Manchester City, which plays in the English Premier League, took on Wydad AC, one of the top clubs in Morocco, at Lincoln Financial Field.
"It's a very rich human experience to have that much diversity in one place and that much culture living and sharing the same passion for the same game," said Amine Elmigdouli, a Wydad fan from Buffalo, New York.
Hours before game time, supporters for both teams showed up to tailgate and enjoy the atmosphere.
"Pinch me, I'm a-dreaming. There are people in England that are kind of jealous of me right now. I'm OK with that," said Karen Moore of Northeast Philadelphia.
"Little slice of Manchester in South Philly today," said Michael McGinley of Fishtown.
RELATED: FIFA Club World Cup games officially kick off in Philadelphia, attracting fans from around the world
The FIFA Club World Cup is a global competition featuring 32 of the best club teams from around the world playing in 11 cities across the US. Philadelphia is one of the host cities.
"I will never probably be able to afford or go to Manchester City, so I will pay for the Philly parking just to see them play," said Joy Manning from Wilmington.
She joined more than 37,000 fans in the stands for this match.
ALSO SEE: 2026 FIFA World Cup matches could bring $500M to Philadelphia; suburbs to see benefit too: officials
"It's amazing. It's kind of crazy how there's city fans everywhere and all brought together in one site," said Rasheed Sexius-Clerie from Queen Village.
The Philadelphia leg of the FIFA Club World Cup kicked off Monday night with Flamengo from Brazil topping Esperance from Tunisia.
Organizers expect even bigger crowds next summer for the FIFA World Cup, where Philadelphia is again a host city.
"We're so thrilled by seeing all the fans that have come to Philadelphia. It's amazing for economic impact and certainly a great preview of what's going to come next summer with FIFA World Cup 2026," said Meg Kane, who's on the World Cup organizing committee.
It's also a dress rehearsal of what to expect. At this match, play was momentarily stopped and a fan was arrested for setting off smoke, which is not permitted at Lincoln Financial Field.
That incident aside, fans told Action News it was a joy to see their clubs play.
"It's amazing. We've had them play friendly games before, but this is the first competitive fixture on US soil, which is super exciting," said Paul Greenhalgh.
There are still six more FIFA Club World Cup games that will be played at the Linc over the next few weeks.
On Sunday, organizers are running a "Community Day" special, where fans can buy two kids' tickets and get two free.