sports lighting
Tennis court floodlighting for clubs across Ireland
Tennis played long into the evening, members on court all year round, and lower electricity bills to show for it. That is what good floodlighting brings to a tennis club, and it is what we handle from the first design to the final switch-on.
WHAT WE DO
At SBE, we design and install LED floodlighting for tennis clubs across Ireland, from a single court to a full multi-court facility, and the padel courts many clubs are now adding alongside them.
A well-lit court is one your members keep coming back to through the dark months, so we make sure the lighting is right for the way tennis is actually played and kind to the houses nearby.
Why tennis clubs are switching to LED floodlighting
Good lighting does more than brighten the court. For a tennis club, it decides how many months of the year your courts earn their keep and how easily your members can actually see the ball.
Here is what a well-designed LED system does for your club:
Play all year, into the evening.
When the clocks go back, your members can keep playing after work rather than packing the rackets away until spring, which keeps courts busy and memberships renewing.
Lower running costs.
LED cuts lighting electricity use by up to 50%, and with court-by-court switching you only pay to light the courts that are actually booked.
Track the ball with ease.
A tennis ball is small and fast, so even, high-quality light with good colour rendering lets players follow it cleanly from any position on court
Kind to the neighbours.
Careful spill control keeps light off nearby homes and gardens, which keeps residents happy and your planning application on track.
Less maintenance, more reliable.
Quality LED fittings last for years, so you are not calling out access equipment to replace lamps every couple of seasons.
What the tennis lighting standards mean for your club
Court lighting is measured in lux, which is simply how much light reaches the surface. The right level depends on whether your courts are for casual play, club competition, or tournaments.
As a rough guide, recreational play is usually lit to around 200 to 300 lux, club and competitive play to around 300 to 500 lux, and tournament tennis higher again, up to around 750 lux, in line with the European standard EN 12193 and the guidance of bodies like the ITF and Tennis Ireland. The headline number is only part of it, though. Because the ball is small and quick, uniformity, glare control, and colour rendering matter just as much, so players can read the pace and bounce and are never dazzled on the serve.
Layout is where tennis is a little different from other sports. The columns go down the sides of the court, along the tramlines, never behind the baseline where they would shine straight into a server’s eyes. On a multi-court club, columns are shared between courts in blocks, which keeps the layout tidy and the cost down.
We carry out a full lighting design for your courts, confirm the exact lux level, uniformity, and glare control you will achieve for your level of play, and design with any future ambitions in mind.
A turnkey service, from first design to final switch-on.
Here is what we handle for you:
Free lighting design.
Planning and permissions.
We prepare the planning application and the light-spill drawings your council needs, and we manage the back-and-forth. Spill onto nearby homes is closely looked at, so we design for it from the start.
Grant support.
We help you build the lighting section of your funding application with the quotes and technical detail assessors look for.
Installation.
Our team handles the civil works, the columns, the electrics, and the fittings, and leaves your club tidy.
Switch-on and sign-off.
We test the finished system against your target lux levels and hand you the documentation to prove it meets the standard.
Grant-funded projects can run on an 18 to 24 month cycle from first enquiry to switch-on, so it pays to start the conversation early.
We will always be straight with you about realistic timelines rather than promising something we cannot stand over.
Cutting your electricity bills with LED
Electricity is one of the biggest running costs any club carries, and floodlights are a large part of that. Older lamp systems burn through power, take time to warm up, and fade as they age, so you end up paying more for less light.
A modern LED system changes the numbers. You get up to 50% lower lighting energy use, instant full brightness at the flick of a switch, and controls that let you light only the courts in use on any given evening. Tie that into a booking or timer system and the courts light themselves when members are due and switch off when they are done.
Over a 20-year lifespan, those savings add up to a serious amount your club can put straight back into courts, coaching, and facilities.
Grant support for your lighting project
Most clubs fund floodlighting through the Sports Capital and Equipment Programme (SCEP), now running as the Community Sport Facilities Fund (CSFF). It is the main source of Government funding for sports facilities in Ireland, and lighting upgrades are exactly the kind of project it supports.
Grants can cover a significant share of the cost, with a strong recent emphasis on energy efficiency that plays right into an LED upgrade. We have supported clubs through the process before, and we will help you put a lighting application together that stands the best chance when the next round opens.
If you are not sure where your club stands or when to apply, talk to us early and we will point you in the right direction.
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How much does tennis court floodlighting cost?
It depends on the number of courts, the lux level you need, and whether you are starting from scratch or upgrading existing columns. On a multi-court club, sharing columns between courts often brings the cost per court down. We give you a clear, itemised quote after the free lighting design.
How many lux does a tennis court need?
Recreational play is usually lit to around 200 to 300 lux, club and competitive play to around 300 to 500 lux, and tournaments higher again. We confirm the exact figure for your courts as part of the design.
Where do the floodlights go?
Down the sides of the court along the tramlines, never behind the baseline, so players are never looking into the lights on a serve. On a multi-court club the columns are shared between courts.
Can we get a grant for the lighting?
Yes. Most clubs fund lighting through the Sports Capital grant, now the Community Sport Facilities Fund. We help you prepare the lighting side of the application.
Do we need planning permission?
New floodlighting usually needs planning permission. We prepare the application and the light-spill drawings and manage the process with your local authority, with particular care taken where courts sit near homes.
get started
Ready to Light Up your Courts?
Whether you are planning ahead for the next grant round or ready to start now, the first step is a free lighting design for your club. There is no cost and no pressure, just a clear picture of what your courts can achieve.
Get your free tennis court lighting design today.
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