The National Football League's Green Bay Packers played two or three home games per year at County Stadium from 1953 to 1994, after using Wisconsin State Fair Park in nearby West Allis and also Marquette Stadium. The Packers compiled a 76-47-3 (.617) mark in 126 regular-season County Stadium contests over 42 seasons. County Stadium hosted at least one pre-season game annually during this time as well (except 1983), including the Upper Midwest Shrine Game. Financial considerations prompted the Packers to turn to Milwaukee in the 1930s; by 1995 after multiple renovations to Lambeau Field, it became more lucrative for the Packers to play their full home slate in Green Bay again for the first time since 1932[5]. Former Milwaukee ticket holders were offered tickets at Lambeau to one pre-season game and games 2 and 5 of the regular season schedule, in what is referred to as the "Gold package."
The Detroit Lions and Minnesota Vikings (each 14 times) were the Packers' most frequent foes at County Stadium, as the Packers would traditionally host at least one divisional rival from the NFC Central in Milwaukee each season. Only once, however, did the Packers play their ancient archrivals, the Chicago Bears, in Milwaukee, defeating the Bears 20-3 in 1974. On November 26, 1989, a County Stadium record crowd of 55,892 saw the Packers beat the Vikings, 20-19. The Packers' final game at County Stadium was a 21-17 victory over the Atlanta Falcons on December 18, 1994; with fourteen seconds left, the winning 9-yard touchdown run was scored by quarterback Brett Favre. Coincidentally, Atlanta was Favre's first NFL address in 1991, and the city to which the baseball Braves moved almost three decades earlier.
The Packers also hosted one NFL playoff game at County Stadium, the December 23, 1967 Western Conference Championship against the Los Angeles Rams. By beating the Rams 28-7, the Packers would face the Dallas Cowboys in the famed Ice Bowl at Lambeau 8 days later.
Unlike most publicly-funded stadiums built in the 20th century, County Stadium was built as a baseball stadium that could convert into a football stadium. While it was initially hoped the stadium would lure the Packers to Milwaukee full-time (it was larger than the Packers' then-home, City Stadium), upgrades and seat expansion almost exclusively benefited the Braves and later the Brewers. It was thus somewhat problematic for football, with only the bare minimum adjustments made to accommodate the sport. The playing surface was just barely large enough to fit a football field. The football field itself ran parallel with the first base line. The south end zone spilled onto the warning track in right field, the north onto foul territory on the third-base side. Both teams occupied the east sideline on the outfield side, separated by a piece of tape. It seated less than 56,000 for football, and many seats had obstructed views or were far from the field.