People packed into Lion Sports Bar in Chinatown for the first match on Thursday afternoon.
Mark Prinzinger, the owner of the sports bar, said, "I woke up this morning and I'm like, 'World Cup is finally here!'"
Lion Sports Bar is one of 65 establishments in the city that applied for a Philadelphia 250 permit - the option to stay open as late as 4 a.m. throughout the World Cup.
According to a tracker set up by the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board, 23 establishments have received final approval to do so.
But 36 spots, including Prinzinger's bar, are still waiting for final approval from the state.
"The World Cup is already here. The purpose of it was to show the late World Cup matches, which obviously we're going to do, but I guess we'll see if we can serve alcohol," Prinzinger said.
Tir na Nog in Center City didn't apply for a permit to stay open late, but the bar is decked out for the tournament and expecting crowds.
Speaking about the crowds, Cristen DeDomenico, a bar manager at Tir na Nog, told Action News, "I think it's just going to keep building."
She added, "I've really been seeing an increase in tourism. It's really cool to have this to bring more traffic in."
Soccer fans also spent Thursday at Lemon Hill in Fairmount Park for the first day of the 39-day FIFA Fan Festival.
Hannah Ward, who lives just steps away from all the action, described the festival as "exciting."
However, Ward said the festival has led to parking issues in her neighborhood and concerns about excessive noise after sound checks on Monday.
"I was really nervous about the sound checks. The sound checks were really loud. Today was much better," Ward explained.