the final. I suspect it caused the lightning strike that put out the Rice Village power.

I’ll close with a recommendation to watch the Friday tournament opener, Mexico-South Africa, and the U.S.'s first game against England on Saturday, on the inflatable screen at Discovery Green (where my wife is the director of programming). I’m assured that all hooligans will get tossed into the fountains.