AstroTurf® Announces Enhanced Soccer Initiatives, Hires DiCicco as
Director of Business Development For Soccer
(Dalton, GA) – There is an undeniable trend both in the United States and abroad in which a growing number of matches at every level – recreational, youth, club, high school, Academy, ECNL, collegiate and professional – are being contested on artificial surfaces. As a fan of the beautiful game, AstroTurf® has started the new year with a passionate commitment to opening a dialogue with coaches, administrators, players, and fans about the current state of artificial surfaces. It aims to engineer the top soccer-specific field system in the world.
To lead the initiative AstroTurf® has enlisted Anthony DiCicco to serve as the Director of Business Development for Soccer, a new position. DiCicco joins AstroTurf® after serving from 2008 to 2012 as the CEO the SoccerPlus Companies, an industry leader in soccer education, including goalkeeper and fieldplayer camps nationwide, founded by DiCicco’s father, World Cup and Olympic Champion Coach, Tony DiCicco. “Growing up with the country’s most decorated international coach as your mentor and father,” DiCicco said, “you witness firsthand what innovation and leadership look like. I see the same commitment to moving the sport forward from the AstroTurf team and am excited to become a part of it.”
All artificial turf fields are not equal. Addressing sport-specific and project-specific needs has enabled AstroTurf® to maintain its respected position as the industry standard for more than four decades. During this time, AstroTurf® has never taken for granted that the development of superior turf systems is a complicated, difficult affair. AstroTurf delivers sophisticated technology to ensure safety and to maximize the performance of the athletes who play on them. Through this process, the proprietary RootZone, perhaps the most significant improvement in turf technology in the last decade, was developed. The RootZone reduces rubber splash and fly out, as the nylon thatch fibers stabilize the infill layer. It also reduces rubber and infill migration, keeping the playing surface more consistent and uniform and thus more predictable and safer.
Anyone who watches soccer knows that inconsistent fields affect play. This is as true when the US Men’s National plays away World Cup Qualifiers as it is for the U6 recreational league in local neighborhoods. Artificial fields eliminate field downtime, increase the availably for practices and games, and reduce the high costs associated with the constant maintenance and upkeep of grass fields.
Over the last several years, AstroTurf has successfully installed many soccer pitches, including the Starfire Complex in Seattle, Washington, training home for the Seattle Sounders of Major League Soccer (MLS). Several other AstroTurf fields across the globe have earned FIFA® 1 and 2-Star Recommendations, such as Empire Field, former home of the Vancouver Whitecaps (MLS). AstroTurf® looks forward with excitement to the future.
AstroTurf® was invented in 1965, is based in Dalton, Georgia, and is American-owned and operated. The company boasts more than 160,000,000 square feet of turf in use worldwide and is vertically integrated, ensuring the highest standards of performance, quality, and durability. For more information, visit www.AstroTurf.com or contact Anthony DiCicco, Director of Business Development for Soccer, at adicicco@astroturf.com or 860.881.7731.