For the three countries co-hosting the 2026 World Cup – the United States, Mexico and Canada – this summer’s Copa América in the US was a good test of their ability to compete in their home tournament in two years’ time.
The results were mixed. The US and Mexico were eliminated in the group stage, while Canada reached the semi-finals, losing to eventual champions Argentina.
But it wasn’t just the hosts’ readiness on the pitch that was under scrutiny at the Copa. For the United States, hosting a major international tournament was a test of its football infrastructure. And the resulting failures will prove just as worrying as the USMNT’s early exit.
Two scenes were cited that marred the final stages of the tournament: the situation in which Uruguayan players clashed with Colombian fans in the stands after their semi-final in Charlotte, North Carolina; and the situation in which kick-off for the final at Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium on Sunday was delayed by 82 minutes because fans ran into the arena.
In fairness, much of the blame can be laid at the feet of Conmebol, the South American Football Confederation responsible for organising this year’s Copa. But one area that should be a concern heading into 2026 is playing conditions in the American stadiums themselves. From the moment the tournament began on 20 June through to the final last weekend, the state of the Copa pitches has been a sour topic of conversation.
Reigning world champions Argentina faced Canada in the opening match of the competition. With Lionel Messi taking center stage and Jesse Marsh’s Canadian team producing a surprisingly competitive performance despite losing 2-0, the Copa’s opening match should have been an entertaining start to the tournament. However, the state of the pitch at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium dominated the post-match conversation.
“They knew we were going to play here seven months ago and they changed the pitch two days ago,” Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni fumed after the game. “It’s not an excuse, but this is not a good pitch. To be honest, the pitch is not suited to these types of players. We didn’t play a good game per se, but a game according to the pitch and what the opponents offered. We couldn’t do much more with the conditions of the pitch. Look at the speed of the passes we made.”
In December, Conmebol publicly confirmed the 14 host stadiums for this summer’s tournament. But behind the scenes, work had already begun in June 2023 to ensure the readiness of each venue. With a mix of NFL stadiums, soccer-specific MLS venues and hybrid arenas selected, ensuring uniformity of playing surfaces was a primary concern.
Eight months before the tournament, it was decided that pitch dimensions would be standardised for all host venues. Each arena would have to comply with a pitch size of 100m x 64m – which is at the very narrow end of the range recommended by FIFA.
The stadiums with an artificial pitch had to cover their surface with real grass, with a depth of 25 mm consistent with all the venues selected for the Copa. In a further attempt to promote uniformity, panels of natural grass produced using the same technology had to be installed.
But the process of overlaying the real grass in Atlanta began just three days before the opening match. Visible problems with the playing surface were not only a problem there. Throughout the tournament, coaches and players railed against the substandard fields.
“The Copa América is always difficult because of the pitches, because of the referees who are always against us,” said Brazilian Vinícius Júnior during the group stage. “It is always difficult, but we have to stay strong. We can only talk by winning. If we talk, Conmebol says we talk too much.”
Amid growing concerns over the quality of matches and player safety, Conmebol insisted all Copa pitches had been thoroughly tested and were suitable for high-level play (complaints about playing fields were also a storyline at Euro 2024). Specific concerns about the condition of the field at the Mercedes-Benz Arena were ignored. “The grass in Atlanta was absolutely not a threat,” Federico Nantes, Conmebol’s director of competitions, said after the field was tested before the USMNT’s loss to Panama. “All the tests were sufficient. I think the aesthetics of the field were an issue for the players. They care a lot about aesthetics.”
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But the concerns did not go away. And after the brawl that broke out after Uruguay’s semi-final defeat to Colombia, the organizers found their most fervent critic. Before his team’s third-place play-off with Canada, Uruguay’s Argentine manager Marcelo Bielsa launched a scathing attack on Conmebol for what he called a failure to protect the players and their families, then went on to attack the quality of the pitches.
“All the lies they’ve told,” Bielsa said. “They hold press conferences and say, ‘No, the pitches are perfect, the training pitches are perfect.’ I have all the photos that show that these are all lies. This is a plague of liars. Now I’ve said everything I promised [the organizers and the federation] I wouldn’t say so. These are all punishments that are coming.
“These are all mistakes that were known in advance. The North Americans don’t say, ‘You’re going to get a perfect field.’ They say, ‘We’re going to give you a field that was installed three days ago… The training fields were a disaster.
“They hold a press conference and say it’s an optical illusion. Vinicius can’t see it. That Scaloni can’t talk. That the training grounds are all perfect if we all have a collection of the [bad pitches].”
Eight of the 14 venues used for the 2024 Copa America will be reused for the 2026 World Cup, including venues with artificial turf. However, FIFA will insist on a different protocol, instructing venues with artificial turf to install a hybrid surface that combines natural grass with a small percentage of artificial fibres. FIFA believes this will help to ensure greater uniformity between pitches.
But the Copa América showed how difficult it can be to achieve uniformity in stadiums designed for different sports, of different sizes and living in different climates.
As the United States prepares to host World Cup matches for the first time in more than three decades, resolving the field issue is just as important as addressing the shortcomings of the U.S. national team. Only then can we avoid embarrassment in front of the world.