Grass surface at MetLife Stadium for World Cup draws notice from NFLPA

Giants Jermaine Eluemunor also takes note

MetLife Stadium has installed a grass playing surface for the FIFA World Cup matches that will be held from Saturday, June 14 through July 13. The NFLPA and at least one member of the New York Giants have taken notice.

The artificial surface at MetLife, which is currently a FieldTurf Core system installed in 2023, has long been a source of controversy. Before the field was upgraded in 2023, there were a number of complaints about the playing surface.

The NFLPA has been pushing for grass playing surfaces in all NFL stadiums for several years, pointing to data showing lower injury rates. In fact, 92% of players reportedly prefer grass.

The Giants and Jets have said that to date they do not believe they can maintain adequate playing conditions on a grass playing field due to both the heavy use of the surface with two NFL teams, Northeast weather conditions, and the number of non-football events held at the stadium.

“I want to get to the point where the experts can tell us that late in the season we can have a safe, playable grass field, and when we get to that point, then maybe we’ll make the switch,” Mara said at last year’s NFL owners meetings. “We’re not there yet.

“With the amount of events in our building, particularly during the football season, having two teams there, and how many times last year we had back-to-back games where it rained during the first game, I can’t imagine what a grass field would’ve looked like on a second day.”

FIFA requires grass playing surfaces, and the fact that the event will only last a month makes its installation and maintenance at MetLife feasible.