“We have changed our “keep off the grass” sign to “it will cost you”
Chris Hague, Grounds Manager, Parken Stadium, Copenhagen
Wembley...
prepare for the league’s second round and the spring season’s opener, a Lego exhibition. 40,000 ‘Lego heads’ attended the exhibition over four days. Manchester City were to be our next guests for a Champions League qualifier. The Lego production cleared the stadium on the 15th and we received the pitch back on the 16th. The surface was cultivated to a depth of 10cm and base nutrition applied. Support in Sport commenced the turf installation and completed the pitch in fourteen hours. FC Copenhagen trained on the pitch on the 17th, and that offered us a good indication of the playability of the surface prior to the official training sessions scheduled on the 18th. Irrigation, traction, ball response and roll could all be assessed. A 2-2 draw was played in the snow on the 20th.
Money’s too tight to mention
The strategy was to increase the use of the pitch. In 2009, the non-football events attracted over 300,000 customers into the stadium. Working in multi-use environments offers the potential to modify the turf manager’s attitude towards the surface. We have changed
our “keep off the grass” sign to “it will cost you”. The pitch is a business. Standards are maintained with the correct management strategy and experience.
The total non-football events in 2009 were:
Lego World - 12-15th February Speedway - 13th June AC/DC - 19th June
Depeche Mode - 30th June Britney Spears - 11th July Madonna - 11th August Novo Dinner Party - 21st August Fleetwood Mac - 8th October Bavian Rock -17th October Muse - 26th of October Sensation Rave - 31st October
Christmas Gala x 2 - 4th and 5th December
Dance for Climate Change - 7th December
The production for the events has increased and access to the pitch for cranes and trucks is often requested. Providing the production with a user
friendly environment encourages events and revenue. Renovation works are budgeted for in the planning of an event. Pitches installed must earn their fertiliser.
Planning events involves consideration of the fixture list and calculating the potential solutions. Any production is possible, we assess the practicalities and consequences. Is there time available, and do the
figures add up? If yes to both, then we schedule the event. All events are planned in detail for the ‘load in and load out’, and a production plan is circulated. Meetings will take place involving the relevent departments for the show, e.g. operations, security, ground staff, maintenance, production, riggers, cleaning. The operations department will co-ordinate and draft a production plan. Occasionally, the production for an event will contribute to the renovation of the pitch. If the stage requires cranes in situ on the pitch, or steel plated roads for access to the stage, an agreement can be reached.
When budgeting for pitch renovations, it can be cost effective to plan a new
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