Professional soccer matches have almost always taken place on soccer fields, which are areas of grounds carefully measured out to accommodate the two teams that need to play against one another.
Soccer fields haven’t always been in the form that we’re familiar with today, and in fact have evolved and changed over the years starting from the point where the game became more popular in Britain over two centuries ago.
Today’s fields consist of a variety of unique landmarks, including the goal posts and the markings that dictate which area of the field the teams are meant to start from.
Here we will chronicle the earliest origins of the soccer field and how it has changed over the centuries to become playing ground for the world’s most popular form of sport.
The Earliest Soccer Fields
When the game was first gaining popularity, the fields that were used resembled very little to what we’ve become used to today. There were no designated markings, and although fences and bollards were common, they were not present in every game, and players often had to try and guess the borders of the field.
At the time, fields were nothing more than just that: fields, and players were very much left to their own devices when it came to staying within the borders when playing against their opposing team.
It was common for the game to be played in any wide areas of land, which included public parks, although it was also common for officials to shut down any games as soccer was often banned by the government throughout its history.
How It Changed
As soccer became more popular among fans and players, it was eventually decided that a proper field was needed to keep the game in order.
Preston North End was one of the first clubs to begin playing on proper fields, where they began by competing on nearby farm, but it would be clubs like Everton Football Club that would eventually start to play on specific pieces of land, such as Stanley Park.
Up until the 1960s, most pitches were composed of very little more than grass, and it wouldn’t be until the latter half of the 20th century where clubs began investing in proper playing areas, which would later become the stadiums that we know so well today.
After stadiums became more commonplace and rules more adhered to, we started to see the formation of the more prevalent parts of a field, including the markers and goal posts that can be found on most pitches in the modern era, an era well-known for esports and online casino India games.
Modern Football Fields
Goodison Park was chosen as the first true professional football pitch in 1958, and undersoil heating was installed for the first time. Electricity lines were put in the ground to provide the heating, and it cost thousands of Pounds to set it up.
But it became a precedent of sorts, and clubs and officials began adding more to fields over time, making them more closely resemble the ones that we know and love today.
