The secrets of the Club World Cup turf: drainage layer, geotextile layer, and "a year of research" to overcome criticism

The turf is playing a major role in this Club World Cup . The ever-changing weather in the United States this time of year, with extreme heat and tropical storms depending on the time of day, and the number of matches being played just when the sun is at its hottest, have made the grass a point of contention between the organizers and the teams. That's why it's important to visit the interior of Metlife Stadium , the venue for the tournament's semifinals and final, to discover what type of turf FIFA has selected for the decisive matches.

The surface of the MetLife Stadium, home of the NFL 's New York Giants and New York Jets , is normally made of turf, artificial grass, like many in American football, but for the Club World Cup, FIFA has opted for natural grass. After criticism of the surface of the 2024 Copa América fields, Gianni Infantino's organization has spent " a year researching " and analyzing options until it found the best.

"The surface is a Tahoma 31 ," Blair Christensen , head of turf for the World Cup stadiums, explained to EL MUNDO. It's the same turf used at five other tournament venues. "We dedicated more than a year to research and development for this choice. We conducted climate research, trials, crop tests, and inspections. We know the stadium environment. We brought in a specific surface for this event; we were confident it would be strong during the tournament, and we're seeing that. It will have no problem hosting four matches in a week," he analyzes.

From a New Jersey farm

The turf is used year-round by NFL teams like the Chicago Bears and Philadelphia Eagles , MLS teams Louisville and Philadelphia, and the Los Angeles Dodgers and Los Angeles Angels in the Major League Baseball (MLB). According to the website of the company that grows it, "it is ideal for golf courses and sports turf in both hot and cold climates ."

The turf was transported overnight in 23 refrigerated trucks from a farm 150 kilometers from Metlife Stadium, specifically from Tuckahoe Turf Farms in New Jersey, five days before the first game. "The unique feature of this turf is that it has fibers on the surface that give it resilience and stability," Christensen says, but there are more details.

Excessive heat and the lack of automatic sprinklers like natural grass pitches have complicated some processes. Before and during halftime of each match, stadium workers introduce machines with hoses along the sides of the pitch to further hydrate the grass. This is " insufficient " for some coaches, such as Niko Kovac of Borussia Dortmund . "The amount of irrigation has been insufficient because they don't have the tools for it. When it's very dry, it's incredible. You get stuck," he stated in a press conference.

To prevent this dryness, FIFA has installed an 85-millimeter drainage layer and a geotextile layer beneath the natural grass surface, raising the turf a few centimeters above its usual height for the rest of the year and forming a stabilized five-centimeter layer of grass.

The big change compared to the Copa América, the source of criticism, is that the turf no longer rests on a concrete base . They've now introduced stabilized fiber technology "to give it more durability." Testing, however, has been ongoing throughout the tournament. "We test many things daily, humidity, density ... All to try to achieve the right parameters," he explains.

The Metlife will host both semi-finals and the final of the Club World Cup, but also the grand final of next year's World Cup for international players. " We're learning every day , but despite what's being said, this isn't a test for 2026. This is historic, the biggest Club World Cup ever held. We're happy and we're not testing anything ," FIFA match director Luis Castro insisted to this newspaper.