FLINT, MI--The most recent World Cup was last year, but this week, Genesee County soccer fans get to see players from around the globe take the field at Perani Arena.

Wednesday was the second of three days of games in Flint, which was one of eight U.S. sites to host the 2015 World Minifootball Federation Arena Soccer World Cup, a 12-team tournament.

On Tuesday, Russia battled Serbia and Brazil played against Canada. On Wednesday night, Russia and Canada ended with a tie game at 6-6, and Brazil defeated Serbia with a final score of 10-4. The quarterfinal is at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 25, between Brazil and a team to be determined. Tickets for the quarterfinal game start at $10.

A couple hundred attendees came to Perani on Wednesday, watching from the stands as the athletes played their hearts out with diving kicks, saves, and heated banter back and forth.

"It's sort of wild, but I like it. It's like soccer, but in a hockey environment. It's fast-paced; I'm kind of amazed, actually," said Swartz Creek resident Scott Sanford. He attended the game with his wife, brother, sister-in-law, and nephews--nearly all of whom play soccer. Sanford said he recognized much of the audience members as soccer families from the area.

"We come to Perani for a lot of events, and there's not a bad seat here," he added.

He wasn't into soccer before his son began to play, but he has developed a respect for the sport after his son began to play.

"The athleticism is quite high. I don't know if you've ever tried playing a sport without your hands, but it's kind of difficult," he said. "Now that I've seen it, I've got an appreciation for it. It's kind of like hockey--the most underpaid sport, but the highest level of respect."

Soccer has been a part of Genesee Township resident Jason Whitney's life since he was four years old. He and his brother played at the Grand Blanc Soccerzone when they were young, on a team coached by their dad. Whitney later helped his dad coach his brother's team; he and his brother still play, and he now coaches his two daughters' teams at Soccerzone. He

"My kids have taken a liking to the sport, and that's exciting to me to see them play something I've played my whole life," Whitney said. He attended the game with his mother, his brother and his daughters.

"As soon as we first found out (about the Arena Soccer World Cup), my mom and my brother got tickets the first day they were available," he said. "We were excited to come spend some family time, and this was the first (semiprofessional soccer game) that's been in the area in a while."

Whitney and Sanford both think the games at Perani will make the kids watching excited to keep playing soccer.

"They're going to be motivated," Whitney said. "The fact that they're here, and get to see some guys who are really good at it, very talented individuals playing a sport. My son is not a soccer fanatic, but now that he's seen a fast paced version of it, I think he's going to be into it."