NFL officials say they have no problem with the playing surface at London’s Wembley Stadium, but they think this week’s grass at Twickenham is better suited for football anyway.
According to Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News, NFL vice president of international Mark Waller said that because rugby’s a more similar game to American football, that the surface at this week’s venue could be better suited for the Rams and Giants than previous games in England.
The 82,000-seat Twickenham is the home of England’s national rugby team.
“Twickenham is a really good grass field for rugby, and I stress the rugby point because one of the things at Wembley you see is like all soccer stadiums, the field is prepared for a much different game,” Waller said. “You’re looking for slick movement in soccer.
“Rugby is much more similar to our NFL game because there’s a lot of traction, a lot of grit required in the feet. So I think we’ll find it will play a lot more like a football field than a soccer field. I don’t anticipate any issues with the field at all.”
Of course, he was careful to add that the grass hasn’t been a problem at Wembley, though the faster surface and some wet conditions there have led to messier uniforms than normal. And though Twickenham hosted the Rugby World Cup last year, it generally sees less traffic than Wembley, which could allow for better conditions.