The growing problem of hockey being knocked down in favour of football-friendly pitches could be quelled to some degree after the FIH and Fifa joined forces in a bid to connect synthetic surfaces for both hockey and grassroots football on multi-sport turf.
In a statement on Tuesday, the FIH recognised the need at grassroots and educational levels to play more than one sport on a single field.
Innovation teams from the hockey and soccer world governing bodies say the results are “positive, creating new and enhanced sporting opportunities for many.”
FIH and Fifa have now released a publication entitled Dualsport Pitches for Football and Hockey – Performance and Construction Guidelines.
The guide describes the performance, durability and construction requirements for dual use hockey and football pitches.
“It provides performance and quality criteria details for these new types of surface, along with guidance on the levels of hockey and football that it is envisioned will be played on the pitches,” a statement read.
“To aid those designing dual-sport pitches, the guide also provides information on pitch dimensions and layouts, the appropriate construction standards, and field certification.”
FIH president Tayyab Ikram said: “It truly is fantastic that both the Fifa Innovation team and FIH were able to collaborate for the mutual benefit of grassroots football and hockey.
“This guide will provide a great help to millions of young football or hockey players around the globe. On behalf of hockey’s global community, I would like to express my sincerest gratitude to FIFA, and especially its President, Gianni Infantino, for joining forces with us.
“Synthetic turf pitches play a substantial part in the development of both sports worldwide. They enable accessibility of wider communities and society to sport, and are a great platform to demonstrate our sustainability efforts.”
