Company Profile
Sportsmark™ Group ltd. was founded in 1959 and has been providing a specialist service to the sports and road marking industry ever since. 
After the war there was a shortage of groundsmen and sports teachers, and by the late 1950s many of those were reaching retirement age, so there was a shortage of trained people with a sporting background. Sportsmark™ approached the then London County Council at County Hall, and offered a specialist service, marking sports fields, playgrounds and gymnasiums on their behalf. A contract was made, and soon Sportsmark™ vans were servicing 3000 schools, colleges and parks in London. This arrangement worked well, as Sportsmark™ quickly became technically expert, and also learned to work around the vagaries of limited access and weather. 
As the reputation of Sportsmark™ grew, so did its area of operations, which spread throughout the SE of England. Today, Sportsmark™ still offer a full facilities management service for the upkeep and marking of sports facilities. A good example of this is Brentford FC, for whom Sportsmark™ managed 7 pitches and ancilliary training facilities at their practice ground.
As the need for new leisure and sporting facilities grew in the late 1960s, the traditional surfaces of wood and cinder gave way to a whole range of synthetic surfaces. Many of these presented quite a challenge when it came to marking, and Sportsmark™ worked closely with both paint and material manufacturers to develop acceptable systems. They also developed their own machines in order to line with the accuracy demanded by the various sports.
Sportsmark™ were involved in most of the new facilities built in the late 1960s and early 1970s, including the Crystal Palace Sports Centre. This had the first ‘Tartan’ wet pour rubber track in the UK, which was marked by Sportsmark™ . At the first meeting on the new track, nine new European and World records were broken.
As the company grew, it developed naturally in three new directions:
- The supply of quality sports equipment sat well alongside the marking and management service.
- Having developed it’s own marking machines, Marking Machines International Ltd was formed to promote line marking machines worldwide.
- The line marking expertise was transferred to roads and car parks and B & C Road Markings Ltd was formed.
Today, these three aspects of our business remain very active indeed.
Sportsmark™ are a major force in the sports equipment market, supplying quality goods to clubs, schools and local authorities throughout the UK. Equipment for all sports is supplied, although we specialise in the hardware end (Goals, nets, training equipment, ground and groundsman’s supplies) rather than consumables (Bats, balls and clothing). Sportsmark™ publish a number of specialist catalogues including: Cricket; Rugby; Football; Bowls; and Tennis. We now also manufacture a number of products, particularly for Bowls.
In response to demand from the industry, Sportsmark™ publish a number of wall-charts detailing running track markings and the Standard Dimensions Chart detailing marking requirements for most sports. They also publish the ‘bible’ for ground staff, the Groundsman’s Field Handbook, now in its 7th edition. This pocket size book details the markings for all common sports, and is printed on waterproof, rip-proof paper. A must for all those involved in sports markings.
Marking Machines International Ltd continues to offer the widest range of marking machines available anywhere. Grass marking machines are usually transfer wheel or spray machines for liquid marking, or dry powder applicators, and we offer several of each type. For hard courts and car parks we offer aerosol machines, airless and pressure sprayers, sponge wheel machines, and the incomparable Guidograph.
B & C Road Markings Ltd is today a well-established lining company. They are equally happy working on local authority roads or lining car parks for sports clubs and commercial premises. All marking is carried out using fully approved hot applied thermoplastic to BS3262 or paint to BS6044. In addition to road markings, B & C install road studs, sleeping policemen, and high friction safety surfaces.
Sportsmark™ is very proud of its long record of serving its customers, and prides itself on its high level of customer satisfaction. Therefore, whatever your sports or marking requirement, call Sportsmark™ , the TOTAL SPORTS PROVIDER.