In recent years, injury data has quite clearly indicated that NFL players are more likely to suffer a serious injury on artificial turf compared to natural grass playing surfaces, yet NFL teams across the league refuse to move away from artificial turf. And there’s one big reason why – concerts and events like the recent Taylor Swift Eras Tour that sold out NFL venues across the country.
In his first major public comments since he was named to the position, NFL Players Association executive director Lloyd Howell called on the NFL to install natural grass playing surfaces in all stadiums across the league, saying “players overwhelmingly prefer it and the data is clear that grass is simply safer than artificial turf.”
But league insider Mike Florio doesn’t see that happening, because then it would keep teams from hosting events like the Eras Tour, which are financially lucrative to the teams.
“He’s absolutely right. But the NFL won’t do it,” Florio wrote of Howell’s comments. “Apart from the cost of installing and maintaining grass, owners with stadiums that host many other events will not want to devise a system for removing the grass for, for example, a Taylor Swift concert.”
It’s possible to remove grass from the stadiums for events like that, but it’s pretty clear that NFL owners would prefer not to have to worry about things like that.