Starting next season, matches at the Lavans football stadium in Helmond will be played on GreenFields MX. The reason why the club chose GreenFields MX is that artificial grass is much more flexible. All the teams can train on the main pitch. According to Mario Captein, the general manager of Helmond Sport, another factor that played a role was the large number of matches that had to be cancelled last winter. The artificial grass pitch also offers possibilities for expanding the functionality of the present sports complex, such as hosting special events or organising football clinics. Because the new pitch means all the activities can now be centralised, the Lavans stadium will come alive with even more football action.

Future ready

Helmond Sport believes that switching to artificial grass now will give the club a head start. In this way, it is future ready and, if it is promoted, it will not have to install undersoil heating. In view of the large number of benefits, a growing number of clubs are expected to switch to artificial grass. At the moment, Excelsior, Almere City and FC Volendam in the Dutch Jupiler League already play on this type of surface. If the plans for a new multifunctional sports complex go ahead, the artificial grass pitch can be simply relocated.

TenCate Grass

The CED (cooperative organisation representing all the football clubs in the Jupiler League) awarded the tender for laying high-quality artificial grass pitches at the grounds of all affiliated clubs to TenCate Grass. Helmond Sport took part in the tender and is the first club where a new artificial grass pitch will be laid.

With this project, the Jupiler League is continuing TenCate’s successful introduction of the latest generation of artificial grass systems in the Dutch Premier League in the summer of 2012. It has been proven that top-level, technically skilful and attractive football can be played on TenCate pitches. Guided by Hypercube Engineering Consultants, the CED took the initiative to lay artificial grass pitches at the grounds of affiliated clubs in the Jupiter League in close cooperation with the KNVB (Royal Dutch Football Association).

Technological lead

The artificial grass tender and awarding it to a pioneering company like TenCate signify a turning point for artificial playing surfaces in top football. TenCate will use its highest quality artificial grass systems for this important Dutch professional football project with international allure. The pitches will be produced using TenCate’s 3D-Matrix weave technology, a patented technological innovation for the production of woven artificial grass football pitches that emulates the playing characteristics of natural grass as closely as possible.