New Delhi, April 8 -- Hockey and football both embrace the benefits that synthetic turf fields bring to their sports. For hockey, it is the surface of choice, while football appreciates the surface's ability to accommodate different levels of use in a wide range of weather conditions. For many, a synthetic turf sports field is now the preferred or only way of meeting the sporting needs of their communities.

At the higher levels of competition, the FIH (International Hockey Federation) and the FIFA Innovation team have developed standards that define the qualities required from the fields used for their competitions. These are based on types of synthetic turf that have been developed to be used exclusively or primarily for their sport, a ...