The regulations for the tournament have not yet been published, but grass has been preferred for all past men’s World Cups. Seven of the 11 U.S. venues are NFL stadiums with artificial turf.

There have been several recent studies that show that turf causes more lower-body injuries than natural grass, and the NFLPA finds that research significant. The NFL and NFLPA share the same ...

That saves a ton of man hours.” Turf isn’t completely absolved from environmental issues, though. Other evidence suggests that turf doesn’t absorb water well, which leads to more runoff.

Data additionally showed those in the artificial turf group were slightly older than those in the natural grass cohort (mean age, 14.6 years vs. 13.6 years).

Samuel said that stopping on natural grass is easier and lighter on the body compared to artificial turf, which can take a toll on the knees and back. He said if he had it his way, he would always ...

The playing surface at Folsom Field was natural grass until the 1971 season when it was replaced with Astroturf. The artificial turf was removed and reverted back to grass for the 1999 season.

The studies suggest “a higher rate of foot and ankle injuries on artificial turf, both old-generation and new-generation turf, compared to natural grass,” they wrote in a paper published last ...