Overview
- The team confirmed late Sunday that the Browns’ new domed Brook Park stadium, scheduled for 2029, will use artificial turf for NFL games.
- The venue will be built so it can accommodate natural grass for soccer matches, meaning a temporary or event-driven switch to grass remains possible.
- If the plan holds it will move the league’s balance from an even split to 17 teams on turf and 15 on grass, changing the visible landscape of the grass-versus-turf debate.
- Players and the NFLPA say roughly 92 percent of players prefer natural grass and point to the 2026 World Cup conversions as proof that swaps are feasible, while owners cite upfront installation costs, ongoing maintenance and multiuse scheduling as barriers.
- The Browns only broke ground in April so the surface choice could still change, but the decision increases the odds that playing-surface rules will be bargained in the next CBA and continues a debate that players say affects injury risk and career health.