“Pitch of the year”: Bundesliga clubs with the best pitches
The DFL has named the best grass pitches of the Bundesliga and 2. Bundesliga for the 2025/26 season. VfL Wolfsburg tops the table, followed by Bayer 04 Leverkusen and TSG Hoffenheim.
Each year, the DFL (German Football Federation) conducts an assessment of the quality of turf fields at stadiums of the Bundesliga and 2. Bundesliga. To do this, they awarded the "Pitch of the Year" award. In the past season, VfL Wolfsburg's grass field at the Volkswagen Arena excelled in winning the top position in the Bundesliga. Second is Bayer 04 Leverkusen with the field at BayArena, and third is TSG Hoffenheim with the PreZero Arena.
In the 2. Bundesliga, Holstein Kiel impressed the judges with its pitch at Holstein-Stadion and won 1st place. This is the fourth time KSV's groundskeeping team has received this award, after 2021, 2022 and 2024. KSV President, Steffen Schneekloth, praised the work of the groundskeeping team: "'Award of 'Turf of the Year' This time it is a reward for the cooperation with our groundskeeping team. They help the team play under the best conditions. This award shows that we have reached a high standard after returning to the 2. Bundesliga - this makes us very happy," Schneekloth said in a club statement.
VfL Bochum 1848 finished second with their ground at Vonovia Ruhrstadion in Bundesliga 2. Meanwhile, SV Darmstadt 98 took third place with their ground at Merck-Stadion am Böllenfalltor. The "Field of the Year" award has been held since the 2013/14 season to promote improvement of turf quality at stadiums. The evaluation is carried out in three stages: testing data by on-field judges, in-season testing data from the stadium's groundskeeping team, and a sports rating system. The sports rating system is based on the scoring of the team captains and referees after each match on the condition of the field. Requirements for turf quality and field characteristics are increasing, according to DFL. Through this award, DFL wishes to support the continued development of quality standards for football pitches.
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