Goalpost Safety on Football Pitches

December 2006

                                                                                           
Dear Sir,

Goalpost Safety
Joint statement from The Football Association and Football Foundation

The FA, as the National Governing Body for Football, and the Football Foundation, as the funder of unsafe goals and facilities projects, wish to advise consultants, pitch builders and design teams and facility providers, that all goals provided must now conform to the current British Standards,  BSEN 748 (1998) and BS 8462 (2005).

Pitch builders, consultants, design teams and facility providers  should therefore make sure that they are aware of the latest developments in goalpost safety and should refer to the relevant codes of practice and standards at all times. All goals should be purchased from reputable manufacturers/distributors that are able to provide certificate evidence that their goals comply with these standards.

As well as this very important criteria, the latest Code of Practice BS8461:2005 includes, inspection, maintenance/care and storage of goalpost advice, plus all important labelling and anchorage information.

The aim of the FA and The Football Foundation is, over time, to see more artificial grass pitches for training and competition, but jointly we need to ensure that the equipment used on them is:

• Always manufactured to BSEN 748 or BS 8462
• Independently tested by an accredited test house, with appropriate certification to prove it

In conclusion, goalposts that do not meet these standards and carry the appropriate certification, should not be purchased or provided for use on any natural or artificial grass pitch.

Yours faithfully,