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Now that the World Cup is over, NFL players are perhaps more vocal than ever about their preference for playing on grass.
This is largely because of the 11 World Cup venues in the United States, seven of them were NFL stadiums using artificial turf – but FIFA regulations require a grass playing surface.
The NFLPA has not-so-subtly joked about rolling out the “green carpet” for football players this summer, and more recently, players started a movement on social media claiming their safety is “worth the cost.”
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Saquon Barkley #26 of the Philadelphia Eagles runs the ball against the New York Giants at Lincoln Financial Field on October 26, 2025 in Philadelphia. (Getty Images)
But the actors, including Saquon Barkley, believe that a precedent has been set.
“I think it’s going to be hard for them to object to that because if you’re able to do it for the World Cup, it doesn’t really make sense,” Barkley told PK Press Club Digital in a recent interview.
Barkley admitted he’s “not as educated as I should be” and wants to do more research on grass-to-turf injuries, but he knows his personal preferences.
“I prefer grass. I think the majority of players prefer grass. And I will say this: If the numbers show that playing grass versus grass is better for us, then I think that’s more than enough,” Barkley said.
Workers install the pitch at New York New Jersey Stadium ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in East Rutherford, New Jersey, May 7, 2026. (Charly Triballeau/AFP)
FORMER NFL STAR SAYS HE ‘CERTAINLY’ WOULD BE FRUSTRATED IF NFL LET FIFA BRING GRASS TO THE TURF FIELDS
“There’s no reason why, if you’re able to do it for the World Cup, and if that’s what we’re asking for as players, we can’t do it. I know that’s how the players feel. I love playing on grass… Even when you train on grass, we hate it. We don’t like it. I need to educate myself more about it. But if the numbers speak to what I think, then there should be no reason to let us not do it.”
Ironically, Barkley’s serious injuries have come on the turf, including a torn ACL in Chicago in 2020, which he admitted put him in a “tricky situation, but there’s a lot of things you just can’t control.” His 2,000-yard campaign came in his first season with the Philadelphia Eagles, who play their home games on grass.
Half of the league’s stadiums use turf, although NFLPA executive director Lloyd Howell has said that 92% of league players prefer grass. The most common assumption, however, is that turf is cheaper to use and easier to maintain than turf, given that stadiums host many more events throughout the year.
It was announced at the end of last year that every NFL team will receive “a library of approved and accredited NFL fields” before the start of the 2026 season. Any new field will have to immediately meet these standards, and all teams will have two years to achieve them.
Turf and artificial turf fields will be subject to the new standards, but the NFL has no plans to require natural turf fields.
Saquon Barkley of the Philadelphia Eagles takes the field before the NFC Wild Card playoff game against the San Francisco 49ers at Lincoln Financial Field on January 11, 2026 in Philadelphia. (Getty Images)
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The league’s chief medical officer, Dr. Allen Sills, said there were no “statistically significant differences” in lower extremity injuries or concussions that could be attributed to the type of playing surface or a specific surface. This is despite players’ widespread preference for turf fields and complaints about surfaces such as that at MetLife Stadium, where New York Giants and the Jets play and where the World Cup final took place.
