ATLANTA — The FIFA World Cup kicks off in less than 150 days and the city of Atlanta is ramping up its preparations for the world’s biggest tournament.
And that starts with how Mercedes-Benz Stadium will transform over the coming weeks and months.
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Adam Fullerton, VP of stadium operations at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, confirmed on Friday that crews will rip out the artificial turf system on Jan. 31 to make way for the natural grass surface.
“Our playing surface is the biggest project that we have,” he said.
Fullerton said they started laying the groundwork for the process two years ago. The stadium worked with growing labs to see what kind of grass mixture would be the most viable. The grass for Mercedes-Benz Stadium is being grown in Colorado.
“The grass will be a natural sod field, but it will have a synthetic component to it ... for stability,” he said.
Atlanta United will play eight home matches at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on the new surface. The US Men’s National Team will also host two international friendlies against Portugal and Belgium in March.
After that, the crews will come in and install an exclusive grass surface for FIFA matches.
“March and April will serve as a good chance to play real soccer on the grass. It’s a good time to test our systems and make sure everything is dialed in," Fullerton said.
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The other part of the equation for stadium preps is covering up the logos. That will include the giant Mercedes-Benz Stadium logo on the outside.
“What we call ‘clean site principle,’” Fullerton said. “For us, that entails 2,000 coverups across the stadium both inside and outside.”
One thing that won’t change at Mercedes-Benz Stadium? The fan-friendly prices.
“That’s part of our core values no matter what event comes through our doors,” Fullerton said.