Amateur football clubs face having to cancel fixtures in the opening weeks of the season because the drought has made pitches unplayable. “We have 11 football pitches, but we can only use the three that have artificial surfaces,” Dick Hartman, secretary of FC ’s-Gravenzande told NOS. The Dutch football association KNVB sent clubs a letter on Monday ahead of the start of the second and third division seasons, which kick off this weekend. It urged clubs to “move matches to available artificial pitches if possible” and spread matches across the weekend to conserve grass surfaces. “When the league matches start it will get worse,” he said.