The first player-powered football pitch opens in Brazil

www.simplesharebuttons.com Share this post...

The first ever football pitch to use energy from players’ feet to power up the flood lights has opened in Brazil.

The inaugural game using the new technology took place in a slum in Rio de Janeiro with a team of youth players.

Brazilian football legend, Pele, opened the game and was moved to tears at the event on Wednesday night.

He said he hoped “the new field would help spark local kids’ interest not only in soccer but in science.”

The specially developed tiles, laid under the turf, work by harnessing the kinetic energy of players’ movements – also using solar panels installed around the field.

Electricity is then fed from the player-powered tiles to a system of floodlights overhead.

The 200 energy-capturing tiles, developed by British start-up Pavegen, were installed across the width and breadth of the field.

The football pitch, which is a key part of life for favela or slum town residents, was refurbished by oil company Shell.

While the head of Pavegen, engineer Laurence Kemball-Cook, took pains not to reveal the exact science behind the tiles he said they work on a system of cogs.

“When stepped on, the cogs spin like tops and act like generators.” he said.

Each tile now costs about $500 (£307) but the price is falling as the 35-employee company refines its manufacturing process.