Pitch (sports field)

A pitch or a sports ground is an outdoor playing area for various sports. The term pitch is most commonly used in British English, while the comparable term in Australian, American and Canadian English is playing field or sports field.

For most sports the official term is field of play, although this is not regularly used by those outside refereeing/umpiring circles.^{[citation needed]} The field of play generally includes out-of-bounds areas that a player is likely to enter while playing a match, such as the area beyond the touchlines in association football and rugby or the sidelines in American and Canadian football, or the "foul territory" in baseball.

The surface of a pitch is most commonly composed of sod (grass), but may also be artificial turf, sand, clay, gravel, concrete, or other materials. A playing field on ice may be referred to as a rink, for example an ice hockey rink, although rink may also refer to the entire building or, in the sport of curling, to either the building or a particular team.

In the sport of cricket, the cricket pitch refers not to the entire field of play, but to the section of the field on which batting and bowling take place in the centre of the field. The pitch is prepared differently from the rest of the field, to provide a harder surface for bowling.

A pitch is often a regulation space, as in an association football pitch.

The term level playing field is also used metaphorically to mean fairness in non-sporting human activities such as business where there are notional winners and losers.^[1]

Fields of play in various sports

Pitches

American football field
Australian rules football playing field
Association football pitch,
surrounded by running track
Bandy field
Baseball field
Basketball court
Cricket field (with the cricket pitch in the centre)
Field hockey pitch
Gaelic, hurling, and camogie pitch
Ice hockey rink
Kabaddi pitch
Rugby league playing field
Rugby union pitch
Speed skating rink
Tennis court
Velodrome (track cycling)

Field sizes

Sport	Shape	Field length	Total length	Width	Total width	Depth/height	Surface
Basque pelota (Jai-Alai)	Rectangular cuboid	54.00 m	-	10.00 m	-	10.00 m
Boccia	Rectangular	12.50 m	-	6.00 m	-	-	polished concrete, wooden, natural or synthetic rubber.
Dodgeball (WDA)	Rectangular	17.00 m	-	8.00 m	-	-
Sepak takraw	Rectangular	44 feet (13 m)	-	20 feet (6.1 m)	-
Aquatics
Swimming (Olympic)	Rectangular cuboid	50.00 m	-	25.00 m	-	2-3 m
Swimming (short course)	Rectangular cuboid	25.00 m	-	20.00 m	-	2-2.5m
Waterpolo	Rectangular cuboid	25.00 m	-	20.00 m	-	1.80 m
Basketball
Basketball (FIBA)	Rectangular	28.00 m	-	15.00 m	-
Basketball (NBA)	Rectangular	94 feet (29 m)	-	50 feet (15 m)	-
Basketball (3x3)	Rectangular	11.00 m	-	15.00 m	-
Bat and ball sports
Baseball (MLB)	Diamond	250–400 feet (76–122 m)^[2]	-	446.9–492.9 feet (136.2–150.2 m)^[3]	-	-	grass
Baseball5	Square	21.00 m	-	21.00 m	-	-
Softball (WBSC)^[4]	Circle quadrant	220–250 feet (67–76 m)	-	220–250 feet (67–76 m)	-	-
Cricket	Oval	130–180 yards (120–160 m)	-	130–180 yards (120–160 m)	-	-
Indoor cricket	Rectangular	30.00 m	-	12.00 m	-	-
Pesapallo	Irregular hexagon	315 feet (96 m)	-	138 feet (42 m)	-	-
Combat sports
Amateur wrestling	Circle	9.00 m	-	9.00 m	-	-
Fencing	Rectangular	14.00 m	17–18 m	1.50 m	-	-
Kickboxing (ring)	Rectangular cuboid	5.20 m	-	5.20 m	-	1.32 m	felt, rubber
Mixed Martial Arts (UFC)^[5]	Octagon	30 feet (9.1 m)	-	30 feet (9.1 m)	-	69 inches (1.8 m)
Taekwondo (WT)	Octagon	8.00 m	-	8.00 m	-	-
Football codes
Association football	Rectangular	110–120 yards (100–110 m)	-	70–80 yards (64–73 m)	-		grass, artificial
Beach soccer	Rectangular	35–37 m	-	26–28 m	-		sand
Futsal	Rectangular	38-42 m	-	20-25 m	-		wood, artificial
American football	Rectangular	100 yards (91 m)	120 yards (110 m)	160 feet (49 m)	-		grass, artificial
Flag football^[6]	Rectangular	50 yards (46 m)	70 yards (64 m)	25 yards (23 m)	-	-	solid, sand
Indoor American football	Rounded rectangular	50 yards (46 m)	66 yards (60 m)	28 yards (26 m)	-		artificial
Canadian football	Rectangular	110 yards (100 m)	150 yards (140 m)	65 yards (59 m)	-		grass, artificial
Rugby union	Rectangular	94-100 m	106-144 m	68-70 m	-		grass, sand, clay, snow, artificial
Rugby league	Rectangular	100.00 m	112-122 m	68.00 m	-		grass
Australian rules football	Oval	135-185 m	-	110-155 m	-		grass
Gaelic football	Rectangular	130–145 m	-	80–90 m	-		grass
Handball
Handball	Rectangular	40.00 m	-	20.00 m	-
Beach handball	Rectangular	27.00 m	-	12.00 m	-		sand
Hockey
Bandy	Rectangular	100-110 m	-	60-65 m	-		ice
Field hockey	Rectangular	100 yards (91 m)	-	60 yards (55 m)	-
Indoor hockey	Rectangular	36-44 m	-	18-22 m	-
Ice hockey (IIHF)	Rounded rectangular	61.00 m	-	30.00 m	-		ice
Ice hockey (NHL)	Rounded rectangular	200 feet (61 m)	-	85 feet (26 m)	-		ice
Underwater hockey	Rectangular cuboid	21-25 m	-	12-15 m	-	2-3.65 m
Ice speed skating
Short track speed skating	Stadium^[7]	60.00 m	-	30.00 m	-	-	ice
Long track speed skating	Stadium	178.00 m	-	66.00 m	-	-	ice
Kabbaddi
Kabaddi (standard)^[8]	Rectangular	13.00 m	-	10.00 m	-	-
Kabaddi (circle-style)^[9]	Circle	44.00 m	-	44.00 m	-	-
Kho kho
Kho kho	Rectangular	27.00 m	30.00 m	16.00 m	19.00 m	-
Kho kho (Ultimate Kho Kho)^[10]	Rectangular	22.00 m	26.00 m	16.00 m	20.00 m	-
Lacrosse
Field lacrosse (men)	Rectangular	110.00 m	-	60.00 m	-
Women lacrosse	Rectangular	100.00 m	-	50-60 m	-
Box lacrosse	Rounded rectangular	55-61 m	-	24-28 m	-		artificial turf, concrete
Lacrosse sixes	Rectangular	70 m	-	36.00 m	-
Polo
Polo	Rectangular	250–300 yards (230–270 m)	-	160–200 yards (150–180 m)	-		grass
Snow polo	Rectangular	170 yards (160 m)	-	80 yards (73 m)	-		snow
Racquet sports
Badminton (singles)	Rectangular	44 feet (13 m)	17.40 m	17 feet (5.2 m)	8.18 m
Badminton (doubles)	Rectangular	44 feet (13 m)	17.40 m	20 feet (6.1 m)	9.10 m
Padel	Rectangular cuboid	20.00 m	-	10.00 m	-	4.00 m
Squash (singles)	Rectangular cuboid	9.75 m	-	6.40 m	-	4.57 m
Squash (doubles)	Rectangular cuboid	9.75 m	-	8.42 m	-	4.57 m
Tennis (singles)	Rectangular	78 feet (24 m)	37.00 m	27 feet (8.2 m)	18.00 m		clay, grass, hard
Tennis (doubles)	Rectangular	78 feet (24 m)	37.00 m	36 feet (11 m)	18.00 m		clay, grass, hard
Tchoukball
Tchoukball	Rectangular	27.00 m	-	17.00 m	-
Beach tchoukball	Rectangular	21-23 m	-	11-13 m	-		sand
Track and field
Track and field (indoor)	Stadium	90.03 m	-	45.78 m	-	-
Track and field (outdoor)	Stadium	176.91 m	-	92.52 m	-	-
Ultimate
Ultimate	Rectangular	64.00 m	100.00 m	37.00 m	-	-
Beach ultimate	Rectangular	49 yards (45 m)	82 yards (75 m)	27 yards (25 m)	-	-	sand
Volleyball
Volleyball	Rectangular	18.00 m	24-31 m	9.00 m	15-19 m		wooden, synthetic
Beach volleyball	Rectangular	16.00 m	20-28m	8.00 m	18-20 m		sand
Snow volleyball	Rectangular	16.00 m	22.00 m	8.00 m	14.00 m		snow

Game court

Game court is one of the names for a multi-sport athletic space, typically constructed outdoors, where such games as basketball, volleyball, paddle tennis and other racquet sports, and up to a dozen more games and activities can be played. They are usually smaller than a regulation tennis (120' x 60')or basketball (84'x50')court, although there is no set dimensions or size for a game court. The game-court concept was popularized by Sport Court in the 1970s, and some generic references are made to game courts as 'sport courts', although that is a trademark of Connor Sport Court International, LLC. Game courts are often found in residential backyards, giving families and children opportunities for healthy recreation close to home.

Game courts are usually constructed using a rectangular sub-base made from concrete or asphalt, then covered with an open-grid modular polypropylene (or similar) sports surface to improve safety. Most feature athletic equipment such as basketball goals, net systems for racquet sports, volleyball and badminton, lights for nighttime play, fencing or ball containment netting, hockey/soccer goals, lines or markings for various sports, and practice or training components can also be incorporated into the design.

Surface

The surface of a game court—as opposed to simply playing on concrete or asphalt—is designed for safe play and to reduce injury. Many people have started to use suspended athletic courts to cover old athletic courts like tennis courts and basketball courts. The surface should provide appropriate traction for various types of sports and activities, as well as shock or force reduction to minimize overuse and stress injuries.

Game courts are typically custom-designed to the interests of the family or organization, and are versatile in enabling a wide variety of sports to be played in a relatively small space. Some activities played on a game court are enjoyable modifications of other sports (such as short-court tennis) that allow for similar skills to be developed as the 'regulation' game, but on a reduced-scale court size. A typical game court of 50 by 30 feet (15.2 m × 9.1 m) might include a basketball key and 3-point line arranged around a hoop, overlaid by short-court tennis or pickleball lines (which can also be used for volleyball or badminton) along the longer dimension.

Ball containment

Game courts for private use will frequently be built with a high fence surrounding the surface to allow for containment of the ball used in play, and, if required, to prevent people from entering. Any of several materials have been used, including chain-link fencing, welded wire mesh fence, and fabric mesh or netting.

References

^ Kapstein, Ethan B (16 Dec 2010). Economic Justice in an Unfair World: Toward a Level Playing Field. Princeton University Press.
^ "OFFICIAL BASEBALL RULES - 2023 Edition" (PDF).
^ http://web.mit.edu/~xsdg/Public/papers/himcm-2003.pdf "The width is the distance between foul poles... the Twins’ field width (473.9 ft) and the Braves’ field width (470.2 ft) is not significant. However, the difference between the Rockies’ and Yankees’ field widths (492.9 ft and 446.9 ft, respectively) is very significant."
^ "Official rules of Softball - Fast pitch" (PDF).
^ "The Octagon | UFC". www.ufc.com. 2024-05-08. Retrieved 2024-11-21.
^ "International Flag Football - Rules 2023" (PDF).
^ Weisstein, Eric W. "Stadium". mathworld.wolfram.com. Retrieved 2024-11-21.
^ "Kabaddi: Origin, rules and the Pro Kabaddi League". Khel Now. Retrieved 2021-09-27. The dimensions of the playing area vary for men and women. It is 33ft x 43ft for the former
^ "Standard style and circle style - the two variants of Kabaddi". SportsAdda. 28 November 2019. Retrieved 2021-10-07. In the circle style format, the field is a circle with a radius of 22 meters [i.e. diameter of 44 meters] which is divided into two equal halves by a mid-line.
^ "rules-season1.pdf". Google Docs. Retrieved 2022-08-14.

External links

Rules and dimensions

[1] Kapstein, Ethan B (16 Dec 2010). Economic Justice in an Unfair World: Toward a Level Playing Field. Princeton University Press.

[2] "OFFICIAL BASEBALL RULES - 2023 Edition" (PDF).

[3] ttp://web.mit.edu/~xsdg/Public/papers/himcm-2003.pdf "The width is the distance between foul poles... the Twins’ field width (473.9 ft) and the Braves’ field width (470.2 ft) is not significant. However, the difference between the Rockies’ and Yankees’ field widths (492.9 ft and 446.9 ft, respectively) is very significant."

[4] "Official rules of Softball - Fast pitch" (PDF).

[5] "The Octagon | UFC". www.ufc.com. 2024-05-08. Retrieved 2024-11-21.

[6] "International Flag Football - Rules 2023" (PDF).

[7] Weisstein, Eric W. "Stadium". mathworld.wolfram.com. Retrieved 2024-11-21.

[8] "Kabaddi: Origin, rules and the Pro Kabaddi League". Khel Now. Retrieved 2021-09-27. The dimensions of the playing area vary for men and women. It is 33ft x 43ft for the former

[9] "Standard style and circle style - the two variants of Kabaddi". SportsAdda. 28 November 2019. Retrieved 2021-10-07. In the circle style format, the field is a circle with a radius of 22 meters [i.e. diameter of 44 meters] which is divided into two equal halves by a mid-line.

[10] "rules-season1.pdf". Google Docs. Retrieved 2022-08-14.

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