Fans high five in the stands during Wednesday's game between Chivas and Swansea City at Miller Park. Credit: Alyssa Pointer

By of the

Miller Park never looked like this before.

No pitcher's mound.

No infield dirt.

And a soccer field wedged between the first base side of the ballpark and the left field wall.

Yet it all made perfect sense as big-league baseball gave way to big-time international soccer in Milwaukee on Wednesday night.

Mexico's fabled team, Chivas of Guadalajara, met Swansea City, an English Premier League club, in the first soccer match played at Miller Park.

For the players, it was a friendly exhibition game to build fitness and cultivate finesse before the start of long and arduous regular-season campaigns.

But for the 31,327 fans, it was something special — a chance to celebrate the world's most popular game just days after the close of the World Cup.

The fans arrived early, waving team flags and wearing team colors, especially the red, white and blue of Chivas.

"I even have the logo tattooed on me," said Mona Torres, as she showed off the Chivas team emblem on her left ankle.

Torres was with 20 others who came up from the Chicago area to watch the match, which ended in a 1-1 tie.

The Chivas faithful are drawn to the team's 11 titles in Liga MX and the roster of homegrown talent. Chivas has been likened to the New York Yankees and Dallas Cowboys, and it has a big following in the United States.

"Chivas represents Mexico," Torres said.

Blanca Uribe and three of her friends drove six hours from Minneapolis for the match. Uribe snapped photos of her friends by the Henry Aaron statue outside the park. Asked if they had any idea who Aaron was, Uribe said, "We're soccer fans. We don't know baseball."

Out in the parking lots, pickup soccer games broke out and grills were fired up. Fans were decked out in an array of jerseys — from English Premier League heavyweights such as Arsenal and Manchester United to the new World Cup champions, Germany.

Jacob Pandl of Whitefish Bay sported a German jersey with the name of one of the country's star players, Bastian Schweinsteiger.

"Schweinsteiger sounds cool," Pandl said.

His sister, Amanda Pandl, was eager to see the teams play.

"I was bummed the World Cup ended," she said.

Inside the stadium, there was a unique feel and sound. Mexican Top 40 songs and soccer anthems played over the loudspeakers. Instead of baseball highlights, soccer action was broadcasted on the big scoreboard.

When the crowd was displeased, there were whistles, not boos.

And reserve players weren't hidden inside a baseball dugout. They sat on chairs out in right and center field.

The public address announcer, Jesse Becerra of Chicago, spoke to the crowd in Spanish and English.

"You try to liven up the crowd and give them a good experience," Becerra said.

Even though they were outnumbered, there were plenty of fans wearing Swansea's white jerseys. The team is a sister club of North Shore United, a Milwaukee-area soccer club.

"This just brings a great flavor of soccer to Milwaukee," said Peggy Boris of Cedarburg, who was wearing a Swansea jersey.

There were plenty of kids and families in what looked a little like a youth soccer jamboree.

Sisters Corinne and Elise Boyd of Madison wore their Madison 56ers Soccer Club jerseys.

"I've watched pro soccer on television, but I've never actually been to a game," Corrine Boyd said.

Corrine's mother, Stephanie Boyd, was thrilled to take her family to Miller Park.

"We think it's awesome to have something other than baseball," she said.