MIAMI, FL — Playing surfaces across the United States for the 2024 Copa America have come under fire from multiple coaches and players during the month-long summer competition.
With venues across the country installing fresh grass pitches for most games at the competition, some to cover turf and others to allow for concerts or other events at the various stadiums.
With Argentina and Colombia set to clash in the final of the competition on Sunday, July 14, the playing surface is again a heavy topic of conversation.
The Sporting News is live on site for the match at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, bringing you the latest on how the pitch looks before the game kicks off and how it holds up throughout the 90 minute match.
LIVE BLOG: Follow along live for the 2024 Copa America final with updates & highlights
Updates on how Copa America final pitch in Miami holds up
Before kickoff of the 2024 Copa America final, an inspection of the playing surface at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami showed that it may be ripe for more of the same issues that other pitches have come under fire for throughout the tournament.
While the regular Hard Rock Stadium surface is grass, unlike many newer venues in the United States, this playing surface was only recently laid down. A concert on July 6 at this venue forced stadium grounds crew to uninstall the surface, and it was only reinstalled beginning on July 8 and finishing four days prior to the match, according to the Associated Press .
Upon inspection of the surface around four hours prior to kickoff, many of the same issues that plagued other surfaces were evident. First and foremost, the surface was hard and had little give, as is often the case for temporary surfaces or recently installed pitches, since they have less depth than permanent grass fields.
The surface appeared to have only about an inch of visible depth, although it's unclear what could be further underneath. Seams were clearly visible, which was something Uruguay head coach Marcelo Bielsa ranted vociferously about just days prior. The Sporting News posted photos of the pitch prior to the match on social media.
The field took two rounds of player warmups after kickoff of the match was delayed over an hour due to gate trouble ahead of the match.
After the final round of warmups was completed and the players exited the field, the pitch was watered by a number of sprinklers embedded in the surface.
As the match continued, the pitch looked to hold up quite well. However, it again became a talking point as first Lionel Messi and then Gonzalo Montiel were both forced off due to injuries, with Messi's being a non-contact problem. Messi has had muscle injuries for years, even missing a match earlier this tournament for an injury, so it was hard to conclude that the surface had anything to do with it.
The pitch gained more attention when Nico Gonzalez, who entered for an injured Messi, slipped while through on goal in the 80th minute, seeing the chance fizzle out.
MORE: Latest updates of Lionel Messi injury in Copa America final
Criticism of playing surfaces for 2024 Copa America rampant
Multiple players and coaches throughout the 2024 Copa America have complained about the pitches at many venues across the United States.
It started with Argentina players and coaches who were adamant the playing surface at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta for the opening match of the competition was rock hard, causing the ball to generate unusually strong bounce during play.
"The field is a disaster," Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez said. "The ball bounced like a trampoline every time we received it."
Argentina forward Julian Alvarez echoed those sentiments, saying, "It was not in the best condition, it does not favor our game."
MORE: A full overview of the criticism 2024 Copa America playing surfaces faced from coaches and players
Brazil star Vinicius Jr. didn't go into as much detail, but made his frustration clear after a group match, saying, "The Copa America is always difficult because of the pitches, because of the referees who always go against us.'
Peru head coach Jorge Fossati hinted that the pitch at at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX could have caused an Achilles injury to his captain captain Luis Advincula, while U.S. midfielder Weston McKennie called the pitch issues "frustrating" because "it breaks up every step you take."
Uruguay head coach Marcelo Bielsa was the most aggressive in his criticism, saying prior to the third-place match at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, NC that "I have a collection of photos of the fields that are no longer joined together, but patched together." He went on to insinuate that players and coaches have been threatened with fines and suspensions if they continue to speak out, and accused tournament organizers of lying and gaslighting about field conditions, brushing off criticism.
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