When it was announced that the

in an auction with the intention of bringing professional soccer back to Metro Detroit, soccer fans in southeast Michigan and across the state perked their ears.

After the Silverdome served as one of the nine host venues for the 1994 FIFA World Cup, Detroit seemed like an obvious choice to be a part of Major League Soccer's inaugural season in 1996. However, despite being a top 10 media market, a lack of a committed ownership group doomed the effort.

Since then, the city has been devoid of any major soccer events, until this Friday night when the "Match of the Titans" will feature an exhibition game between Italian mega-club AC Milan and Greek powerhouse Panathinaikos.

The new Silverdome owners, led by Greek-born Andreas Apostolopoulos, hope that this will be the first of many major soccer events that will be brought to the Motor City in the years to come with a goal of proving to MLS that they deserve an expansion team.

"We would like to create something big here in Pontiac," said Steve Apostolopoulos, the director of sports at the Silverdome and son of Andreas. "We have the land and we have a great opportunity, and we want to do something that's beneficial to the area."

In order to get the league's attention, a serious effort is being made to renovate the nearly 35-year old former home of the Detroit Lions into a never-before-seen facility that would set a new standard for renovating old stadiums.

Even the most optimistic soccer fan couldn't expect an MLS team to fill the 80,000-seat stadium in its current state. Even an attendance of half that on a regular basis would be an achievement. The league average for attendance (through August 1) is a little less than 17,000 with the Seattle Sounders leading the league with more than 36,000 fans per game at Qwest Field, home of the Seattle Seahawks.

The standard for soccer-specific stadiums ranges from the 18,000-seat Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colo. (home of the Colorado Rapids), to the 27,000-seat Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. where the Los Angeles Galaxy and Chivas USA both call home.

To achieve a reasonable stadium size, the Apostolopoulos family plans to remove the dome and divide the stadium into three sections. At the stadium's ground level, will be a concert hall and a multi-purpose arena, capable of hosting hockey, basketball, and other indoor sports.

Resting on top of those two indoor facilities, will be a roughly 30,000-seat soccer stadium with natural grass. The current upper deck will essentially act as a lower bowl for the outdoor stadium.

It's difficult to imagine, but maybe this will help.

If you have a ticket in the front row of the upper deck, with this proposed layout, you could lean over the railing and get an autograph, or catch a player doing a "Lambeau Leap."

"It's thinking outside the box," said Roger Faulkner, Triple Sports and Entertainment's Senior Soccer Advisor. "When the Apostolopoulos family bought the Silverdome, they bought it because they are soccer people, passionate soccer people. They want to make the Silverdome a major player on the world stage."

This would be a first in MLS' relatively short history (the league played its inaugural season in 1996), where the owner is retrofitting a stadium to attract an expansion team.

There are four main criteria for a city to be considered for MLS expansion:

Committed long-term ownership with deep pockets.

Approved plan to build a soccer-specific stadium where the team would control revenue streams such as parking and concessions.

A healthy media market

A strong soccer fanbase

"We've had meetings and conversations with Major League Soccer and we're finally on their radar," said Faulkner. He added that one of the selling points to both the league and the city of Pontiac is that the stadium will not require public funding, which often slows down, and in some cases, ends the expansion process.

Friday's exhibition match is expected to draw some attention from the league as a "high-ranking MLS official" and a number of league owners are expected to attend. Not to mention the match will be broadcast across the country on Fox Soccer Channel, as well as overseas in Italy and Greece.

"The Match of the Titans is just a first step toward building the credibility of the Silverdome," said Faulkner, who was instrumental in bringing the FIFA World Cup to Detroit in 1994. "We're looking at more games next year and we're bidding to host the CONCACAF Gold Cup [The continental championship held every two years that determines the champion of all the countries in North America, Central America and the Caribbean]."

After a rocky start, that included local politicians speaking out against the sale of the Silverdome as well as

, Triple Properties feel like they've earned the trust of the city and that there's reason for optimism.

"The city wants to see activity, they want to see business, jobs and tax revenue," said Silverdome spokesperson John Mozena. "The Apostolopoulos family is showing that they are committed to the city and the city recognizes that, and has been very supportive."