The Football Federation of Macedonia officially handed over the new hybrid field at the National Arena Todor Proeski to the Joint Stock Company for Construction and Management of Residential and Business Space (ADISSDP).

photo by FFM

FFM, in accordance with the agreement with the Public Enterprise that manages the National Arena, on Friday officially completed its activities for the installation and maintenance of the new grass surface at the National Arena Todor Proeski in Skopje.

FFM has completely renewed the lawn of our largest stadium by installing a state-of-the-art and hybrid surface. The new underlayment combines natural grass with state-of-the-art synthetic materials, while providing excellent durability and resilience.

The installation of the latest generation hybrid grass at the National Arena and the installation of a completely new irrigation system enables our stadium to host matches all year round, regardless of weather conditions, while maintaining the highest standards of play.

“This investment underlines our commitment to providing the highest playing conditions for national and club matches and re-establishes our National Arena as a premier venue for football at all levels. We express our gratitude to everyone who was involved in the realization of this project, especially ADISSDP, and we look forward to welcoming the football players to the National Arena” – said the president of FFM, Mr. Muamed Sejdini.

The funds for the new surface of the National Arena were fully provided by FFM through the Hat-Trick project of UEFA for football infrastructure. On the new lawn, the first phase consisted of installing an artificial surface, followed by sowing of natural grass. Natural grass creates density and compactness, which is why in the season of the strongest vegetation the difference is practically invisible. In the season of the weakest vegetation, that is in December, January, February, the ratio is approximately 70-30 in favor of natural grass, while in the season of full vegetation, the ratio increases. The installation of a hybrid pad is an effective solution, of course if it is properly maintained and used in the prescribed manner.

The first match on the new field will be played on Sunday (3 March) when Rabotnichki will host Bregalnica in the Round 21 of the 1.MFL. The Arena was closed since October 2023 and used only once in November when Macedonia played a 1:1 draw against England in the 2024 EURO qualifiers. Meanwhile, both Rabotnichki and Vardar played on other locations as hosts.