Scorched grass versus synthetic turf, there is no contest | OneFootball

As reported by Le Progres, a summer of heatwaves and watering restrictions left Rhône stadium pitches baked, and for teams without a synthetic fallback the gulf was glaring. Some said it felt like playing on concrete.

PSG, double European champions with a €900 million budget, and AS des Sornins Réunis of Saint-Igny-de-Vers, who play in the third division of the District de Lyon et du Rhône, shared one problem. Their grass was ravaged by the heat. Neither has a synthetic back-up.

In recent days, Nasser al-Khelaïfi’s club imported 700 rolls of turf from Ireland.

The Beaujolais side, far keener to limit its carbon footprint and working with a far smaller budget, simply had to cope on Sunday 23 August. In the Coupe de France first round against Pouilly-Pommiers, the rutted surface did not prevent a lively tie that ended 3-2 to the visitors.

By contrast, the visitors had been able to prepare on a synthetic pitch.

Source: Le Progres

“Artificial intelligence was used to assist in creating this article based on reporting from the original source quoted.”