LOOKING BACK - History of South Field Dedication

All Conditions Field was dedicated in 2006

Hundreds of Pennsylvania youth were on hand for the official dedication of Century United of Pittsburgh Football Club’s All Conditions Field, a new synthetic grass field that was unveiled just in time for the celebration of Youth Soccer Month. Constructed with the assistance of an All Conditions Fields Grant from the U.S. Soccer Foundation, the major charitable arm of soccer in the United States, the field saw almost non-stop use on its first day, including a brief dedication ceremony featuring community leaders.
 
“Century is thrilled to bring this new All Conditions Field to our players and our community .” said Charles W. Cline, a Century Board member who has served as Project President. “We are grateful to the U.S. Soccer Foundation and NikeGO for providing the initial investment in our project. The ability to play on a high quality field regardless of weather conditions or daylight limitations is invaluable to a program like ours, which serves young athletes from twenty-one surrounding communities.”
 
Century's new All Conditions Field is a state of the art synthetic grass, low-maintenance surface made by FieldTurf. The field is the first synthetic grass soccer field in Pennsylvania to be owned by a private soccer club. The field will serve as the home field for more than 350 Century players who make up teams ranging from under 11 teams to under 18 teams. Century hopes that their All Conditions Field will also become a host field for regional and national tournaments. Lighting for the field was purchased from Musco Sports Lighting, while goals and corner flags were purchased from Kwik Goal, all at preferred pricing through the Foundation’s Partners Resource Center.
“The U.S. Soccer Foundation is proud to join with Century and our National Partners, including NikeGO, to bring this state-of-the-art soccer field to the Pittsburgh area, and particularly to a facility that hosts so many young players,” said John Koskinen, President of the Washington, DC-based U.S. Soccer Foundation. “On the heels of the U.S. Men’s National Team’s qualification for the 2006 World Cup, we are delighted to join Chuck and Brenda Cline, and the rest of the Century community, in supporting and celebrating the future of soccer in the United States. Who knows, maybe the next U.S. Men’s or Women’s National Team star will grow up playing soccer on Century's All Conditions Field.”
Contributions from the U.S. Soccer Foundation and NikeGO, Nike’s signature U.S. community affairs program, served as the catalyst for Century United’s field building project. The Foundation and NikeGO are partnering to support the construction of 50 similar fields over five years through the Foundation’s All Conditions Fields Program. Century's field is the tenth field of this type installed as part of the Program, and the first in Pennsylvania. Other All Conditions Fields have been constructed in Beaverton, Oregon; Chicago, Illinois; Los Angeles, California (two fields); New Castle, Delaware; New York, New York (two fields); Orange, California; and Richmond, Virginia. The online application process for 2006 Grants from the Foundation, including All Conditions Fields Grants, is currently available at ussoccerfoundation.org