The grass at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, placed for Copa American tournament matches, will remain for Thursday’s match featuring the United States.
Officials for CONMEBOL, which supervises the tournament, said Friday the grass will not be replaced despite critical remarks from Argentina following its 2-0 win over Canada on Thursday. The United States plays Panama.
Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni was critical of the grass Thursday. He said the grass affected his team’s tactics because he said his players weren’t able to pass like they wanted.
Following the match, a Mercedes-Benz Stadium official referred questions about the grass to CONMEBOL. It responded with the decision a day later.
The process used to put down the grass, which includes putting flooring over the existing artificial turf, followed by putting down rolls of sod, was used in the U.S. women’s national team’s match against Japan in the She Believes Cup two months ago, as well as two back-to-back friendlies between Premier League teams last summer.
Mercedes-Benz will host its last match of the Copa America tournament when the United States plays Panama. The stadium will host eight matches during the 2026 World Cup.
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