How FIFA has remade Levi's Stadium into ‘San Francisco Bay Area Stadium'

SANTA CLARA – Matt Greiner, the 49ers' ace groundskeeper, meticulously and slowly sprayed white paint on what typically serves as the Niners' home sideline at Levi's Stadium.

This time, Wednesday's work was among the finishing touches for the FIFA World Cup.

Saturday's noon match between Switzerland and Qatar marks the first of six games that will be played on the 49ers' home field through July 1.

Only it's not actually the 49ers' field. Nor does it seem like their stadium — or Santa Clara’s. Wednesday's media tour showed just how extensively this is a FIFA-run show, albeit with light collaboration, such as Greiner and his crew setting up the goals on a country-club-like manicured pitch.

"It's a FIFA stadium fully for us," said Jeoen van den Berk, a FIFA communications officer. "It was handed to us in a clean way. It's a complete takeover of the stadium."

The NFL essentially did the same four months ago in hosting Super Bowl LX. World Cup visitors will see scarce signs of this being the 49ers' home for the last dozen years.

Metal fencing, some 20 feet high, surrounds the perimeter while a slew of metal detectors and X-ray machines await those who breach the fortress.

The stadium's northeast gates still showcase the statues of Joe Montana and Dwight Clark depicting "The Catch" that launched the 49ers' dynasty 44 years ago. Just don't go looking for the 49ers' retired numbers and Super Bowl championships atop the west-side's suite tower, which now reads: "FIFA WORLD CUP 2026."

FIFA made sure to mask all stadium and team corporate sponsors, as evidenced by white tarps snugly covering the "Levi's" logos while casting alone "Stadium."

The field itself is not the same grass the 49ers played on, nor that from the Seattle Seahawks' victory over the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LX on Feb. 8.

Like all other 15 stadiums in this World Cup, the "San Francisco Bay Area Stadium" received a fresh patch of mostly natural grass in March. FIFA noted it's a hybrid blending Bermuda grass with synthetic fibers.

To the common fan's eye, more noticeable is how bloated the field looks (115 yards long by 74.4 yards wide) compared to American football (120 yards long by 53.3 yards wide). That said, multiple soccer games have been held here, including the first-ever event at Levi's Stadium — the San Jose Earthquakes' 1-0 win over Seattle in Major League Soccer action on Aug. 2, 2014.

FIFA emphasized that it's striving for a "first-class experience for guests," and that includes altering a pregame ceremony so everyone in the stands has a 360-degree view of all team members forming a circle at the center of the field for the national anthems.

VIP guests entering the stadium's eight-story suite tower will receive a gift and wristband before being escorted to their spots. The third-level lounge, otherwise known as the United Club, is decked out with new tables and chairs. A sensory room has been added to the second level for overstimulated fans who need a calm retreat.

And for those watching from home or a party, 45 cameras are trained on each stadium, including a high-wired aerial cam, a drone and even a helicopter.

FIFA's official broadcast partners will get special access to players post-match in what's typically the Levi's Stadium visitors' locker room. An attached hallway is decked out in murals of previous headliners, from Taylor Swift to Wrestlemania to monster trucks.

Two new dressing rooms — about 20% the size of the 49ers’ nearby — are staged in the stadium’s north side for the World Cup teams.

Mixed-zone interviews will take place down the hall in what has been the photographers' work room, and a formal press conference room has been set up for 80 media members.

Group-stage games will take place here every third day (June 13, 16, 19, 22, and 25) before a July 1 knockout-round game that could feature the United States if it finishes first in Group D.

Only 24 days later, the stadium will transform back into a concert venue (Ed Sheeran on July 25, AC/DC on Aug. 5). The 49ers resurface for an Aug. 13 preseason opener and then host their first regular-season game against Miami on Sept. 20, a day after their field fittingly hosts an Earthquakes soccer game against Los Angeles FC.

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This story was originally published June 10, 2026 at 3:57 PM.