BC Place will get new turf before Women's World Cup

BC Place is getting new turf, and it's going to be installed prior to the Women's World Cup in June. There has been talk about the venue getting a new playing surface, but it was unclear when it would go in. With it playing host to the World Cup final, there was a push to get it laid down in time and The Province has confirmed that it will be.

In addition to hosting the final, BC Place will also host several group stage matches, two round of 16 clashes and one quarterfinal. That includes the United States' Group C finale against Nigeria and, if they win their group, their round of 16 match.

There has been a lot of consternation over the fact that the World Cup will be played on turf altogether. But the turf at most venues is relatively new and plays pretty well. That isn't true at BC Place, where the turf is four years old and was derided by most MLS players. The new surface should change that.

The synthetic blades in the turf at BC Place are currently 40mm. When the new surface goes in, it will be at least 60mm, which should make the ball play a bit slower. That shouldn't be too much of an issue for soccer.

The plan is for the new turf to be installed in mid to late May. That's going to be cutting it close to the Women's World Cup, which kicks off on June 8, but there shouldn't be a problem getting it in. The concern would be if there is something wrong with the new turf and not having time to make adjustments, or if maintaining the new turf is a bit different from the old turf and the grounds crew hasn't figured everything on in time.