The Copa América tournament currently is unfolding in 14 American venues, including 11 NFL stadiums.
One, in Atlanta, has been criticized. Another, in Dallas, has drawn mixed reviews.
After the first match at AT&T Stadium, between Chile and Peru, both managers complained. Via TheAthletic.com, Peru manager Jorge Fossati mentioned the grass as a potential culprit for team captain Luis Advincula leaving early with Achilles tendon pain.
“It came out of nowhere,” Fossati said. “I realize that this is a grass field today but it’s not normal grass. It’s not grass that’s born, and grows [naturally]. It’s a grass they bring in from elsewhere. . . . That can be a bit of a harder surface and it can affect you in that exact place [the Achilles]. I’m not a doctor but I’ve been around football for a few years. Achilles injuries can be caused by that as well.”
The second match at Jerry World resulted in praise from the U.S. men’s national team. After a March game in the same stadium prompted complaints from the squad’s manager, Sunday’s 2-0 win over Bolivia resulted in praise.
“It was world’s apart of a difference -- the pitch at Nations League and the pitch that we played on tonight,” USMNT midfielder Weston McKennie said, via WFAA.com. “A lot better conditions and obviously you can see you can play better quality football. Balls aren’t popping up all over the place. They did a good job.”
“The pitch was definitely better now, 100 percent,” USMNT midfield Tyler Adams said. “I’m not one to complain about the pitch too much. You still have to play football at the end of the day. The game isn’t going to stop because of the pitch. But this pitch was 100 percent better.”
For Copa América, the powers-that-be removed the artificial turf on which the Cowboys play and installed 10 inches of soil over the concrete floor. It was topped by Kentucky bluegrass from a farm in Colorado.
For the World Cup in two years, massive renovations to the venue — $295 million in all — will be needed in order to comply with FIFA standards. It will host nine matches in all.