A football field contains 57,600 square feet within the sidelines. The area outside the sidelines and inside the running track that surrounds most football fields contains a minimum of 30,000 square feet. Together, these two areas comprise at least 88,000 square feet, or 2 acres of turf grass.
2. 57,600 square feet within the sidelines
Contains a minimum of 30,000 square feet
outside the sidelines
Comprise 88,000 square feet or 2 acres of
turf grass
8. Basic design principles
Cross falls steep – less than 1:80 – 1:100 along the
line and 1:50-1:60 across the line of play
All drainage systems should be with adequate
positive outfall
Drainage designed to cope with a 1 in 50 year storm
Designing
9. Levels Adjustment
Minor changes (+- 50 mm), cultivation and grading within the soil
profile
Greater earthworks need a cut and fill approach is generally
prescribed
Cut and fill works
11. Drainage
Un Drained Pitches :
In cases where sandy soils overly gravel, limestone
and chalk there have been exceptions
Drained Pitches :
Pipe drained pitches
Pipe and Slit drained pitches
Sand Carpet Pitch
Suspended water table root zone pitch
Soil over drainage layer
18. Turf Establishment
Warm season grasses
Bermuda grass overseeding with Perennial
Ryegrass - keep wear minimal and provide for a
green field color
19. Cool Season Grasses
Kentucky Bluegrass is the
dominate choice
Perennial Ryegrass is often
added to blue grasses
20. Transitional zone
Tall Fescues and Bermudas are both used.
Over seeded each winter with Rye grasses to avoid
playing on dormant fields
Kentucky Bluegrass is also used in the more northern
parts
21. Laying methods
Grass establishment
Cheapest and best
way to establish a
grass sward on a new
pitch
Certified seed of at
least 3 cultivars with
high rating are used
Turfing
Faster but more
expensive way
Require hollow tine
aeration for first two
years
23. Weed Control
Pre-emergence herbicides should be applied the
latter part of April to early May for grass weed control
Maintaining dense turfgrass will greatly reduce the
weed
24. Fertilizer Applications
Shallow root systems are unable to draw upon
reserves deeper within soil profiles
Nutrient uptake is also determined by the oxygen
status of the root zone
The most important nutrients are nitrogen,
potassium and phosphorus
25. As nitrogen is the most important nutrient and can
influence wear tolerance
The optimum values for sand ameliorated soil
pitches have been determined at 160- 200 kg
nitrogen/ha/year
Fertilization should be carried out three times per
year
CONT…..
26. Fertilization should be carried out three times per
year, applying 1800 to 2700 Kg of actual N per
season for maximum results
At least one-half the N should come from controlled
release forms
Potassium is required in relatively large amounts,
second only to nitrogen
Phosphorous have no visual effect on grass
health
CONT……
27. Irrigation
Irrigation application systems includes,
Fully automated pop up sprinklers
Perimeter pop up sprinklers and mobile center
sprinklers
Mobile irrigators
Stationary sprinklers from hydrant points
Irrigation have to provide 1.0 to 1.5 inches of
precipitation per week
28. Irrigation Application in
Dry Periods
Watering during the evening/night allows for minimum
evaporation of water and will provide maximum
benefit.
Combining watering with shallow aeration or
spiking/forking allows water to penetrate the grass
canopy
Dry spots in high use areas such as goal mouths will
probably need more water than others
30. Pitch maintenance and Renovations
Conditions for renovations
Complete reconstruction due to irregularity in levels,
heavy clay top soils, drainage issues and poor swards
Pitches did not have an adequate rest period for a spring
season renovation
There was a lack of adequate irrigation systems on
pitches
31. Renovation activities
Level adjustments, goalmouth turfing
Turfing of high wear areas
i.e. goalmouths and the penalty spot
Sward improvements
Soil profile improvements
32.
33. Localized Levels Adjustment
Necessary on pitches with high levels of wear such as in
goalmouth areas
1. Cleaning up the area
2. Vertidraining
3. Top-dressing
4. Fertilizer application
5. Over seeding
35. Sward Improvements
Turfing of hard wearing grasses in bad swards
Scarifying dead grasses and unwanted sward
Over seeding and fertilization
Rest period fro 8 weeks
Regular mowing for leveled sward
36. Soil Profile Improvements
Sand topdressing
Carried out during the growing season and be
in combination with verti-draining
Sand to be brushed into channels and
improve drainage and rooting depth
Followed by fertilizer and irrigation application
37. Aerification
Core aerification done at least twice a year
I. In the spring
II. Prior to the start of a game series.
Cores should either be pulverized with a power
rake,
The field topdressed with the appropriate rootzone
mix.
If the field needs aerification during the playing
season, coring is often not desirable. Solid-tine
slicing would relieve surface compaction without
play disruption
38. Topdressing
The thin application of soil over the turf surface
To smooth the turf surface and fill in damaged areas
The use of soil or composts with proper biological
components
Also crumb rubber will soften the soil surface and
protect the grass crown from abrasive damage in high-
traffic areas
39. CONT…..
When the fields are not in use for 2 days, a 1/4 inch
layer can be applied, giving the grass time to recover
and not hamper the skill of the players
Seeding :
Seed after each aerification or topdressing
40. Mowing
Regular mowing encourages a thicker sward and
improves presentation on the pitch
Rotary mowers are generally less maintenance
Cylinder mowers provides a better finish
In an ideal scenario a combination of cylinder and
rotary mowing should be used
41. Performance Testing
Performance testing should be carried out by an independent
agency
This can be incorporated into design and build projects.
Assessments include;
Live grass cover
Grass species composition
Rooting depth
Stud traction
Hardness
Penetration
Infiltration
Grass height Performance testing for traction
42.
43. Artificial turf
Resistance to weather and ability to sustain more
intensive use make it the best alternative to natural
grass
FIFA developed a testing scheme for artificial turf
Only artificial football turf playing surfaces that have
been tested in accordance with the FIFA Quality
Programme test criteria in the laboratory
44. 3G Artificial turf
Consists of
An artificial turf with synthetic blades
Layers of specially selected sand and performance
infills
A shock-absorbing layer underneath the turf
45.
46. HISTORY
Ist Artificial turf in football
The FIFA Quality Programme for Football Turf
The first FIFA tournament on football turf
1980
2001
2003
47. The Fédération Internationale de Football
Association (FIFA) is an association governed by
Swiss law founded in 1904 and based in Zurich.
It has 211 member associations and its goal,
enshrined in its Statutes, is the constant
improvement of football
FIFA
57. A lack of maintenance will lead to
discomfort and frustration for players because of
• Faster movement of the ball
• Uneven roll of the ball
• Variable bounce of the ball
• Having to run on a hard surface
• Poor grip of the surface
PLAYING PERFORMANCE
