DIN 18035-1 and ball stop fences: the published figures, with their sources
German sports ground work specifies ball stop barriers (Ballfangzäune) and ball stop nets (Ballfangnetze) against DIN 18035-1. The figures everyone quotes are 6 m at the end sides and 4 m at the long sides. What almost nobody says is that the standard itself is a paid document, that the four German sources quoting it do not use the same modal verb, and that the bottom 2 m of a compliant fence is steel and not netting at all. This page shows all of that side by side.
What DIN 18035-1 covers
The current edition is 2018-09, titled Sportplätze - Teil 1: Freianlagen für Spiele und Leichtathletik - Planung und Maße (sports grounds, part 1: outdoor facilities for games and athletics, planning and dimensions), per Baunormenlexikon. It sets planning principles and dimensions for outdoor sports facilities, including multi-purpose use. It is one part of a seven-part series: the other parts cover surfaces, drainage and lighting rather than barriers.
A DIN standard is not legislation. It becomes binding through a contract, a permit, a tender document or an insurer, which in German sports ground construction is the normal case. That is why these figures turn up in tender specifications rather than in law.
Published heights: the same standard, four readings
All four sources put the taller barrier behind the goals. Three state the figures per side, one states a range. Three call it a recommendation or a minimum, one calls it a requirement. Sichere Schule is the German school accident insurers portal for school facilities; the other three are German sellers of ball stop fences and nets.
| Source | Modal verb | As published, and what it says |
|---|---|---|
| Sichere Schule | mindestens | mindestens 6 m an den Stirnseiten und mindestens 4 m an den Längsseiten 6 m minimum at the end sides, 4 m minimum at the long sides. |
| Schutznetze24 | empfiehlt | Die DIN 18035-1 empfiehlt Ballfangzäune bzw. -netze mit einer Höhe von 4 Metern an den Seitenrändern und einer Höhe von 6 Metern an den Stirnseiten des Spielfeldes 4 m at the side edges, 6 m at the end sides. |
| Baku Sport | empfiehlt | an der Stirnseite eine Höhe von 6 Metern und an den Längsseiten Höhen von 4 Metern; kleinere Dimensionen sind unter bestimmten Abstandsbedingungen zulässig 6 m at the end side, 4 m at the long sides, with smaller dimensions allowed under certain distance conditions. |
| Zaunsysteme-Direkt | muss | Nach DIN 18035-1 muss ein Ballfangzaun eine Mindesthöhe von 4 bis 6 Metern vorweisen A minimum height of 4 to 6 m, stated as a range and not per side. |
The bottom 2 m is steel, not netting
This is the part that surprises buyers coming from the US or UK market, where a ball stop is normally netting over its whole height. Sichere Schule, the German school accident insurers portal for school facilities, publishes the requirement as steel mesh mats with a close mesh of at most 50 mm up to a height of at least 2 m (Stahlgittermatten mit enger Maschenweite von maximal 50 mm bis in eine Höhe von mindestens 2 m), with the fence built so that climbing is prevented, and fitted with damping elements to stop noise transmission between mat and post. It also requires the necessary safety distance between the fence and the playing surface.
Zaunsysteme-Direkt publishes the matching construction for that steel section: double-rod mesh mats in hot-dip galvanised steel, wire 8/6/8 mm, lower mesh 50/200 mm and upper mesh 100/200 mm, on steel posts.
The practical consequence for a netting specification: on a 6 m barrier built this way, the net covers roughly the upper 4 m, not 6 m. A quantity calculated on full height will be over by about a third. The net size calculator takes a barrier run as a length and a net height, so the 4 m can be entered instead of the fence height. The Sichere Schule figures are published for school sports grounds; whether the same steel section is required on a club or municipal facility depends on the tender, and we have not found a public source that settles it.
Mesh and twine actually sold in Germany
Published combinations on Baku Sport product pages, checked 19 September 2026. These are offered specifications, not standard requirements: DIN 18035-1 is quoted for heights, not for mesh.
| Maschenweite (mesh) | Netzstärke (twine) | Where it is used |
|---|---|---|
| 120 x 120 mm | 2.3 mm · 3 mm · 4 mm | The standard football line, and the only mesh offered in a two-colour club version (4 mm). |
| 100 x 100 mm | 2.3 mm · 3 mm · 4 mm | Football and general team sport where a tighter mesh is wanted. |
| 45 x 45 mm | 2.3 mm · 3 mm · 4 mm | Small-ball and multi-sport sites. Sold partly in dark green rather than standard green. |
Schutznetze24 names 120 mm for football and 28 mm for golf in its general text. Green is the standard colour across the German offer, with dark green appearing on the 45 mm lines and club colours available as a two-colour build.
How this compares with the US and UK figures
Our netting families and our published ball stop heights guide show the other side of the same question: the FA publishes 4.5 m and 3 m, Sport England publishes no number at all, and US golf ranges run from 40 to 65 ft. Germany is the only one of these markets where a single standard is quoted by every seller, and the only one that puts a steel section at the base as a matter of course.
How we compiled this page
We collected every public German page we could find that quotes DIN 18035-1 for ball stop barriers (September 2026), kept each wording exactly as published in German, translated it without smoothing, and refused to merge the four readings into one figure. The standard itself was not purchased and is not reproduced. Non-competing sources are linked: Sichere Schule and Baunormenlexikon. German netting and fencing sellers (Schutznetze24, Baku Sport, Zaunsysteme-Direkt) are credited by name next to each figure. Prices published by those sellers were deliberately left out: this is a specification reference, not a price comparison.
Frequently asked questions
How high does a ball stop fence have to be under DIN 18035-1?
Three of the four German sources we checked publish the same pair of figures: 6 m at the end sides (Stirnseiten) and 4 m at the long sides (Längsseiten) of the pitch. They disagree on how binding that is. Sichere Schule writes mindestens (minimum), Schutznetze24 and Baku Sport write empfiehlt (recommends), and Zaunsysteme-Direkt writes muss (must) while stating the figures as a 4 to 6 m range rather than per side. Baku Sport adds that smaller dimensions are allowed under certain distance conditions. We have not read the standard itself and do not arbitrate between these readings.
Does DIN 18035-1 require steel or netting?
Both, in different places. For school sports grounds, Sichere Schule publishes a requirement for steel mesh mats with a close mesh of at most 50 mm up to a height of at least 2 m, so that the fence cannot be climbed. Netting is what goes above that steel section. This is why a German ball stop installation of 6 m is usually a hybrid: a steel base with a textile net on top, not one product over the full height.
What mesh size is used for football ball stop netting in Germany?
120 x 120 mm is the standard football line on the German market, offered in 2.3 mm, 3 mm and 4 mm twine. Schutznetze24 names 120 mm for football and 28 mm for golf in its general text. 100 mm and 45 mm are also sold, the latter for sites where smaller balls are in play. This differs from the US and UK markets, where 100 mm and finer meshes dominate the same application.
Is DIN 18035-1 a law?
No. A DIN standard is a published technical rule, not legislation. It becomes binding when a contract, a building permit, a tender document or an insurer requires it, which in German sports ground work is common enough that it functions as the default specification. That is also why the ball stop figures appear in tender documents rather than in statute.
What is the difference between a Ballfangzaun and a Ballfangnetz?
A Ballfangzaun is the whole barrier, normally steel posts with double-rod mesh mats at the base. Zaunsysteme-Direkt publishes 8/6/8 mm wire with a lower mesh of 50/200 mm and an upper mesh of 100/200 mm for that construction. A Ballfangnetz is the textile net, hung on posts or above the steel section. German suppliers sell both and often price them on the same page, which is why a search for one returns the other.
Specifying against DIN 18035-1?
Tell us the pitch dimensions, which sides are being covered and whether a steel section is already planned. We reply within 2 business days with the mesh, twine and net height in writing, and we say which figures come from the standard and which come from us.
We reply within 2 business days with questions or a documented quote.