PETITION FOR 'FAIR ACCESS' TO FIELDS

SportSG says bookings are up and reselling less after it started ballot system last year

- David Lee Senior Sports Correspondent

Frustrated at being unable to book a public football field on weekends, recreational footballer Chan Zhi Yang has taken to online petition platform change.org to appeal to Acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth David Neo to “give amateur footballers fair access to ActiveSG pitches”.

He noted that since national sports agency Sport Singapore (SportSG) changed its sports facility booking system from a first-come, first-serve basis to a ballot format called MyActiveSG+ in June 2024, it has been “nearly impossible” for weekend warriors to secure pitches to play on.

In his petition, which began on Sept 20 and has since garnered more than 2,360 signatures, Chan wrote: “For years, football has been the heartbeat of our weekends - a way for amateur players and teams to stay active, build friendships, and enjoy the sport we grew up with and love. However, the current booking system has made this nearly impossible.

“While the (previous) system had flaws, pitches were at least sometimes available. The bigger issue then was scalpers using bots to book out slots, reselling them at up to four times the price.”

He shared that teams have to pay as much as $250 to play a match, when the regular price of a field booking for a two-hour slot is around $50, and the market rate to hire a referee is $80.

Claiming that the new system has “worsened” the situation and “denied us this basic opportunity” to play football, Chan added: “Now, no pitches are available at all for booking or even for balloting on weekends, at times suitable for physical activity outdoors.