The countdown is well and truly on as The FA builds up to the opening of St. George’s Park, the new National Football Centre.

Having taken the keys from developers Bowmer & Kirkland at the start of the month, final touches are being made in preparation for SGP to receive its first guests.

Building work was completed on time after the official ground-breaking ceremony took place in March 2011. But the project has been a long-term vision of The FA.

In the coming weeks, when the doors to St. George’s Park open to guests for the first time, the 330-acre site on the outskirts of Burton upon Trent in the Staffordshire countryside will be England’s inspirational new home for innovation in sporting performance. It will become a hub for coach education and all of The FA’s development programmes.

The facilities at St. George's Park are simply amazing. A full-size indoor football pitch, the multi-sport indoor hall and eleven external pitches, including the elite pitch that will replicate the surface at Wembley Stadium.

Check out our image gallery above to have a closer look at the outdoor grass pitches at St. George's Park. Tomorrow we'll take you further behind the scenes as we go inside to see the impressive indoor pitches...