November 3 – UK football charity, the Football Foundation, has launched its new ‘Power Up Your Grass Pitch’ campaign, with the ambition goals of reaching over 7,000 ‘good quality’ grass pitches by 2024 and 20,000 by 2030.
If the targets are achieved they reckon that 30,000 matches per week will be saved.
More than 87% football in the UK is played on grass pitches. The Football Foundation said that more than 150,000 matches were cancelled last year due to poor pitch quality, and that this campaign will be vital for the future of grassroots football.
The Football Foundation has developed an app – PitchPower’- which is an online tool that gives every community football club and organisation in the country the ability to carry out their own grass pitch inspections, providing fast and accurate data. Once an inspection is submitted, Regional Pitch Advisers at the Grounds Management Association produce an assessment report with bespoke advice and recommendations to improve the grass pitch quality at a site. By centralising data and advice, time is saved from having to conduct in-person visits.
Once inspections have been completed via the PitchPower app, clubs and facilities are then eligible to apply for funding from the Football Foundation to support pitch improvements identified through the app.
Robert Sullivan, Football Foundation Chief Executive Officer, said: “Millions of players are left disappointed every year when their matches are cancelled due to poor quality pitches, something the Football Foundation and its partners are working tirelessly to prevent. We have made some ambitious targets when it comes to improving grass pitches – we want to get 20,000 pitches to ‘good’ quality by 2030 – to ensure no games are called off because of a poor quality pitch.”
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