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FieldTurf is a brand of
artificial turf Artificial turf is a surface of synthetic fibers made to look like natural grass, used in sports arenas, residential lawns and commercial applications that traditionally use grass. It is much more durable than grass and easily maintained wi ...
playing surface. It is manufactured and installed by FieldTurf Tarkett, a division of French company Tarkett. FieldTurf is headquartered in
Montreal, Quebec Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
, Canada, and its primary manufacturing facility is located in
Calhoun, Georgia Calhoun is a city in Gordon County, Georgia, Gordon County, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 16,949. Calhoun is the county seat of Gordon County. Histor ...
, United States. With a design intended to more accurately replicate real grass, the new product rapidly gained popularity in the late 1990s.


History

Jean Prévost bought the patent of the FieldTurf product in 1988, and originally named his Montreal-based company SynTenni Co., a name which would eventually be dropped in favor of FieldTurf Inc. In 1995, John Gilman, a former
Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...
player and coach, joined FieldTurf as CEO. In 1997, FieldTurf made its first major installation for a professional team, at the training facility for the English Premiership's
Middlesbrough F.C. Middlesbrough Football Club ( ) is a professional association football club based in Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system. Nicknamed the Boro, they were fo ...
, FieldTurf has installed over 7000 athletic fields. In 2005, French flooring manufacturer and minority shareholder Tarkett increased its share in FieldTurf, which led to the integration of the two companies. FieldTurf is a part of the Tarkett Sports division of the holding company Tarkett SA. In May 2010, FieldTurf acquired the American company EasyTurf of San Diego, California, as a way to gain entry into the rapidly growing residential and commercial synthetic grass markets in the United States.


Product details

The surface is composed of monofilament
polyethylene Polyethylene or polythene (abbreviated PE; IUPAC name polyethene or poly(methylene)) is the most commonly produced plastic. It is a polymer, primarily used for packaging (plastic bags, plastic films, geomembranes and containers including bott ...
-blend fibers tufted into a
polypropylene Polypropylene (PP), also known as polypropene, is a thermoplastic polymer used in a wide variety of applications. It is produced via chain-growth polymerization from the monomer Propene, propylene. Polypropylene belongs to the group of polyolefin ...
backing. The infill is composed of a bottom layer of
silica Silicon dioxide, also known as silica, is an oxide of silicon with the chemical formula , commonly found in nature as quartz. In many parts of the world, silica is the major constituent of sand. Silica is one of the most complex and abundant f ...
sand, a middle layer which is a mixture of sand and cryogenic rubber, and a top layer of only rubber. The fibers are meant to replicate blades of grass, while the infill acts as a cushion. This cushion is intended to improve safety when compared to earlier artificial surfaces and allows players to plant and pivot as if they were playing on a grass field. Each square foot of turf contains about 3 kg (7 lb) of sand and 1.5 kg (3 lb) of cryogenic rubber. FieldTurf does not use shock-absorbency pads below its infill. The backing of the turf is a combination of woven and nonwoven polypropylene. These materials are permeable and allow water to drain through the backing itself.


Safety

Some evidence shows higher player injury on artificial turf. In a study performed by the National Football League Injury and Safety Panel, published in the October 2012 issue of the ''American Journal of Sports Medicine'', Elliott B. Hershman ''et al.'' reviewed injury data from NFL games played between 2000 and 2009. They wrote, "...the injury rate of knee sprains as a whole was 22% higher on FieldTurf than on natural grass. While MCL sprains did not occur at a rate significantly higher than on grass, rates of ACL sprains were 67% higher on FieldTurf." Studies of the safety of FieldTurf are conflicting. A five-year study funded by FieldTurf and published in the ''American Journal of Sports Medicine'' found that injury rates for high-school sports were similar on natural grass and synthetic turf. However, notable differences in the types of injuries were found. Athletes playing on synthetic turf sustained more skin injuries and muscle strains, while those who played on natural grass were more susceptible to concussions and ligament tears. In 2010, another FieldTurf-funded but peer-reviewed study was published in the ''American Journal of Sports Medicine'', this time on NCAA Division I-A football, concluding that in many cases, games played on FieldTurf-branded products led to fewer injuries than those played on natural grass. However, the NFL's Injury and Safety Panel presented a study finding that anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries happened 88% more often in games played on FieldTurf than in games played on grass. In 2012, the Injury and Safety Panel published an independently funded analysis of actual game data over the 2000–2009 seasons. Their statistically significant findings showed a 67% higher rate of ACL sprains and 31% higher rate of eversion ankle sprains.


Uses


Gridiron football

The first installation of FieldTurf in the United States took place at Dick Bivins Stadium in Amarillo, Texas (which was the home field for the Amarillo Independent School District's football teams) in 1998. The first major college football installation was at University of Nebraska's Memorial Stadium in 1999. The following year, it was installed at the two
Pac-10 The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference in the Western United States. It participates at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level for all sports, and its football teams compete in the Football Bowl ...
stadiums: Martin Stadium in Pullman, Washington and
Husky Stadium Husky Stadium (officially Alaska Airlines Field at Husky Stadium for sponsorship purposes) is an outdoor American football, football stadium in the Northwestern United States, located on the campus of the University of Washington in Seattle, Wa ...
in
Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...
. The first installation in an NFL (and by extension, professional) stadium was in 2002, at the
Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...
' new stadium, known as
Lumen Field Lumen Field is a multi-purpose stadium in Seattle, Washington, United States. Located in the city's SoDo neighborhood, it is the home field for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL), Seattle Sounders FC of Major League ...
. Originally planned to have a natural grass field, the Seahawks instead decided to install FieldTurf after they had played the two previous seasons in Husky Stadium on that surface, and to ease conversion and footing concerns for a future
Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...
team in the venue, which has been shared with
Seattle Sounders FC Seattle Sounders FC is an American professional association football, soccer club based in Seattle. The Sounders compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. The club was established on ...
since 2009 (natural grass is brought in and installed over the FieldTurf for FIFA-sanctioned events).


Association football

FieldTurf's first high-profile installation came in January 1997 as English club
Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ), colloquially known as Boro, is a port town in the Borough of Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England. Lying to the south of the River Tees, Middlesbrough forms part of the Teesside Built up area, built-up area and the Tees Va ...
chose FieldTurf for its new training field. Only artificial fields with FIFA-recommended 2-star status can be used in FIFA and UEFA Finals competitions. Other FIFA and UEFA competitions require at least 1-star status. In 2001,
Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. BU was founded in 1839 by a group of Boston Methodism, Methodists with its original campus in Newbury (town), Vermont, Newbur ...
's FieldTurf soccer field became FieldTurf's first to obtain FIFA 1-star status. In 2005, Saprissa Stadium in San José, Costa Rica became the first stadium to host a
FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often called the World Cup, is an international association football competition among the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the FIFA, Fédération Internatio ...
qualifying match on FieldTurf. The Dundalk F.C. Stadium,
Oriel Park Oriel Park is a UEFA Category 2 football stadium located on the Carrickmacross Road in Dundalk, Ireland. The stadium is the home ground of Dundalk Football Club and is owned and operated by the club on land that has been leased from the Casey ...
, received FieldTurf's first FIFA 2-star rating. FieldTurf has 29 FIFA-recommended 1-Star installations and 31 FIFA Recommended 2-Star installations . In 2007, the FIFA U-20 World Cup Canada had almost 50% of its games played on FieldTurf.


Major League Soccer

The use of FieldTurf in
Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...
(MLS) has received criticism, especially from the league's international roster players used to playing on natural grass overseas in their home domestic leagues and FIFA competitions. The installation of the surface at CenturyLink Field in Seattle was approved as mentioned above when the state stadium authority which operates the venue agreed to bring in a natural grass surface for FIFA-sanctioned events. In September 2006, several top Canadian soccer players appealed to the
Canadian Soccer Association The Canadian Soccer Association (; branded as Canada Soccer) is the governing body for soccer in Canada. Headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario, the federation is a full member of FIFA and governs Canadian soccer at the international, professional, a ...
to install a natural grass surface at
BMO Field BMO Field is an outdoor stadium located at Exhibition Place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Constructed on the former Exhibition Stadium site and first opened in 2007, it is the home field of Toronto FC of Major League Soccer (MLS) and Toronto Ar ...
in Toronto. The club removed the FieldTurf playing surface and switched to a traditional grass surface starting in 2010. Following
David Beckham Sir David Robert Joseph Beckham ( ; born 2 May 1975) is an English former professional footballer, the president and co-owner of Inter Miami CF and co-owner of Salford City. Primarily a right winger and known for his range of passing, cross ...
's move to Major League Soccer in 2007, he voiced his opinion that the league should convert to grass for all pitches. In an apology, he stated that the surface is fine at lower levels, but that his feelings had not changed about the MLS use because of the toll the harder surface takes on the body.
Thierry Henry Thierry Daniel Henry (; born 17 August 1977) is a French professional football coach, pundit, sports broadcaster and former player. He is considered one of the greatest players of all time and widely regarded as the greatest player in Premi ...
opted out of road matches in Seattle when he played for the
New York Red Bulls The New York Red Bulls are an American professional association football, soccer club based in the New York metropolitan area. The Red Bulls compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference (MLS), Eastern Conferenc ...
specifically because of the Sounders' use of FieldTurf in that venue.


Public works

A specialized version of FieldTurf called Air FieldTurf has been installed to cover the edges of runways at several airports.


See also

*
AstroTurf AstroTurf is an American subsidiary of SportGroup that produces artificial turf for pitch (sports field), playing surfaces in sports. The original AstroTurf product was a pile (textile), short-pile synthetic turf invented in 1965 by Monsanto. Si ...
* Poly-Turf


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fieldturf Artificial turf