Gillette Stadium's 2026 World Cup transition involved a lot of tape. Here's why

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Gillette Stadium has been transformed into Boston Stadium for the 2026 World Cup, with most references to the arena's typical name being covered up as part of FIFA policy.

From the name displayed on the side of the 64,146-seat stadium to the massive "Gillette" logo atop the 22,200-square-foot video board, all vestiges of the stadium sponsor are currently under wraps.

That includes several small Gillette Stadium logos that appear on seat decals throughout the lower level of the stadium.

As was first pointed out by Kyle Sheldon, small pieces of blue tape had been attached to seat decals throughout the stadium to cover the reference to it being "Gillette Stadium."

USA TODAY Sports was able to corroborate that being true in the stadium's lower bowl, where several sections canvassed showed small pieces of blue tape over the seat decals.

However, the affected seats were only in the lower bowl of the three-level stadium. Seats observed on the second- and third-levels of the arena did not have logos on their seat numbers.

Of course, Boston Stadium is hardly the only World Cup venue that has had to painstakingly cover up references to its usual naming-rights sponsor. All venues have followed suit, with even the smallest citation of the typical stadium name being concealed.

Perhaps most comical among those is the press box at Lumen Field in Seattle, which is displayed as follows for the 2026 World Cup.

Soon enough, the tapes and tarps obscuring the stadium names will be removed as the World Cup ends and NFL season draws nearer.

But until then, Boston Stadium and the like will hold the mantle for Gillette Stadium and its counterparts.