{"id":935662,"date":"2026-10-16T22:00:13","date_gmt":"2026-10-16T22:00:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/935662\/"},"modified":"2026-10-16T22:00:13","modified_gmt":"2026-10-16T22:00:13","slug":"calgary-report-says-soccer-fields-unused-cricket-pitches-at-capacity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/935662\/","title":{"rendered":"Calgary report says soccer fields unused, cricket pitches at capacity"},"content":{"rendered":"

Calgary\u2019s soccer fields are only being used a fraction of the bookable time, while cricket field use is almost at capacity.<\/p>\n

However, Calgary Minor Soccer Association and some councillors say the quality of the outdoor pitch keeps people from playing organized sports on it.<\/p>\n

The information came in the Parks and Open Spaces Community Level Amenity Analysis for 2026, attached to this week\u2019s Infrastructure and Planning Committee Agenda. That document does not get presented at the public meeting.<\/p>\n

The document reported that soccer fields in the city were used 15 per cent of booked time. Ball diamonds were used 40 per cent of the time. Cricket pitches, however, were used 93 per cent of the bookable time.<\/p>\n

The city said that the findings are based on preliminary observational data, and more investigation is needed to ensure that the data accurately reflects the field use.<\/p>\n

\u201cEarly discussions with sport organizations have indicated that some booked fields may appear underutilized because they are intentionally left to rest between games or reserved for competition use rather than practices,\u201d the report read.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese insights suggest there may be opportunities to improve the efficiency and utilization of existing field inventory before pursuing additional field development, while continuing to validate utilization patterns through ongoing engagement with user groups.\u201d<\/p>\n

Among the other findings were that 83 Calgary communities have no sports court of any kind, and it suggested that the City of Calgary should determine a minimum service level number, based on local needs.<\/p>\n

A third of Calgary parks also have no benches, and there are 155 shade structures across all city parks, with areas like Ward 10 and 11 having two each.<\/p>\n

One thing the report noted was that developers often front-end the recreational amenities and then transfer the future maintenance, repairs and renewal costs over to the City of Calgary.<\/p>\n

\u201cParks and Open Spaces does not automatically receive additional operating or renewal funding when these asset transfers happen,\u201d the report reads. \u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cInstead, renewal needs are deferred and typically addressed only when assets reach the end of their useful life. This approach has contributed to the growing renewal funding gap.\u201d<\/p>\n

Not all playing fields are equal<\/p>\n

\"\"Artist\u2019s rendition of the view of the Northeast Athletic Complex from the proposed competition-ready cricket field. CITY OF CALGARY<\/p>\n

Ward 5 Coun. Raj Dhaliwal said that cricket and pickleball are among the fastest-growing sports in Calgary. There are a lot of dynamics at play with cricket, including perceived historical rights to bookings, league preferences, and the way games are structured.<\/p>\n

He said many games are being played at 35 or 50 overs, but the allocation should be for 20, which would shorten the game time, he said. \u00a0<\/p>\n

Previously, Calgary cricketers said the lack of available pitches in the city could negatively impact the sport\u2019s growth in the city. <\/a><\/p>\n

Dhaliwal said that when it comes to soccer fields, many in his ward are in poor condition. They\u2019re unplayable for safety reasons.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey don\u2019t get maintained that well,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember where my son used to play. That field had numerous crater-like holes, whatever you want to call it. It was so unsafe.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said it\u2019s due to an underinvestment in recreational fields in Calgary, and more investment is needed to bring more fields up to good condition.<\/p>\n

An emailed statement from the Calgary Minor Soccer Association (CMSA) said they scheduled more than 7,000 outdoor games this year, with 3,500 on 70 Class D fields. They said that\u2019s half the games on the city\u2019s lowest field quality classification.<\/p>\n

They said the report notes 474 rectangular fields but doesn\u2019t list them, or whether there are proper goals or field markings, or how many are even maintained for play.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a misconception that soccer can be played on any open patch of grass. It can\u2019t. Organized soccer requires safe playing surfaces, proper dimensions, equipment, and maintenance,\u201d the CMSA statement read.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd frankly, we shouldn\u2019t have to apologize for wanting kids to play on better-quality fields. The fact that we\u2019re already playing half our games on the City\u2019s most basic fields should reinforce the need for investment, not be used as an argument against it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mayor Farkas said that there\u2019s a need for more of everything in Calgary right now, given the population growth.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m quite warm to cricket and soccer and other types of low-barrier sports because they\u2019re much more cost-effective. They\u2019re more affordable for younger Calgarians,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s not to say that we don\u2019t need, say, hockey ice time as well. We need all of the above. No matter what sport you\u2019re interested in as a kid, I want you to be able to have that opportunity here in Calgary to be able to go out and enjoy it affordably.\u201d<\/p>\n

Liked it? Take a second to support Darren Krause on Patreon!<\/p>\n

\"Become<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Calgary\u2019s soccer fields are only being used a fraction of the bookable time, while cricket field use is…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":935663,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194293],"tags":[49,2798,48,60,74495],"class_list":["post-935662","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-calgary","tag-ca","tag-calgary","tag-canada","tag-featured","tag-recreation"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/935662","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=935662"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/935662\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/935663"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=935662"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=935662"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=935662"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}