The World Cup final venue comes with cause for concern: here’s why
Up against a likely numerical disadvantage in the MetLife Stadium stands, Spain also faces challenging weather and a much-criticized playing surface.
Everything, absolutely everything, matters at a World Cup.It’s impossible to forget the sweltering heat that bore down on the 1994 World Cup final at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, just outside Los Angeles. Brazil and Italy wilted in temperatures that hit 100°F, producing a final played at a glacial pace that ultimately ended scoreless. Thirty-two years later, not much has changed. The final of all finals, Spain vs Argentina, will be played at MetLife Stadium in temperatures approaching 90°F, with oppressive humidity adding to the challenge. There are no excuses, but there are facts. Spain has played seven matches at this World Cup and, with one exception, every one of them came in covered stadiums. Two were at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium, another two at Los Angeles’s SoFi Stadium, and two more at AT&T Stadium in Dallas. The only game played under natural conditions came in Guadalajara, Mexico, following a massive thunderstorm. The heat was not a factor that day. In Spain’s favor is the fact that the team trained in both Chattanooga and Dallas under high temperatures. They always knew this moment could arrive.
“You can hardly call it grass”
But there is something potentially more problematic than the weather. More even than the atmosphere, with MetLife expected to resemble a miniature La Bombonera. And that is the playing surface. The grass at the New Jersey venue has not earned a reputation as one of the tournament’s best pitches. Complaints have mounted throughout the World Cup. Vinícius Júnior was among the first to speak out after Brazil’s match against Morocco: “It’s very hot, and even though the field is watered, the grass dries out extremely quickly. The surface becomes very hard. We can’t play at a high tempo, and that hurts us because we want to play football, move the ball from side to side.” That might be exactly what Spain needs. France’s Adrien Rabiot was even more critical. “You can hardly call it grass,” Rabiot grumbled. “It feels more like artificial turf. It’s the same for everyone, but it’s hard and rigid.”
Spain now has time, starting Thursday, to adjust to the conditions in and around New York, a concrete jungle with little in common with either Texas or California. Just as importantly, the players must prepare mentally for every factor that could shape a final of this magnitude. There has even been speculation that halftime could be extended to 30 minutes to accommodate a musical performance featuring names such as Shakira, Madonna, and K-pop sensation BTS. That possibility remains unconfirmed, and if it were to happen, it would only add to the controversy surrounding the tournament’s already-debated cooling breaks, which in this case will almost certainly be necessary. MetLife has all the ingredients to become a trap for Spain. Now it falls to Luis de la Fuente to make sure it doesn’t become a fatal one.
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