Workers have started laying the turf at MetLife Stadium, the site of eight World Cup matches, including the final on July 19.
FIFA will use two types of surfaces for the expanded 48-nation, 104-match tournament, which starts June 12 and will be played at 11 locations in the U.S., three in Mexico and two in Canada.
Bermuda grass will be used for the sites in warm season locations: East Rutherford, New Jersey; Guadalajara, Mexico; Kansas City, MO; Miami Gardens, Florida; Monterrey, Mexico; and Santa Clara, California Perennial rye mixed with Kentucky bluegrass will be used in what FIFA considers cool season and indoor locations: Arlington, Texas; Atlanta; Foxborough, MA; Houston; Inglewood, California; Mexico City; Philadelphia; Seattle; Toronto; and Vancouver, British Columbia.
Grass for the stadiums and also training venues was produced and harvested about ten months ago at ten grass farms in Canada, Mexico and the US, FIFA said.
Installation at MetLife of approximately 600 rolls of grass from North Carolina began Wednesday, with the goal of completing it by the end of Thursday. Eight to two feet of sand was applied along with Permavoid, a permeable cloth, followed by a vacuum and ventilation layer, then more sand and then grass. Artificial stitching is used between the rollers.
MetLife, home of the NFL’s New York Giants and Jets, usually has an artificial turf surface. In addition, 1,740 seats in the corners were removed to make room for a football pitch and a corner kick-in area. The stadium’s record sports capacity was 83,367 for a Jets-Giants game in October 2023.
FIFA requires a 75 by 115 yards (68 by 105 meters) field for World Cup matches, although that requirement was ignored by some venues during the 1994 tournament in the US
“We started last night at about four o’clock, five o’clock,” said FIFA Senior Pitch Manager David Graham.
«There were 14 trucks on site yesterday. We finished around 2 a.m. Then we continued this morning at 11 a.m. with another 13 trucks. Currently things are going according to plan. We had a little delay last night due to the weather, but other than that we’ve been on the right track.»
Published on May 8, 2026
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