KUALA LUMPUR: The hallowed turf of the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil is set to be subjected to three mega concerts before it hosts the AFF Cup in December.
It is understood that the Jay Chou World Tour will be held there on October 26 which will be followed by another two concerts.
Thousands of concert-goers are almost certain to attend the events, increasing the risk of pitch damage as has occurred in the past.
Malaysia Stadium Corporation (MSC) chief executive officer Iliyas Jamil, however, assures that new standard operating procedures (SOP) have been enforced to ensure that the pitch does not sustain damage.
"The AFF Cup will be held in December so we have roughly three months from now to repair the pitch. So far, there will be three concerts held," said Iliyas today.
"We have new SOPs for organising concerts which will avoid causing damage to the pitch. For example, we do not allow heavy structures to be on the pitch while the grass can now only be covered for up to 24 hours.
"We have tested these SOPs during the AR Rahman and Bruno Mars concerts recently and the pitch remained in good condition. There were no issues.
"We have also bought a new cover for the pitch because the old one was already about 25 years old."
The Coldplay concert in November last year and the Ed Sheeran concert in February this year had both caused damage to the pitch.