The pitches used across this summer's Copa América in the United States drew sustained criticism from players and managers throughout the tournament, and the Guardian has examined in detail what went wrong and whether those responsible will be held to account. The findings, published this week, suggest the problems were neither incidental nor easily excused.
According to the Guardian's reporting, the surface quality at multiple venues fell well below the standard expected at a continental championship, prompting alarm among squads preparing on grounds that were visibly degraded. The report frames the failures as a collective institutional problem, quoting concerns that amount, in one characterisation, to a pattern of dishonesty among those responsible for pitch certification and maintenance.
The tournament carried particular weight beyond the competition itself. The United States, Mexico and Canada are co-hosts of the 2026 World Cup, and Copa América was always going to serve as a practical rehearsal — a chance to identify gaps in infrastructure before the larger event arrives. On the evidence of the pitches, that rehearsal exposed problems the three nations will need to address urgently.
The host nation and Mexico both exited in the group stage, which compounded the sense that the summer had been a difficult one for North American football. Canada fared better on the pitch, reaching the semi-finals before losing to Argentina, who went on to win the tournament. But even their relative success could not distract from the wider concern about playing surfaces that, at several grounds, appeared to compromise the quality of football on show.
The question of accountability is a delicate one. Pitch preparation at a tournament held across multiple stadiums, many of them built primarily for American football, involves a chain of contractors, certifying bodies and local organisers — and the Guardian's investigation suggests that chain failed at more than one link. Whether governing bodies will impose meaningful consequences, or simply absorb the criticism and move on, remains to be seen.
For Conmebol, which organised the competition, and for Fifa, which will oversee 2026, the summer has at minimum produced a clear and documented warning. Two years is not a great deal of time in which to develop and enforce pitch standards across a tournament that will span an entire continent. The Copa América provided the blueprint for what can go wrong. Whether those now planning the World Cup treat it as such is the more pressing question.