‘Clean’ Stadiums and Natural Grass; How 2026 FIFA World Cup Stadiums Will Look Different

The 2026 FIFA World Cup will look like none other. With 48 countries participating and matches spread over three countries, the biggest event in the competition’s history will also be at U.S. stadiums that will look different for the football fans familiar with their layouts.

Natural grass will be installed at all the sites, whose venues will be named for the host city instead of its corporate name per FIFA statues. Each of the stadiums will be “clean” in FIFA parlance, which means stripped of its corporate branding.

Security measures will also be in place with “last mile” perimeters to avoid any repeats of the crowd trouble that marred the final of last summer’s Copa America in Miami, where fans pushed their way through security to get into the venue. Those new measures may impact several stadiums, including Seattle World Cup Stadium, aka Lumen Field, that are in downtown locations with plenty of surrounding apartments and businesses.

“I actually live a block from the stadium, so I’m invested in this planning effort both as a World Cup organizer and as a resident who will be impacted every day, particularly on match days,” said April Putney, Seattle Host Committee chief strategy officer.

Putney said Seattle organizers are working with the stadium and FIFA to define safe perimeters for match days compared to non-match days.

“It’s really like, what will the resident access look like? Where will they walk their dog? Important things like that,” Putney said. “Most of the folks, they live next to the stadium. They work next to the stadium. They’re used to the impact. And so we do a comparison of what’s it like compared to a normal Seahawks game when we have a full stadium already. And then we’ll go back through and do individual one-on-one conversations with any of the businesses or residential areas that are particularly impacted to make sure we have complete clarity and address their concerns.”

While it’s called the “last mile” security perimeter, that does not mean it will be an exact mile in size. Instead, the phrase refers to the part of the fan journey from where they get to the stadium area via public transport and through security checks.

“That’s part of what we’re working on with our safety and security teams, with FIFA — what will those perimeters look like?” said Philadelphia Host City Executive Meg Kane, whose city will host matches at Philadelphia World Cup Stadium (aka Lincoln Financial Field) in an area near two other sports venues. “There is a lot of real estate that we can operate within, because on match day, the only thing that can happen is match day. So we’re working closely with the Phillies and Wells Fargo Center, with the city, with SEPTA, on all of these things.”

There was concern — much of it overstated given it was not a FIFA event and had much different organizational setups — when the Copa America final in Miami last summer between Argentina and Colombia was delayed because of fan trouble outside of Hard Rock Stadium. Such a situation will not happen again at Miami World Cup Stadium, said Alina Hudak, Host Committee president and CEO.

“(The Miami Dade sheriff’s office) has done an extensive review of the after action reports related to that in collaboration with the stadium,” Hudak said. “All of the things that happened are, in fact, being reviewed and addressed, and I can assure you that everything is being done within our power to make sure that the appropriate measures are being put in place in the appropriate perimeters. FIFA is very cognizant as well and FIFA security is very involved in the planning efforts.”

Preparing for Natural Grass

Another issue is how the stadiums will look when fans arrive to the games. While each U.S. stadium is known for its massive signage for corporate sponsors, FIFA statues require those marks be covered for the World Cup. In some cases, that may result in some of biggest drapes perhaps ever tailored.

“FIFA’s going to come in with its own branding plan,” Houston Host Committee President Chris Canetti said of NRG Stadium, aka Houston World Cup Stadium. “They’ve already sent all their experts in, measured every square inch of the stadium. They’ve come back to us with a preliminary plan — this is what they’re going to cover. So now we have to go in and say, OK, while FIFA is doing that piece, what’s left for our piece?”

Houston is one of several stadiums that also will need to have natural grass installed. Instead of having the grass overlaying the artificial turf surface, as is the case with many international friendlies and other tournaments, FIFA is demanding that it be installed. That leaves those stadiums even less time to plan.

“We start building the pitch on May 1 next year,” said Canetti, who added all of Houston’s games will be played with the roof closed for heat reasons. “This is all subject to change, (but) there’s a period where we’re going to be putting everything in place so that 20 days ahead of the first match, the sod gets rolled and it gets stitched. Then there’s about a 20-day period for it to come together and by the time the first match is there, it looks like it’s been there forever.”