Coventry City: EFL allows games to resume at CBS Arena

Image source, Rex Features

Image caption, Coventry City have called off three home matches so far this season

Coventry City will return to the Coventry Building Society Arena next week after the pitch was deemed safe.

Independent sport turf experts, appointed by the English Football League, have determined the surface is now playable after remedial work.

The Sky Blues will host their first home match of the season against Preston on Wednesday, 31 August.

The pitch had been ruled dangerous after it was used for the Commonwealth Games rugby sevens tournament.

It forced Coventry to postpone three Championship matches and move a Carabao Cup tie.

Coventry's chief executive Dave Boddy had called on Wasps, the Sky Blues' landlords, to install a new pitch.

West Midlands mayor Andy Street mediated between the two clubs and Wasps agreed to carry out repairs, which have taken place over the past week.

The football club estimated the work would cost a six-figure sum.

New synthetic fibres have been stitched into the pitch to provide increased stability and the latest EFL assessment found no concerns over player safety.

It is hoped the new fibres will also allow the grass to grow better and help cope with the demands of the new Premiership rugby season, with Wasps hosting their first home game on 17 September.

Coventry, who have only played two Championship matches so far, travel to Hull on Saturday.

The circumstances of their postponed matches, against Wigan, Rotherham and Huddersfield, will be reviewed by the EFL.