EURO 2012, football standards Agreements across Europe NEN sets the standard Agreements across Europe The manager of the Dutch team, Bert Van Marwijk, has drilled his team and the ‘Orange Virus’ has once again taken hold in the Netherlands. Will ‘we’ finally become European champions again in Kiev after 24 years? The football frenzy will start on 8 June! But what about the rules of the game that go unnoticed in the background? Why won’t any of the seats in the stadiums give way when someone sits on them? And how come goals are always the same size? Because agreements are made for these things! And they are set out in European standards. Different parties come together to set these standards, after which they are published by NEN. Stadium seats “3 million cm of seating that has to be able to take a knock or two” On 9 June 2012, Holland plays its first match, against Denmark. Tens of thousands of spectators stream into the stadium in Kharkiv. Everyone mills around looking for their seat. Late arrivals edge through grumbling fans who have already sat down. According to NEN-EN 13200-4, the space between a seat in one row and the cor- responding seat in the preceding row must be at least 30 cm. Not really ideal, but well, once we have sat down, the match is the only thing that matters. But what are the other rules for the seats? According to the requirements in the standard, a seat must be able to support a weight of 2,000 kg and be at least 40 cm deep and 50 cm wide. And the stadium in Kiev, where the final will be played, has more than 60,000 seats. The total width of the seats when placed side by side must therefore be equal to at least 3 million centimetres! Beer “Toxins produced by fungi in beer?” The fans who stay in the Netherlands watch the matches en masse on TV or big screens. Whether they watch with friends in a pub or at an event organised in a city square, football usually goes hand in hand with beer. At officially organised events, beer with a reduced alcohol percentage is often served and drunk from plastic cups. This ‘event beer’ is good for safety and public order. The fact that it contains up to 50% less calories than regular beer makes it even better. But it also has to be safe to drink. We know that beer mainly contains water, barley, hops and yeast. But toxins produced by fungi? Beer also contains a substance that has to be dealt with cautiously, ochratoxin A (OTA), which is produced by fungi and occurs on a wide range of plants. The maximum permissible concentration of ochratoxin is regulated by law. It can be measured using the test method given in NEN-EN 14133. Nice to know that the beer is OK, cheers! T-shirts “13 PET bottles in one football shirt” Each player in the Dutch team is wearing 13 PET bottles! Recycled into a shirt, a brilliant example of innovation! The label has to specify what the shirt is made of, so does it say 100% PET bottle? No, it’s 100% recyled polyester! It also has to give washing instructions. Standard NEN-EN-ISO 3758 sets requirements for the symbols. Those sweaty shirts will after all have to be washed the right way. We do not want to risk having the orange of the Dutch national team suddenly turning into ‘salmon pink’! Grass “Natural grass or artificial turf – opinions differ” Some prefer artificial turf; others say you can only play football on natural grass. All the Euro 2012 stadiums have natural grass. According to the experts, the blades should pre- ferably be 23 mm high. But how do they measure it? Does Van Marwijk have a ruler in his pocket to measure the height of the grass before kick-off? Who knows, but if you want to do things properly, you should use the European standard NEN-EN 12233. It contains a test method for calculating the height of the grass with a special, lightweight tool, which is basic- ally a round, movable disc placed on a measuring rod. It is measured as the distance from the tip of the measuring rod resting on the ground and the disc resting on top of the blades. It may not be as easy to use as Van Marwijk’s ruler, but it’s a lot more precise! And our coach will only have to concentrate on winning against Portugal on 17 June! Ball “The Tango balls have something magical, especially for the Dutch” We’re getting towards the end of the game against Portugal. Robben passes the ball back to the Dutch goal. Just as Stekelenburg rushes out of his goal, the ball lands on the edge of the box. He watches in horror as the ball bounces high over him and rolls into the goal... Could this really happen? No, it couldn’t, the Tango 12 complies with strict requirements for footballs! It far exceeds the ‘FIFA Approved Standards’. The European standard NEN-EN 12235 also gives test methods, including the way a ball is allowed to bounce. If the ball is dropped from a height of 2 metres onto a concrete surface, it can only bounce back up to a height of 1.35 metres. It can therefore never bounce over our goalkeeping hero. With three minutes left Stekelenburg kicks the ball towards Huntelaar. Come on boys, now is the time! And yes, he runs, he shoots, he scores! Phew, that was close, but at least we got the three points! Helmet “Setting out agreements on helmets for goalkeepers in a standard?” Holland is at the top of Pool B and we are playing against the Czech Republic on 22 June. But does their keeper, Petr Cech really wear a helmet? Yes, he does, and for good reason. He suffered a seri- ous head injury and, whenever he plays football, he has worn a helmet that has provoked a good deal of discussion ever since. There are a large number of standards for helmets in other sports, but no- thing has been agreed about helmets for goalkeepers yet. Organisations can apply to NEN to help set out agreements on helmets for goalkeepers. Because, as in other sports, the method for testing the helmet, for example, will also be really important. Perhaps the time has come to develop a standard? Gloves “Without good gloves, even Stekelenburg would have trouble holding onto the ball’ When our defenders Heitinga and Boulahrouz can’t stop the ball, Maarten Stekelenburg has to save us. All Dutch fans have faith in their goalkeeper. He has to do everything he can to stop the ball from going into the goal! But he cannot rely solely on his own strength, agility and ultra-fast reflexes. Without good gloves, even Stekelenburg would have trouble holding onto the ball. Good gloves comply with the new European standard from 2011, NEN-EN 16027. According to this standard, gloves may not give more than 20 mm, even when subjected to a substantial force. The gloves may therefore never slide off the wearer’s hands. A comforting thought for Dutch supporters! When Stekelenburg sees Jan Rezek rushing towards him with the ball he only has to concentrate on preventing a goal! Shin-guards “Will those shin-guards stay in place?” It’s the 42nd minute of the semi-final against France and Strootman is in possession with plenty of room. The Dutch team is determined to score a goal before half-time. The French are getting nervous. Strootman is running at full speed when Cabaye comes across to intercept our midfield dynamo. Strootman goes down in the tackle. Cabaye claims he went for the ball. Or was he aiming for Strootman’s shin? Is his shin-guard strong enough to withstand the tackle? If it complies with NEN-EN 13061, he will only have a bruise. Tests guarantee maximum safety. After being kicked, a shin-guard may not slide out of place by more than 15 mm or have a dent larger than 25 mm! But after going down, Strootman is even more determined to win! Lighting “Without good lighting, it will be difficult for the cameraman” It’s the final that we have been awaiting with trepidation, against Germany! Cameras have been set up all around the field. We don’t want to miss a thing! It’s therefore really important for the cameras to be able to record everything properly. Every detail, including the lighting, has to be taken into account. It’s obvious that the pitch has to be well illuminated, but the standard NEN-EN 12193 also contains details of the arrangements for lighting for television cameras. According to it, the surroun- ding area where the cameras are located must be 0.25 x more brightly illuminated than the pitch! This does not seem like a big deal, but we don’t want to miss a second of this fantastic final, do we? Goal “How strong are the goal posts in Kiev?” Holland is teeming with excitement. The most nerve-racking part of the final starts. Penalties again, it’s unbe- lievable! Stekelenburg feels the pressure. It’s all up to him now. The first is taken by Gomez. The Dutch cheer as the ball cannons against the bar. If it is made in accordance with NEN-EN 748, it will only bend a maxi- mum of 1 cm after being hit by the ball.