Turf debate

Will the 2010 FIFA World Cup be played on natural or artificial grass?

With FIFA and the South African organising committee having recently announced the final list in March this year of football stadiums that will be used for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, work can now begin on the multi-million dollar renovation programme for most of the stadiums. A program which, the artificial grass industry hopes, will include the installation of artificial turf pitches.

Technology in artificial turf has vastly improved

According to the bid book, South Africa will eventually spend USD 360m-400m on stadiums. From the initial 13 stadiums South Africa would have liked to use for the event, only 10 remain since FIFA believes that will be enough.

“Most of the money is used to add to the number of seats and improve the media facilities,” says Danny Jordaan who heads the organising committee for the event. The program also includes the building of one or two new stadiums as well as extensive upgrading of the existing facilities.

The surface on which the players will have to perform, however, is not a burning issue at the moment. “The plans we submitted to FIFA assume that the tournament will be played on natural grass. We don’t think we need to make an investment in this at present,” Jordaan states.

The artificial grass industry, however, feels that using artificial grass in the various stadiums would mean the stadiums could be properly exploited in the future, as well as improving the quality of the game. And with the world’s best players coming to South Africa, accustomed to the best quality fields available – particularly in the European competitions – the artificial grass industries believes a closer look at the quality of the South African fields would be more than welcome.

Jordaan’s expectation might be changed in the near future. FIFA president Sepp Blatter hinted at a press conference in 2003 already that the use of artificial grass for the 2010 tournament was being considered. Blatter was backed by Brazilian soccer legend Pele a year ago when he indicated that artificial grass would be the perfect solution.

Danny Jordaan is open-minded but realistic about the
chances of artificial turf by 2010

FIFA has already been experimenting with artificial grass for several years. The world-governing football body used artificial grass for the FIFA U-17 World Cup in Helsinki, in 2003, for the first time, when 10 out of the 32 matches were played on artificial grass. The 2005 event, which was this time held in Peru, was played completely on artificial grass (see Host City Winter 2005). And with the introduction of the FIFA 1-star and 2-star quality concept last year, FIFA has even made it a possibility to have all its competitions, including World Cup competitions, played on artificial grass.

“If FIFA thinks that artificial grass should be used for the final tournament, we will comply with their guidelines,” says Jordaan. He thinks however that the organising committee will be able to provide enough good quality natural grass pitches. And besides that, Jordaan also believes that even by 2010, most of the players will still prefer playing on natural grass.

With four years to go until the final event, the stadiums are also making up their mind. Kings Park Stadium in Durban is currently running a test to see whether natural grass, reinforced with artificial grass, could bring a solution in the continuous fight for a good quality field at the coastal town.

In contrast, FNB Stadium in Johannesburg, popularly known as Soccer City, does not see any reason to have their field replaced by artificial grass. “The weather in Johannesburg is good enough to ensure a good quality field,” says Thebe Mohatle, communications manager of football team Kaizer Chiefs, who play their home games at FNB Stadium.

It is expected that the stadium will be used for the opening match, as well as the final during the 2010 event. “Having the field replaced by artificial grass would give problems for the players, who use the stadium on a regular basis,” he thinks. As most of the African players are still used to natural grass, Mohatle doesn’t think artificial grass will soon be common on the world’s driest continent. “Artificial grass is a major investment which hardly any African club can afford,” he says.

With stadiums divided in a country the same size as Western Europe, opinions about the use of artificial grass are as diverse as the climate of each distinct region. The need for cooperation with the South African Rugby Association does not make the decision for artificial grass any easier. “In order to provide enough high-quality stadiums we work closely together with the South African Rugby Association,” Jordaan explains. “The final decision therefore includes their opinion as well.”

With FIFA ruling that all matches during the event should be played on a similar surface, the artificial grass industry might have a long battle to go to convince the 2010 organising committee to use artificial grass, despite FIFA flirting with it.