NFL players frustrated as stadiums switch to grass for FIFA World Cup

For years, NFL players have lobbied to replace artificial turf with natural grass at their stadiums. They cited injury data, personal experience, and plain common sense. The league largely shrugged.

Now seven NFL stadiums are ripping out their synthetic surfaces and installing real grass. The catch: it’s not for the players who asked. It’s for FIFA.

FIFA’s grass mandate meets NFL reality

The 2026 FIFA World Cup, hosted across the US, Mexico, and Canada, requires natural grass at every venue. That’s non-negotiable under FIFA regulations. So stadiums like MetLife, SoFi, and Mercedes-Benz are undergoing surface transformations to comply.

FIFA has committed $3.8 billion for natural grass installations across 16 World Cup venues, eight of which are NFL stadiums. That’s custom hybrid grass engineered to meet international soccer standards, temporarily replacing the turf that NFL players have spent years criticizing.