MetLife Stadium to install natural grass playing surface for 2026 World Cup

According to The Athletic, MetLife Stadium will install a grass field exclusively for the 2026 World Cup, as the stadium will host the World Cup Final.

“We’re talking about some pretty significant renovations at some point but our plans are not finalized on that yet,” New York Giants President and CEO John Mara told reporters at NFL league meetings in March. “They have to take out some seats in the lower level in order to fit the field in. And we’ll have to put temporary seats in.”

MetLife Stadium currently features a FieldTurf Core, which the Giants and Jets installed last offseason. The field at MetLife has been at the center of several controversies over the past five years.

“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,” Mara said. “When we get to that point, then maybe we make the switch. 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 look like on that second day.”

Crews at MetLife will install natural grass for this summer’s Copa America. The venue will host two group stage matches in late June and a semi-final game in early July.