French players and their coaching staff are amongst those who have voiced some concerns about the pitch at the stadium in New Jersey. The venue will also host the final of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
By: Guy Oldenkotte
French coach Didier Deschamps was quoted as saying that his players had to alter their boots. He described the pitch as “not great.”
“Let’s just say it’s … it’s different. It’s unusual, so you have get used to it,” he said. “It’s different, so the bounce is different too.” None of his players used screw-in studs “even though boots today are a bit more adaptable.”
French midfielder Adrien Rabiot added: “The pitch — I don’t even know if you can call it that,” he said in the mixed-zone after the game. “It felt more like an artificial surface — quite hard and quite rigid. You have to adapt to the conditions. I hope we find better pitches in the other matches.”
The complaints by the French follow remarks from Brazilian striker Vinícius Júnior who also complained about the playability of the surface.
Visual issues
Some commentators, reporters and TV viewers have also pointed out that grass patches seem discoloured. Particularly the area in front of the goal appears a bit ragged.
The venue in New Jersey is earmarked to host the tournament final, bringing the total number of games it will host to eight. To add insult to injury, FIFA has also planned a mini concert with singers and performers during halftime.
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FIFA doesn’t agree with all the criticism. When asked for a response, they told news agency Reuters that the situation is better than it might look. “The pitches remain in excellent condition from both a playability and player safety perspective,” it said in a statement.
“FIFA’s turf management team’s assessment is that every pitch is healthy and performing as intended for elite competitions. Variations in the appearance of some surfaces, whether on television or in person, do not necessarily reflect the quality, health or playability of the pitch.”
At the Gilette Stadium, Norwegian coach, Stale Solbakken, had his own take. He described the pitch as “a low cut, hard and comparable with a synthetic turf surface” during the post match interview. “It’s really dry — tinder dry — after five minutes, so all of the passes we want to pass through, wound up in duels.” He blamed the ball getting stuck in the grass and complained about how much the game was influenced by how dry the grass is, adding that “why they water it, to speed up the game.”
Not only complaints
Unlike the other venues, reviews of the stadium pitch of BC Place in Vancouver are very positive.
The venue has been stitched by the same company but uses pitch maintenance equipment and expertise that was imported from the Netherlands.
Following their 2-0 win over Turkey, Australia player Aiden O’Neill praised the surface.
“I think they’ve done such good job to have it in the condition it’s in,” he was quoted as saying by The Globe and Mail newspaper. “The ball moved well. It wasn’t too hard. I think they’ve got it perfect, to be honest.”
Even Turkish captain Hakan Çalhanoğlu praised the turf despite loosing 2-0. “The quality of the stadium was very nice, the pitch was very good, in the perfect condition,” he said. “It was nice to play on.”
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