Are you wondering whether you’ll be able to play sports on artificial grass?

If your children (or yourself) love a game of football, but you also want a garden that’s looking great, artificial grass could be the answer.

However, many homeowners express concern that playing sports on artificial grass may damage it. They want to know how much footfall it can take, and whether they’ll still get a good life expectancy from it.

After all, you wouldn’t want to invest in a new artificial lawn, only for it to start looking less than its best after only a year or two.

The good news is, there should be nothing to worry about. As an artificial grass specialist, let me explain more about picking the right grass for playing sports. – and is perfect for active families.

Why artificial grass is designed to be hard-wearing

Fake grass has come on in leaps and bounds, and is now on its third generation. Compared to the first and second-generation turf, it’s fared much better in terms of look, feel and longevity. It’s now safer to play sports on, and can even come with a special shockpad layer to help prevent injury. Ideal if you have young children!

There are different types of grass you can purchase for the home. Some are more hard-wearing than others, and some are suited to withstand heavy footfall. So, even if you’re regularly playing sports on it, it won’t require as much maintenance as a grass that’s suited for lower footfall, such as a balcony.

And, you’ll still get the full 15 – 20 years life expectancy!

Do you need grass specifically designed for sports?

In a word, no. Artificial grass can be ideal for playing sports in both domestic and sports scenarios. However, these are generally two completely different products. As a typical rule, you shouldn’t need to go for grass you’d see on a sports pitch.

Most high quality artificial grass for the home is designed to withstand a good amount of footfall. It looks very realistic, and can be ideal for children (or even adults!) to play sports on. All it needs is some very minimal maintenance (such as going over it with a stiff brush) to keep it looking great all year round.

Advice from an artificial grass specialist

Our best advice is to choose a grass that’s designed for heavy footfall. This should mean the kids can play on it as much as they like! Our own grasses come with a warranty that covers tensile strength, to ensure the grass stands up to the traffic it was designed for. But check this with your chosen installer.

We have a lot of customers who choose fake grass because their kids want to play sports, set up goals etc. One of our customers was looking for grass that would be sure to withstand the heavy footfall it would receive from their pets and children. They also wanted it to look aesthetically pleasing in their back garden – like real grass.

It was needed for both purposes, and they didn’t want to compromise. They were prepared to invest the money in a solution that would work, so we recommended our grass range that has been designed for high footfall. It requires very little maintenance, and is ideal for a highly active family.

Our customers loved their new lawn, and we have been back to carry out yearly maintenance. It still looks just as good as new!

Conclusion

The good news is that yes! You can play sports on artificial grass – and it doesn’t need to be the type suited to a sports pitch! High quality, hard-wearing artificial grass not only looks great, it can also be the ideal surface for children (and adults!) to play on.

Just check with your installer that it will come with a warranty to cover tensile strength, and that your grass is designed to withstand heavy footfall.

Do you have any questions about playing sports on artificial grass? Feel free to pop them in the comments! I’m always happy to help.