After criticism of the slippery lawn in Deutsche Bank Park, those responsible in Frankfurt reacted.
By Julian Huter and Christoph Gailer
As part of the German national team’s 2-1 win against the Netherlands, the pitch in Frankfurt’s Deutsche Bank Park came under criticism.
“The pitch is a catastrophe,” complained national coach Julian Nagelsmann after he had to watch how many of his team’s stars in Frankfurt moved more like they were on black ice than on grass and kept slipping.
“The DFB had asked for the pitch to be watered before the game, although our greenkeepers advised against it. So the pitch was watered for around 15 minutes shortly before the game, which particularly explains the slipping in the penalty area,” said Patrik Meyer, Managing Director of Eintracht Frankfurt Stadion GmbH ran-Inquiry and thus takes the DFB responsible. “Other media representatives have also noted that certain players slipped more and others not at all, which means that the shoes they chose could be another cause,” Meyer added.
This made the track in Frankfurt even more of a slippery slope, and during some actions the players tore entire pieces of grass out of the ground.
In addition, despite the difficulty in standing, many players in the DFB team did not change their shoes accordingly at halftime.
It wasn’t the first time that people complained about Frankfurt’s pitch after the DFB’s win against the Netherlands. The underground was already an issue during Eintracht’s Bundesliga game against Wolfsburg in February 2024.
At that time, players and coaches also complained about the grass being very difficult to play on, which ultimately hindered the flow of the game. Back then, the DFB is said to have asked the Frankfurt team about the international match against the Netherlands, after which the grass actually became drier and better again.
The two NFL games in November of the previous year are said to have been decisive for the currently difficult quality of the turf in Frankfurt. At that time, the hybrid turf was so badly damaged by the football players that a replacement was unavoidable.
The problem, however, was that the natural grass that was laid afterwards was under water for weeks due to the onset of winter and heavy rainfall
“In general, the grass is only at the beginning of its growing season in March and the consequences of a very wet winter can still be felt. We had carried out various maintenance measures in coordination with the DFB over the last few weeks and the DFB was there before the game Also satisfied with the condition of the lawn, said Meyer.