FC Volendam’s grass pitch a meter too short, expected to be ready for first home match

FC Volendam’s new natural grass pitch is one meter too short. A control of the pitch in the Kras Stadion by the Dutch football association KNVB showed, a spokesperson confirmed. The pitch will be prepared over the coming week by adding half a meter of turf on both sides.

Volendam will start their Eredivisie campaign with an away game against SC Heerenveen on Saturday. The Noord-Holland club’s first home game will be against AZ Alkmaar on Sunday, August 17, by which time the pitch is expected to be fixed.

Last season, FC Volendam played on artificial turf. The club won the second division, the Keuken Kampioen Divisie, and starting this season, Eredivisie rules require natural grass pitches. That is why the pitch had to be replaced. The same applies to Telstar, who were promoted through the play-offs and also previously played on artificial turf.

The conversion from artificial turf to natural grass cost around 1.2 million euros. The club launched a fundraiser allowing fans to buy a square meter of grass for 150 euros. In total, 45 percent of the pitch was funded through this campaign, with the remainder covered by loans, ESPN reported.

It is set to be Volendam’s 26th season in the Eredivisie. The club picked up the Keuken Kampioen Divisie title with 82 points out of 38 games. They finished the season with six points more than their nearest challengers, Excelsior.