The New England Patriots are now scampering to replace their turf field after NFL officials took issue with it following this summer’s FIFA World Cup.
In order to host matches during the soccer tournament, Gillette Stadium was forced to put down a natural grass playing surface.
Now, that surface has since been removed and an artificial turf surface has since been re-installed.
However, that pitch may need to be ripped up again before the Patriots take the field next Thursday for a preseason game against the Indianapolis Colts.
According to ESPN’s Patriots reporter Mike Reiss, the NFL and the NFL Players Association independent laboratory testing protocol determined their surface was ‘noncompliant.’
Patriots chief operating officer Jim Nolan told Reiss that a replacement field will be put down this week.
The New England Patriots are rushing to put down a new artificial field at Gillette Stadium ahead of a preseason game after the newly installed surface was deemed ‘noncompliant’
Previously, the stadium’s artificial surface was ripped out and replaced with natural grass in order for the venue to host matches during the 2026 FIFA World Cup
If the new surface is also unplayable, the preseason game may be cancelled altogether
‘The field we’re installing is the latest version of the field we took out in January,’ Nolan told Reiss.ย
‘From a player perspective, it will be incredibly consistent with what they played on last year.’
If the new field doesn’t pass inspection either, it’s possible that the preseason game is scrapped altogether.
Ten years ago, the Hall of Fame Game between the Colts and the Packers was called off due to paint on the field which had become ‘congealed and rubberized.’
The resulting lawsuits from people who bought tickets and traveled for the game resulted in the NFL moving the Hall of Fame Game from after the induction ceremony to before it.
Even further back, a game at Philadelphia’s Veterans Stadium between the Philadelphia Eagles and Baltimore Ravens was called off due to ‘uneven cutouts’ in the playing surface. At the time, Veterans Stadium hosted both football and baseball.
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