Pitch MeasurementsPitch measurements

The dimensions of a football pitch as laid down in the Laws are only approximate. Newcomers to the game are surprised to learn that football pitches are often different sizes. This is one of the reasons why playing on the home ground can be an advantage. The home team are more used to the distances of their own pitch.

The football pitch must conform to these measurements:


Maximum Length 130 yards (120 meters). Maximum Width 100 yards (90 meters)


Minimum Length 100 yards (90 meters). Minimum Width 50 yards (45 meters)

If the minimum length is 100 yards and the maximum width is 100 yards then the pitch can be a square ..... wrong.


Law 1 - of the Laws of the Game - clearly states:

"the length of the pitch must exceed the width". In other words the pitch must be a rectangle.


The halfway point between the maximum and minimum pitch measurements allowed creates a pitch:


115 yards long x 75 yards wide (105 x 69.5 metres)


Perhaps it is no surprise to find that this is the most popular pitch size found at top class football grounds including the twelve listed below:
............... .................


Ground

Club/Team

1. Old Trafford

Manchester United

2. Villa Park

Aston Villa

3. Highbury

Arsenal

4. The Hawthorns

West Bromwich Albion

5. St James Park

Newcastle United

6. Hillsborough

Sheffield Wednesday

7. Molineux

Wolverhampton

8. Ibrox Park

Glasgow Celtic

9. Celtic Park

Glasgow Rangers

10. Hampden Park

Queens Park, Glasgow.
The Scottish National Stadium

11. Wembley Stadium

Cup Finals and English Internationals

12. Millenium Stadium

Welsh National Stadium, Cardiff.


The Leagues' largest pitch is - Maine Road - Manchester City (117 x 79 yards)

The Leagues' smallest pitch is -Tranmere Rovers (110 x 70 yards)

Many football clubs are building new grounds or redeveloping their existing grounds.


The White Lines

The boundary lines and other pitch markings must not be more than 5 inches (0.12m) wide. The boundary lines form part of the field of play.

Pitch lines

Only ball E is out of play because the whole of the ball must cross the line and be outside the field of play.


Football pitch measurements are still written in imperial measurements - yards, feet, and inches. However, throughout the football world the metric measures, agreed by the International Board, are used. See 'Markings '.