Sports turf consortium formed: Elite Pitch Alliance, a consortium of industry leaders in the consultancy, design, construction, and management of professional sports fields, launched today with a mission of providing solutions to stadium venues and training facilities in Canada, the United States and Mexico for the 2026 World Cup. The 2026 renewal will be the first competition hosted by three nations, while also being the first to include 48 teams.
The consortium’s founding members STRI, DA Hogan & Associates, and Sports Fields Inc. will look to assist venues in providing bespoke natural grass fields in conformance with the exacting standards required by FIFA. The group brings together decades of experience in the design, construction, management, maintenance and inspection of sports facilities, turf fields and international tournaments in North America and around the globe.
Sports turf consortium formed
“This is an exciting step forward for the development of World Cup venues throughout Canada, USA and Mexico, enabling facilities to provide world class surfaces for this prestigious event” said Andrew Brooker, Commercial Director for STRI Group. “STRI Group is very pleased to have partnered with DA Hogan & Associates, and Sports Fields Inc, companies who share our company’s vision of delivering excellence in sports surfaces across a multitude of sectors”.
D.A. Hogan principal Dave Anderson added “Our Alliance uniquely combines extensive World Cup and NFL playing field experience. DA Hogan & Associates is very excited to be collaborating with STRI, Dr. Andy McNitt, and Sport Fields Inc. to provide FIFA compliant pitches of the highest quality for the 2026 World Cup as well as ensuring the NFL venues are fully restored with the appropriate surface for the 2026 NFL season”.
“This collaboration opens up a unique opportunity to bring the best in business to the table for a common goal – design, building and maintaining world class surfaces for the 2026 World Cup” said President and CEO of Sports Fields Inc., Mark Stalnaker. “We are tremendously excited to build upon our portfolio of successful projects and use that experience to support the selected venues in preparing for a generational opportunity”.
The overarching goal of the consortium is to provide venue specific permanent and temporary pitch solutions which are cost conscious, environmentally responsible, and minimize the disruption to existing tenants and operations.
As the group begins to work together, STRI, Sports Fields Inc., DA Hogan can look forward to future jointly developed projects and shared resources for years to come.
ABOUT STRI
STRI is the leading global pitch design and consultancy specialist for the development of elite standard sports surfaces in stadia. We were established in 1929 in Yorkshire, England and now operate globally.
We have successfully masterminded the installation of over 180 stadium pitches in 30 countries at the highest-level including FIFA World Cups, UEFA European Championships and Olympic Games. Our expertise is in the delivery of a comprehensive solution where a multi-faceted approach is required to understand the venues environmental, economic, and operational requirements to deliver the optimal code compliant sporting surfaces.
Our vastly experienced teams of consultants, researchers, designers, planners and engineers provide comprehensive science backed turf solutions. Our technical teams are at the cutting edge, incorporating innovation and sustainable thinking in out practice. STRI has seen considerable growth, which has been connected to increased demand and a clear desire from clients to receive sustainable, high-quality end to end solutions.
ABOUT DA HOGAN AND ASSOCIATES
D.A. Hogan & Associates is a consulting engineering and landscape architecture firm based in Seattle, Washington that was formed in 1960. The firm specializes in outdoor athletic,
physical education, recreational, and sports facilities.
Over the last 60 years we have provided design and construction management services for more than 500 sports facilities including natural and artificial. This experience has provided us with an exceptional level of expertise relating to the design concepts and attention to detail that is required to ensure a successful field installation.
ABOUT SPORTS FIELDS INC.
Sports Fields Inc. (SFI) is a leading sports field planning, design, construction, maintenance, and operations organization headquartered in the greater Atlanta area. The company provides end-to-end or single-source solutions to professional sports organizations, municipal governments, non-profits, and higher education clients who are seeking to address unique sports challenges & opportunities. SFI was launched in 2005 and quickly earned a reputation for quality workmanship and outstanding customer service. SFI is an industry leader in the construction of synthetic & natural turf construction and has completed dozens of projects for organizations within Major League Baseball (MLB), the National Football League (NFL), Major League Soccer (MLS), and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). SFI is recognised for successful, on-time completion of time-sensitive, high-profile professional sports projects.
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