USWNT gets a sneak peek at the grass installed at Lumen for the World Cup

SEATTLE (AP) — The U.S. women’s national team is getting a sneak peek at the grass that has been installed at Lumen Field for this summer’s World Cup.

The United States played Japan on Tuesday night on the newly installed hybrid grass, a mix of real grass woven with artificial fibers. The women’s team has not been to Lumen since 2017 because of the artificial turf.

In 2022, the collective bargaining agreement that gave the women equal pay to their male national team counterparts also gave the players equitable playing conditions, which included playing only on suitable grass fields.

The United States ended up losing to Japan 1-0. Coach Emma Hayes said that because the field was soaked by rain throughout the match it played “really quick.”

“I think they’ve done a good job with it,” defender Tierna Davidson said. “So hopefully it’ll hold up over the summer and will serve really well for the World Cup.”

Hayes said it was important to bring the national team back to the Pacific Northwest. The announced attendance was more than 36,000, which breaks the record for a standalone women’s match in Seattle. Megan Rapinoe’s retirement match with the Seattle Reign in 2023 drew 34,130 fans.

“It definitely was one of my aims. I really wanted the opportunity and quite rightly the CBA, we want to be playing on grass fields. So that prohibited that from happening and this opportunity gives us the chance to do that,” Hayes said. “I’m so happy to grab it with both hands and for us to have a record attendance for a women’s game in this area.”

FIFA has strict requirements for the fields of play at the World Cup. So every stadium used across Canada, the United States and Mexico for this summer’s World Cup will need to have similar grass fields.

There are eight World Cup stadiums, seven in the United States and one in Canada, that have artificial turf. All of the venues, with the exception of Vancouver’s BC Place, are home to NFL teams.

In Seattle’s case, the work to install the grass began in earnest last month. A drainage system and nearly a foot of sand were laid down before the sod was installed. The grass and the structure underneath will be removed following the World Cup.

“It’s so cool that we get to play on the grass that the World Cup games are getting played on. It’s great that they’re in these huge stadiums,” said forward Ally Sentnor. “It was really wet out there with the rain, but it was really cool to test it out, and it’s going to be fun to see those games in the summer.”

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Lumen is home to the NFL’s Seahawks, Major League Soccer’s Sounders and the Reign of the National Women’s Soccer League. The Sounders and Reign have been displaced during the installation, playing some matches across the state in Spokane.

The Sounders will play their first match on the new grass on Wednesday when they host Mexican club Tigres in the second leg of a CONCACAF Champions Cup quarterfinal.

Seattle is set to host six World Cup matches starting in June, four in the group-stage and two in the knockout round.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer