Dear reader,
Irrespective of what field sports they play, players simply love playing on turf, or, if they really have to, on a reinforced surface. Nothing beats the playing experience of a natural surface. Also, nothing beats the contribution natural surfaces can make to the environment or to build up areas becoming climate adaptable.

Turf surfaces can absorb and process copious amounts of water, fixate carbon and help reduce the ambient temperature during summer. This, in turn, helps improve the liveability of the neighbourhood.

For turf to do so, it requires maintenance, attention and investments. There was a time when these needs were not sufficiently recognised. However, the appreciation for turf has now been steadily on the rise for a number of years, and so has the growing number of studies and innovations that have, or are still being developed in the interest of turf for sports.

This applies to dedicated turf lovers in both the southern and northern hemispheres.

And with the climate increasingly changing, both can benefit tremendously from their counterparts’ experiences.

Sportsfields.Mag and its accompanying website www.sportsfields.info closely monitor these developments, new ideas and new releases of materials, equipment and solutions that serve sports pitches. Thanks to an extensive network of contacts and contributors, we can keep you informed about what is happening elsewhere in the world, and from which you can benefit.

This edition focuses on both natural turf and hybrid sports surfaces and features an interview with Geoff Webb, CEO of the Grounds Management Association, a contribution by Francesco Dotto of the Grounds Managers Association of the Mediterranean as well as input from turf professionals in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, the US and Sweden.

Happy reading!

Guy Oldenkotte