UEFA Football Stadiums Flood Lighting Requirements: Field Lighting Levels & Layout
Directory:
1. General requirements
2. Football Flood lights layout/confguration
3. football field flood lighting levels
4. emergency power supply
5. Additional lighting requirements
Flood lighting strategy
1. General requirements
The cost of equipping a stadium with adequate flood lighting is signifcant, and it will be diffcult to incorporate this within many low-budget projects. However, the general consensus is that all but the smallest local stadiums should have flood lights if possible.
Even if flood lighting is not to be included, it is advisable to include the necessary provisions within the design and infrastructure to allow them to be incorporated at some point in the future.
Flood lighting is mandatory at any stadium used for major tournaments and competitions, given that so many matches now tend to be played in the evenings or even at night. This is a tendency that has accelerated due to increased TV coverage; TV rights are generally much harder to sell if a match is played outside prime-time viewing slots.
In some parts of Europe, artifcial lighting will be essential due to the limited hours of daylight, particularly during the winter months.
2. Football Flood lights layout/confguration
There are different options for the location and style of flood lighting. Football stadium lighting manufacturers can provide detailed advice on this matter.
The options for the positioning of flood lights within a stadium are, however, limited. The lights need to be elevated to a certain height in order to avoid horizontal glare, although in fully covered stadiums the limited space available below the roof canopy means that this will rarely be an option.
Stadiums that are fully covered will therefore need to have a ring of lights fxed to a perimeter gantry positioned around the pitch at roof level, while stadiums without a roof will tend to opt for a tower confguration. It is also possible to use a combination of roof and tower lighting.
The flood light design should not lead to any light contamination of the surrounding neighbourhood. The flood lights should be correctly focused on the pitch, and the height and appearance of the lights should not give rise to objections from the local community.
3. football field flood lighting levels
Modern stadium lighting should ideally be compatible with the latest TV requirements. The introduction of high-definition (HD) TV, and more recently 3D TV, has significantly altered specification requirements.
It is advisable that the flood lighting design allow for varying intensities of light, to suit the requirements of a particular event or purpose. For example, for training sessions, or during post-match cleaning operations, full competition lighting levels will not be required. Correctly designed adjustable lighting levels will not only facilitate a flexible and coherent lighting strategy; it will rationalise energy usage and therefore cut costs.
Good flood light design should permit uniform lighting levels over the entire area of the pitch and reduce the shadow effect caused by the players to an absolute minimum. This is achieved by ensuring the correct positioning, height and angle of the lights.
4. emergency power supply
An electrical supply failure is not regarded as a valid reason for cancellation of a match. A stadium therefore needs to have an alternative electrical supply to cover the required electrical loads in the event of a power failure or an emergency. This is particularly relevant to those stadiums which are dependent on flood lighting.
In the past, a common problem with flood lights was the long time-lag experienced before full lighting levels were restored following an electrical fault. Modern flood light design has overcome this issue. Nowadays, any delay before play resumes after an incident with the main power supply should be minimal, as should be the need to rely on emergency generators.
The emergency supply must also be able to cover the power requirements of all CCTV cameras and equipment,emergency lighting, the PA system and any safety-related installations with in the stadium complex.
5. Additional lighting requirements
In addition to the pitch flood lighting, it is extremely important to provide adequate lighting in all other parts of the stadium, especially in public areas where there will be high levels of spectator circulation.
The choice of lighting solutions can have a tangible impact on the architectural design. Selecting suitable lighting levels, colour and light fixtures will all help to enhance the overall aesthetic quality of the venue.
Lighting solutions need to be tailored according to specific user requirements. For example, the light specification for VIP restaurants and boxes will be very different from those for the players' changing facilities.
It is now common practice to include a specialist lighting consultant within the project design team, as imaginative lighting solutions can heighten dramatic effect and add to the spectacle.