World Cup field at ‘Dallas Stadium’ needs to be raised nearly 4 feet. Here’s how they’re doing it.

ARLINGTON, Texas — Let’s talk grass.

For the World Cup, “Dallas Stadium” out in Arlington had to go through a pretty extensive makeover in order to adhere to FIFA’s field regulations. It involved removing suites, a lot of dirt, and a trial run dating back two years.

We’re about to get really nerdy and in the weeds (pun intended), so here’s a TLDR overview:

FIFA requires fields for the World Cup to be at least 75 yards wide. The field inside Jerry World is under 70 yards. 

Initially, talks were to “raise the field” 15 feet above the ground-level suites. It looked like this:

They tweaked the plan a little. They still will “raise” the field. However, it’ll only be raised about four feet and require the removal of the ground-level suites.

Peter Welpton, host of the soccer-centric radio show “The KickAround” on 1310-AM/96.7-FM The Ticket here in North Texas, broke down the process with WFAA. 

Here’s how it works:

“Dallas Stadium” is not wide enough in the corners due to those ground-level suites. So, they took those bad boys out and replaced them with cavities with Styrofoam blocks. It’s also important to note that there is an 18-inch concrete curb that the banister is affixed to. The banister was removed, but the curb had to remain. “Removal” of the suites was always part of the stadium’s original design plan, according to Welpton.

After filling the suite cavities with the Styrofoam blocks to create a surface level with the curb, they then walled off the suites, and in the corner most units, knocked out the wall to allow for surface to be squared off and maximize space. 

The most visible change to “raising the field” is where the player tunnel lies. Previously, walking out of it onto the field was flat. Now, there is a five-step set of stairs to the playing surface. 

Essentially, what happened is the Joneses had to bring in enough gravel and dirt to fill up the rest of the playing surface to “raise” it four feet … a lot of dirt. Jerry World’s playing surface is approximately 98,000 to 98,200 square feet, and stacking three feet of dirt that high (the final foot is made up of a Permavoid layer, then lots of sand and then grass) is just under 300,000 cubic feet of pea gravel and dirt.

The final piece of it all was actually already done by the “Dallas Stadium” staff. They implemented this same grass field in 2024 for the Copa America, sans the “raising the field” part of it all.

“Dallas Stadium” previously received criticism from the United States Men’s National Team for the condition of the field during the Concacaf Nations League tournament, where then-head coach Gregg Berhalter called it “less than ideal.”

For Copa America, stadium crews started prepping the grass field a month before the matches were to begin. We detailed that entire process here, and the time they took to craft and grow the sod paid off. The USMNT players gave glowing reviews of the field.

An irrigation system to keep the grass field properly watered is placed under the top soil, and artificial growing lights, Welpton noted, were also installed in the rafters to descend down and give the grass proper light to thrive.

We know that the process of getting the field ready has already begun, thanks to the photos posted online, but when the grass field is installed is still a mystery – for now. There will be signs, and Arlington residents will see them.

When the grow lights are in use, meaning the field is officially installed, “Dallas Stadium” will suddenly beam a pink hue, as seen in the days leading up to the Copa America tournament:

On April 2, FOX Sports soccer analyst and former USMNT player Alexi Lalas posted a photo from inside Jerry World showing the dirt that has been laid.

After the World Cup ends, it’ll be a mad dash to remove the grass, all that dirt, and replace the ground suites before the Cowboys’ first preseason game, which takes place only three to four weeks after the World Cup semifinal on July 14.

The Cowboys will start the preseason in mid-August.