Soccer Football – Paulista Championship – Santos v Agua Santa – Estadio Urbano Caldeira, Santos, Brazil – February 16, 2025 Santos’s Neymar scores their first goal from the penalty spot REUTERS/Thiago Bernardes
SAO PAULO — Neymar, Memphis Depay and Thiago Silva are among the many leading Brazilian footballers protesting against using artificial turf for league matches as an alternative of natural grass.
All of them campaigned online with the identical message Tuesday highlighting their fear of increased injury risk for players on the substitute surfaces.
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READ: Neymar returns to Brazilian club Santos after Saudi stint
Some clubs in Brazil’s top divisions are using artificial turf to permit for multiple uses for stadiums while minimizing damage to the playing surfaces.
“It’s worrying to see the direction Brazilian football is taking. With the dimensions and representation of our sport, this debate shouldn’t even exist. In essentially the most respected leagues on this planet, players are heard and investments are made to make sure the standard of the pitch within the stadiums,” the footballers said in an announcement. “The answer to a nasty pitch is to make a very good pitch, it is so simple as that. Soccer is natural, not artificial.”
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Neymar has just returned to Santos, Depay plays for Corinthians and Thiago Silva is at Fluminense.
READ: Neymar scores his first goal since returning to Santos in Brazil
Defending Brazilian champion Botafogo, Palmeiras and Athletico Paranaense are among the many clubs which have used artificial turf, which has resulted in some players who’re veterans or getting back from injury — including Neymar — to boycott away matches against those teams.
Palmeiras said in an announcement that the criticism to its artificial turf is superficial and never based on science.
The club said the playing surface was certified by FIFA, the game’s world governing body, and has been subject to regular inspections since 2020, “in order that it has the identical parameters of a natural grass pitch in perfect state.”
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