DETROIT, MI -- For Detroit City Football Club co-owner David Dwaihy, life is good right about now.

On Friday last week, DCFC opened its fifth season to a record crowd of 7,410 spectators in Keyworth Stadium, the new field that Le Rouge will be calling home after spending the last four years at Detroit Cass Tech High School.

Although he was swamped with a variety of tasks on opening night, Dwaihy was able to take in the sheer amount of success around him. A dozen tents selling food, drinks and merchandise were never without a line throughout the match. Spectators found standing room wherever they could among the over-capacity crowd.

It was soccer in Detroit at fever pitch.

"I was just thinking about five years ago and we weren't sure if we were going to get more than 100 people at Cass Tech," Dwaihy said, while looking at the crowd. "To come this far and see two full stands worth of people on opening night, I'm kind of at a loss for words."

Since the club started in 2012, one of the main long-term goals was for it to develop into Detroit's first Major League Soccer team. Although fans have felt teased year after year, it seems like Detroit is a serious contender to gain an MLS franchise for the first time ever.

It just so happens that each year that DCFC has made ripples in the soccer world for its passionate fan base and support, talks have never been more serious about bringing a pro team to the Motor City.

The MLS announced in mid April that it was looking expand from its current 20-team league to 28 franchises by 2020. Atlanta, Minnesota and Los Angeles will each be looking to start clubs by 2018 and Miami will follow shortly. That leaves four spots and Detroit looking to make a pitch.

"It's interesting timing, isn't it?" Dwaihy said. "I think they wouldave probably come around to considering the market one way or another. I think what we've shown in the last five years maybe encouraged that consideration on their part."

Real estate mogul Dan Gilbert and Detroit Pistons owner Tom Gores have teamed up to make Detroit as serious a contender for a club as possible. The MLS does not seem to turning its nose up to the idea either.

Yet, not everyone thinks MLS is a great idea. For some of DCFC's most recognizable supporters, there is no desire to support another club if DCFC is not raised to MLS status.

"I've got enough stuff to worry about in my life," Drew Gentry said, who is known as "Sergeant Scary" and a co-founder of the Northern Guard Supporters. "I'm not going to worry about that. I trust my owners. Wherever this club goes, that's where I'm going to go. I don't need another club. I have a club."

Yet, it is not only loyalty that has some fans ignoring the concept of MLS in Detroit. There is the concern that MLS could actually end up overshadowing the grassroots club and, effectively kick it out of town.

In cities like Atlanta and Cincinnati, the addition of professional-level teams ended up kicking out the lower-tier programs that had already been established. DCFC general manager Donovan Powell understands the concerns that supporters have on that topic. However, speculating about the ramifications of an MLS team other than DCFC in the city is not something he's going to fret over.

"Professional soccer is out there," Powell said. "It's looming. It's happening. For us, we're focused on this right here. It's always been our goal to go to a professional league and, you know, we'll get there. We'll get there soon for sure. There's other groups out there trying to bring professional soccer to the city and all we can do is focus on us at this point at Keyworth stadium."

Powell is not afraid of a new MLS team coming to the city and huffing and puffing. No matter what happens, Powell does not see a new team blowing DCFC's fourth-tier level program down.

"We're not concerned," Powell said. "We support the highest level of soccer here in Detroit. So, at this point, we're going to continue to keep doing what we do. We'll see where the cards fall."

For Dwaihy, he shares the same hope with Powell that DCFC can eventually be a professional club. Going from a crowd of 3,884 at Detroit Cass Tech to 7,410 at Keyworth is an encouraging notion for the future, at least.

"I think our take on it is we've always supported the idea of professional soccer in Detroit," Dwaihy said. "I think we also kind of hoped that it would be our team that grew into that. We remain hopeful that we can continue to grow in such a way that maybe it is an extension of our growth that leads into it. A lot can happen in four years."

Dwaihy is also not afraid to acknowledge the fears from the DCFC fan base that stem from MLS teams moving into cities like Atlanta and Cincinnati and wiping out the area's lower-level programs.

"I sympathize with their fear that a totally new operation might come into town and, in so, overshadow this amazing thing that has happened here organically," Dwaihy said. "But, I remain hopeful that, in the next few years, there will be some kind of solution that keeps everyone happy and ultimately leads to professional soccer here in the city. I think weave shown that it's sustainable and that there's a market for it, for sure."

Basically, Dwaihy does not plan on digging up the program's roots and resettling elsewhere any time soon -- or ever.

"We're aware of that possibility but I don't think that would ever stop us from doing what we're doing and still remain relevant with the kind of support that we have," Dwaihy said. "I think, like you said, we have some real die-hard supporters. Whatever ended up coming into town, if it wasn't anything to do with us, they'd still support us and find a way to keep this thing going one way or another."