Field Lights by Steven Wilke @ FlickrIf your league or municipality happens to be involved with the construction of a new soccer complex or the lighting of a previously unlit field, field lighting can be a source of confusion for many, especially if the lighting contractor is not used to lighting soccer fields.

@anewgirl shared this very informative article on Twitter, which is part marketing speak and part information. But once you ignore the plugs for the design firm, there is a lot of useful information here to give you enough knowledge to at least ask informed questions.

While we’ve had a few of issues with our new complex, primarily because the engineers didn’t have much experience building an athletic complex, the lighting was top notch. Our 480 Volt system from Musco lights the fields very well and it has been reliable for years. But it cost a LOT of money. Extremely tall poles, computer aligned for proper coverage, next generation quiet ballasts, etc. So some clubs looking to get lighting may be limited to lower voltage fixtures on wooden poles, working directly with an electrician. We have fields like that too where you flip the lights on in a circuit breaker box with a lock on it. So be sure to get informed and understand what factors come into play when lighting up a soccer field. It can save you a lot of headaches later.