FIFA aims for perfect pitch at 2026 World Cup following Copa América 'disaster'

The 2026 World Cup is coming to North America with an ambitious plan, expanding the field by 50% and spreading the soccer spectacle over 16 cities in three countries with multiple climates and elevations.

FIFA, aiming to create the perfect pitch for every venue, partnered with turf experts at the University of Tennessee and Michigan State University to research and develop the best surfaces for the tournament.

When the World Cup begins in less than two years with 48 teams playing 104 matches in the United States, Mexico and Canada, no one wants the field — or pitch, as many soccer aficionados call it — to be a topic of conversation like it was earlier this summer for a different major tournament.

The Copa América, which South American soccer body CONMEBOL organizes every four years, was dogged by problems with shaky surfaces.

Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez called the grass field that replaced artificial turf a "disaster," after beating Canada in the opener on June 20 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. Criticism continued with other teams and coaches early in the tournament.

"FIFA has high expectations and demands that we can’t have any failures," John Sorochan, professor of turfgrass science and management at Tennessee, said recently in a telephone interview. "That's why they're supporting so much research and preparation so that they don't have what happened at Copa, and the embarrassment of what CONMEBOL had."

Like at this year's Copa América, some football stadiums — including some with a roof — will host games at the next World Cup.

Sorochan, along with his mentor and former professor at Michigan State, Trey Rogers, addressed a similar challenge three decades ago when the World Cup first visited the United