“It’s already dug up.”
The remark came from the relay seat two minutes after kickoff of the match between Ulsan HD and Gimcheon Sangmu in round 33 of Hana Bank’s K League 1 2024 held at Ulsan Munsu Stadium on the 6th. The deep grass conditions gave a sigh of relief. The grass conditions of some stadiums where the game was held on the same day were similar.
This season’s K-League is controversial because there are many places where grass conditions at stadiums are not good. Although the box office has been successful with more than 2 million paid spectators, some point out that the grass conditions at some stadiums are far below the level of fans.
Team captain Son Heung-min (Tottenham), who played an A match at the Seoul World Cup Stadium last month, also pointed out the state of the grass. In response, the Seoul Facilities Management Corporation, which manages the grass at the Seoul World Cup Stadium, said, “We believe that the state of grass growth has deteriorated due to the continued high-temperature and humid weather such as record-breaking heat waves (38 days), tropical nights (39 days), and frequent rainfall (46 days) between July and August.” Korea uses European Korean paper grass that is resistant to cold, but it is believed that it has not been able to withstand the prolonged summer.
However, regret continued in October when the weather got warmer. At the same time, some pointed out that it is difficult to compare the Seoul World Cup Stadium with other stadiums because there are so many mega events compared to other local governments’ soccer fields. Compared to Seoul, Cheonan Stadium and Yongin Mir Stadium are in good grass condition, but the situation is different.
However, the recent disclosure of the Seoul Metropolitan Facilities Management Corporation’s income and expenditure has sparked controversy. It turned out that the Seoul Metropolitan Facilities Management Corporation earned 8.25 billion won (approx. 253.27 million won) for grass management this year, even though it earned 8.25 billion won (approx. It is pointed out that there is a need for measures to ensure that local governments including Seoul manage grass more thoroughly.
The Korea Professional Football Association, in partnership with Samsung C&T since 2021, has been conducting lawn consulting sessions tailored to each team. In the long run, the federation is making efforts to find a Korean style lawn. “We received a lot of help through free consulting. It was helpful for us to analyze the condition of the stadium and get the answers we needed,” Oh Un-taek, head of Anyang Facilities Management Corporation, told the newspaper in a phone call.
An official from the federation then said, “I headed to Japan in June to benchmark the J-League lawn. We will check the overseeding (a method of changing Korean paper grass and orchid grass to suit the climate) in Japan and proceed with the test.” 메이저사이트
However, it is practically not easy to replace grass in a poor stadium as soon as possible. “The best thing to do is to use grass for three to four years, but it is difficult because it requires a huge budget,” said Oh Un-taek, the chief of staff.
Some soccer fans point out that “the home team that cannot properly manage the grass should be disadvantaged.” Some hope that the A-match break in October will be a welcome rain, but it is also true that it is difficult to expect a dramatic improvement in the grass this season. It is time for a longer-term supplement.