Japan vs Sweden took an unexpected turn at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas, when Besfort Zeneli and other Sweden players saw twisted metal and demolition debris beside the field during Wednesday night training. FC Dallas later said the scene was part of a planned renovation, not storm damage.
Besfort Zeneli at Toyota Stadium
Zeneli said, “Lo único que pensé fue ‘¿qué pasó?’ Hasta donde yo sabía, no había habido ninguna tormenta”. That reaction fit what Sweden saw from the training pitch: a visible construction zone on one side of Toyota Stadium, with metal and other materials piled where the work had already been opened up.
The stadium work had been blocked off before Sweden arrived in the United States in early June and began using Toyota Stadium as its base. FC Dallas continued to use the ground for regular-season matches while the renovation moved ahead in phases, so the area Sweden encountered was separated from the field of play and from the facilities the team was using in Frisco, Texas.
FC Dallas renovation work
FC Dallas said on Thursday that the demolition was a planned and controlled part of the construction inside an active zone. The club said the method used was drag-down demolition, and it did not involve explosives.
The sequence matters because the visual shock came first and the explanation came after. Sweden’s players saw what looked like storm damage during a World Cup session, but the site was already part of a long renovation that began in early 2025 and is expected to be fully completed before the start of the 2028 MLS season.
Toyota Stadium phase details
The work at Toyota Stadium is being handled in phases, which is why the training area remained usable while demolition materials were visible nearby. That setup let FC Dallas keep playing matches while construction continued around the venue, and it explains why Sweden could train there even as a section of the stadium was being torn down.
For Sweden, the practical takeaway was simple: the scene beside the pitch was not a weather emergency and did not affect the area they were using. What they saw was one part of a yearslong rebuild at Toyota Stadium, not damage from the storm Zeneli first thought had passed through Dallas.
