William Saliba Raises Concern Over World Cup Final Pitch After France's New York Opener

William Saliba has raised concerns about the pitch at the New York stadium set to host the World Cup final, even after the France national team opened their tournament with a 3-1 win over the Senegal national team. France got the result they wanted in their first game, but Saliba made it clear that the playing surface was not ideal and felt different from what he expected at a stage this big.

That matters even more because the same venue is scheduled to host the final later in the tournament. With France now preparing for their second group-stage match against the Iraq national team, Saliba's comments have added an unexpected talking point around one of the World Cup's most important stadiums.

Speaking to the media ahead of the Iraq game Saliba said, "I was a bit surprised by the state of the pitch for the first match in New York. They even asked us if we wanted to play with moulded studs or screw in studs. Which is unusual for me because I only play with screw-in studs being a defender… it is clear that the pitch was more like an artificial turf and that was very hard. Once we are there we have got no choice we have to play and it is the same pitch for both teams but it is clear the pitch wasn't great."

William Saliba criticises the pitch at the MetLife Stadium in New York pic.twitter.com/j97xy4LSSC

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The awkward thing for FIFA is that this is not just a one-player complaint that can be brushed aside.

The venue is still going to be used several more times, so every bounce, slip, slow pass, and heavy touch is going to be watched more closely now. That is the problem with pitch concerns at a World Cup. Once players start talking about it publicly, the surface becomes part of the story whether organizers want it to or not.

FIFA's position is clear. They believe the fields are meeting the required standards and that a lot of work has gone into making them suitable for elite matches. But from a player's point of view, the conversation is much simpler. If the ball does not move naturally, if the ground feels too hard, or if players have to think about studs before kickoff, then it affects how comfortable they feel.

That is why Saliba's comments matter. He was not making excuses for a bad result. France won. His point was about the feel of the field and whether it matches what players expect at the biggest tournament in the sport.

With more matches still to come at the same venue, this will be hard to ignore. The closer the tournament gets to the final, the louder this discussion could become.

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This story was originally published June 21, 2026 at 6:34 AM.