Floodlighting in the Kreisliga and amateur leagues: how many lux?

Saxony-Anhalt regulates it most clearly: according to its rules of play, from 1 July 2027 Lighting Class III applies in district-level play, with at least 75 lux horizontal and a uniformity of at least 0.5. Mecklenburg-Vorpommern for now permits Class III for play within the state association in 2026/27, with an application for admission and proof of the values.

The technical publication licht.wissen 08 (2010) also gives 75 lx for league matches at district level. The guide from the football associations of Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia, by contrast, assigns local competitions to Classes I, II and III. Whether more applies to your Kreisliga is decided by your association's regulations.

For full-size pitches with few masts, the STL1443 is usually the right choice.

From 1 July 2027, Saxony-Anhalt requires Class II in state-level play, with at least 200 lux and a uniformity of at least 0.6. For the Sachsenliga, Sachsenklasse and Sachsenpokal for men, Saxony gives 200 lx, 0.6 and a mounting height of 16 m.

In Saxony this applies to matches intended to end later than 30 minutes after sunset. With a Class III installation, kick-off in the league must be no later than 1.5 hours before sunset, and 2 hours before without floodlighting. The technical publication licht.wissen 08 gives 200 lx for Bezirksliga and Landesliga and 500 lx for Verbandsliga and Oberliga matches.

Hesse permits floodlighting only after authorisation by the district football officer (Kreisfußballwart), with a certificate from a specialist company confirming even and sufficient illumination. Lower Saxony requires a sufficient system that is stated in DFBnet for the venue. Thuringia permits league matches under floodlights after acceptance has taken place.

The rules of play of the Bayerischer Fußball-Verband merely state that association matches can be played as floodlit matches, as do the rules of play of the WDFV for league matches in Westphalia and the Lower Rhine. None of these regulations gives a lux value. The Landessportbund NRW writes of 200 lux for local to regional league play, more or less depending on the state association.

In Saxony-Anhalt, a certified specialist company provides the proof, and the authorisation is valid for at most four consecutive seasons. Facilities that have already been authorised may continue to be operated there until 30 June 2030, even if they do not yet fully meet the new minimum requirements.

In Saxony, the home club sends a measurement report to DIN EN 12193 to the association once, and the acceptance of the sports facilities lies with the district and city associations. Ask before the measurement which form your association requires.

For the DFB-Nachwuchsliga for A and B juniors, the DFB gives at least 400 lux. This concerns national league matches and not youth play at district level.

The youth regulations of the Bayerischer Fußball-Verband and the provisions of the NOFV junior Regionalligen give no separate youth value.

The guide of the football associations assigns training to Classes II and III, that is 200 lx at 0.6 or 75 lx at 0.5. It recommends a mounting height of 16 m and switching in sections, for example only half a pitch or a third of it.

The Landessportbund NRW (state sports federation) also gives Class III with at least 75 lux for the municipal kickabout and training pitch. Upgrading later can be difficult and expensive if the masts are not designed for it.

Small-sided pitches can often be lit with the STL963.