UPDATE: Aussie Jordan Mailata has slammed the University of Phoenix playing surface, as many of the NFL’s biggest stars struggled to keep their feet during the Super Bowl.
The University of Phoenix Stadium has a retractable roof – which was open for the game – but the stadium uses a unique roll-out field.
When not being played on, the natural turf playing surface is literally rolled of the stadium in one piece underneath the stands, and into the sun.
AS IT HAPPENED: Super Bowl 2023
READ MORE: Diehard fans turn on Aussie after horror punt
IN PICTURES: Super Bowl 2023
Ahead of games, it’s rolled back into the stadium. Critics of the system say the different conditions outside versus inside make the surface more slippery than it might be if the turf grew inside the stadium.
Players regularly slip over during regular-season games, and the Super Bowl was no exception.
During the first half, Travis Kelce made an uncontested catch after his defender slipped over.
After the game, which Mailata’s Eagles lost to the Chiefs 38-35, the Aussie star reportedly described the surface as “terrible”, adding that playing on it was “like playing on a water park”.
He said players from both sides were talking about it during timeouts.
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