Nfl super bowl 2023 lvii playing surface criticism players slipping over 20230213 p5j3ke.html – Breaking News & Latest Updates 2026
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Aussie Jordan Mailata slams $800k Super Bowl disaster as playing surface capitulates

Damien McCartney
Damien McCartney

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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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