The FIFA Innovation team hosted an educational workshop for Member Associations at the FIFA African Office in Rabat, Morocco.
The workshop focused on knowledge-sharing sessions on the FIFA Quality Programme for Natural Playing Surfaces (NPS) and Floodlights, with sessions divided into theoretical classes and practical demonstrations.
The sessions provided a platform for African Member Associations to share best practices relating to the quality of natural pitches and floodlight systems. The workshop was a response to a 2024 survey in which Member Associations indicated a desire to improve their technical knowledge of global infrastructure standards via the FIFA Quality Programme, ultimately enabling them to make better-informed decisions when investing in local infrastructure.
The theoretical sessions focused on providing Member Associations with the tools they require to adopt FIFA Quality Programme standards in their own competitions. Objectively, Member Associations are able to assess and monitor their installations without the need for extensive internal expertise. Examples of such tools include the NPS rating system and pitch monitoring dashboard solutions, enabling them to quickly capture accurate information about their natural playing surfaces.
In the floodlight sessions, Member Associations were provided with a framework of questions, empowering them to identify lighting systems that best suit their needs. Throughout the process, a heavy emphasis was placed on using the pre-established network of FIFA-licensed manufacturers, tested to a high standard to ensure product and service guarantees.
A key highlight included in-person demonstrations, which showcased how natural playing surfaces and lighting systems are assessed and summarised in FIFA Quality Programme reports. These demonstrations, given by FIFA Research Institutes and FIFA Preferred Providers, equipped Member Associations with further knowledge about the testing and high standards associated with FIFA installations.
Alongside the workshop was a week of test event activities related to the FIFA Quality Programme for Natural Playing Surfaces (NPS) and Floodlights. These annual certification events play an essential role in ensuring that FIFA Quality Programme tests are applied consistently and correctly across all FIFA-accredited Test Institutes. This work safeguards the credibility, comparability and integrity of FIFA-certified installations worldwide.
The Football Technology Standards team would like to thank the Member Association division and FIFA African Office for their organisational assistance, contributing towards a successful week.
For any further questions about adopting the FIFA Quality Programmes or such educational workshops, please contact Quality@fifa.org.