• By Sam Parton
• In Blog
• Jun 10, 2012

Size of a Football Pitch Explained

There always seems to be some confusion over the actual size of a football pitch.
Sometimes you find yourself playing on what feels like someone's back garden, the next week it feels like you are on a never-ending grass plain.

So what exactly is the correct size of a football pitch and by how much does the size vary?

Well as shown by the lovely diagram on the left, the actual length of a football pitch can vary enormously from 100 yards (91.44m) to 130 yards (118.9m). Furthermore the football pitch width can vary even more, from 50 (45.7m) to 100 yards (91.44m).

So when you think that the pitch at the Bolton Reebok Stadium appears to be small but aren't sure whether it's just your eyesight, in fact the sizes of Premiership football pitches do differ, but it's hardly anything to write home about....

2011-2012 Premiership Football Pitch Sizes - It's not the size of the pitch, it's the....

1. Manchester City, City of Manchester Stadium - 116.5 x 78 yards - 8932 sq.yards - Capacity: 48,000 (all seated)

2. Manchester United, Old Trafford 116 x 76 - 8816 sq.yards Ground - Capacity: 76,100 (all seated)

3. Blackburn Rovers, Ewood Park - 115 x 76 yards - 8740 sq.yards - Capacity: 31,367 (all seated)

4. Everton, Goodison Park - 112 x 78 yards - 8736 sq.yards - Capacity: 40,569 (all seated)

5. Stoke City, Britannia Stadium - 115 x 75 yards - 8625 sq.yards - Capacity: 28,383 (all seated)

6. Wolverhampton Wanderers, Molineux - 115 x 75 yards - 8625 yards - Capacity: 29,195 (all seated)

7. West Bromwich Albion, The Hawthorns - 115 x 74 yards - 8510 yards - Capacity: 28,003 (all seated)

8. Swansea City, Liberty Stadium, 115 x 74 yards - 8510 sq.yards - Capacity 20,500 (all seated)

Should they have made the Emirates Stadium slightly larger?

9. Arsenal, Emirates Stadium - 114 x 74 yards - 8436 sq.yards - Capacity: 60,432 (all seated)

10. Sunderland, Stadium of Light - 114 x 74 yards - 8436 sq.yards - Capacity: 49,000 (all seated)

11. Wigan Athletic, JJB Stadium - 114 x 74 yards - 8436 sq.yards - Capacity: 25,023 (all seated)

12. Norwich City, Carrow Road, 114 x 74 yards, 8436 sq.yards- Capacity 27,183 (all seated)

13. Aston Villa, Villa Park - 115 x 72 yards - 8280 sq.yards - Capacity: 42,640 (all seated)

14. Chelsea, Stamford Bridge - 113 x 74 yards - 8250 sq.yards - Capacity: 42,449 (all seated)

15. Fulham, Craven Cottage - 110 x 75 yards - 8250 sq.yards - Capacity: 26,400 (all seated)

16. Liverpool, Anfield - 110 x 75 yards - 8250 sq.yards - Capacity: 45,362 (all seated)

17. Queens Park Rangers, Loftus Road - 112 x 72 yards - 8064 sq.yards - Capacity 19,100 (all seated)

18. Newcastle United, St.James's Park - 110 x 73 yards - 8030 sq.yards - Capacity: 52,387 (all seated)

19. Tottenham Hotspur, White Hart Lane- 110 x 73 yards - 8030 sq.yards - Capacity: 36,214 (all seated)

20. Bolton Wanderers, Reebok Stadium, 110 x 72 yards - 7920 sq.yards (105 x 68m) - Capacity: 28,723 (all seated)

So the bottom line is that it's not your eyes deceiving you, football pitches do indeed vary in length and width. Perhaps the difference is hardly worth batting an eyelid for, but we can safely say that the pitch at the City of Manchester Stadium is 6 yards longer and 5 yards wider than that of Bolton...

By Sam Parton