The World Cup's debut whistle will ring on 11 June at Estadio Azteca Stadium in Mexico City, opening for the sports festival that lasts all summer and extends over three Mexican, American and Canadian countries.
As billions of global football fans follow the attractions, they will witness the final achievement of the field mission for 16 stadiums serving the World Cup this year. It was a journey that scientists, farmers and field experts had to work hard on as much as the players.
The goal was to create stadiums that were on the ground that could withstand the kicks, the shoe nails, the pitching and bring to the players as if they were competing on a single-field side.
A lawn-cutter at the stadium in Toronto, Canada on 4 June. Images: AFP
The stage preparations had begun almost five years before FIFA co-operation with stadium experts at the University of Tennessee and University of Michigan.
As the locations became known, their task became even more challenging. John "Trey" Rogers, professor of Michigan State University and expert on grass, recalled that he was worried whenever a new venue was released.
"There are three dome stadiums. No, there are four yards. No, even more," he said.
The question is not merely what kind of grass will rise in the best view of millions of viewers around the globe, but what surfaces can be planted, transported, installed and maintained across North America, as well as meet the strength of the tournament.
"It's hard to imagine how large its scale is," said John Sorochan, the grass scientist at the University of Tennessee, sharing.
Rogers once helped develop the natural lawn surface which was temporarily used inside Pontiac Silverdome Field at the 1994 World Cup period. Sorochan was his student.
Prior to that time, no World Cup match was held on the natural grass in the house. They have succeeded, contributing to prove that natural grass can be brought into the house and survived many World Cup matches.
The lawn is grown on the plastic membrane. Image: The Carvette
Science has grown superior since then. The covered stadiums are now equipped with growth lights, ventilation systems, and other factors that help maintain natural lawns.
For this World Cup period, Sorochan stated that researchers have considered individual stadiums, then grouping them according to the challenges they have laid out: the dome courtyard, the transitional courtyard from outdoor artificial grass, the natural lawns available and the high terrain elements of Mexico City.
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Grass will be planted on plastic membranes, which will change the behavior of the root. As the roots grow below and touch the barrier, they will spread horizontally, forming a dense root carpet. That allows the lawn to be harvested with much of the root system intact. Once the lawn is taken into the stadium and placed on the sand, the root of the grass begins again to sink deep down.
The stadiums used for this World Cup took about a hundred thousand square metres of natural lawn. They were planted at 9 farms, including 6 in the United States, 2 in Canada and one in Mexico.
Some grass was sown about a year before the installation. Rogers said a Kentucky bluegrass/perennial ryegrass growing on the plastic membrane may be ready to hand over for approximately 9-11 months.
"We can cut it like cutting a pizza and rolling around", Sorochan described.
The staff installed lawns at SoFi Stadium in the United States in May. Image: Reuters
A standard rolling lawn is usually about 1 m wide and is 9-14 m long. They were then lined up on frozen trucks and taken to the stadium for installation.
"You'd be surprised to know in many games of the U.S. National Football League (NFL), the courtyard just laid out on Thursday and the game took place Saturday or Sunday," he said.
In addition to the top lawn, stadiums have a system underneath them. For the courtyards always use natural grass, the sand beneath the grass is about 30 cm thick, then to the draining layer of 15 cm thick gravel. For temporary lawns, the background thickness will be thinner, usually consisting only of sand from 15-25 cm
Some systems also include vacuum and ventilation absorbers to drain excess moisture and air flow through the structural floors of the stadium surface.
At the dome-based venues, the grounds experts use the growth light to ensure the growth conditions of grass. Several stadiums may illuminate the entire courtyard at the same time, while some other courtyards must shine one by one in the area. In Dallas, a light system was hung from the dome and lowered near the courtyard when it needed to shine for the grass.
These lights are not just to keep the grass green. They help the luminous grass to generate energy, recover after being trampled and maintain over weeks of dense World Cup competition.
Harvesting lawn mats at Carolina Green Turf Farm Farm in the United States in June 2025. Image: The Carvette
In Tennessee, Sorochan's team used high speed-speed cameras and video analysis to study how the ball reacts when collided with grass surfaces. In a challenge, researchers shot the balls into the grass at a rate of 55 km/h at a 17-degree angle, then measuring the protagonism of the ball to be low enough for the player to control. The ideal level is that the ball doesn't get too high in the knee.
In addition, a long pass on the ground must also emerge in a way that players can predict.
"We don't want the yard surface to affect the professional quality of the game", Sorochan said.
When the matches begin, most fans will follow the players. Rogers will watch the ball roll over the surface. Rogers hoped his courtyards would work so well that no one felt had to mention them.
"The silence to me is gold", Rogers said.