Bizarre photo reveals high-tech World Cup footballs need to be charged up before they’re ready to be used in the planet’s biggest sporting event
30 November 2022
The official ‘Al Rihla’ footballs used for the World Cup in Qatar are so high-tech they don’t just need to be pumped full of air – they need to be charged.
Manufactured by Adidas, the ball, which takes its name from the Arabic word for ‘the journey’, has a sensor inside that measures data like speed and direction and allows for ball-tracking and offside calls by the VAR.
An incredible photo posted on Reddit shows the fluro-coloured balls being charged, like a smartphone, from a power board before a game.
It’s a long way from the days when people would hunt around for a bicycle pump and then put a bit of oil or butter on an attached small needle to simply put air in a football.
The ‘Al Rihla’ or ‘The Journey’ balls used at the World Cup in Qatar have a high-tech sensor which needs to be charged
A social media user posted a photo of the balls that quickly went viral; with a power board being used to charge the footballs like a smartphone. The ball can be seen sitting on a black cradle, which allows the sensor to last for six hours while in play
The sensor is powered by a small battery, which Adidas said can last for six hours of active use, or up to 18 days when not.
The sensor, which weighs just 14 grams, gives ball-tracking in real-time; with cameras positioned around the pitch helping referees to determine offside and other questionable decisions.
‘Any time the ball is kicked, headed, thrown or even so much as tapped, the system picks it up at 500 frames per second,’ Maximillian Schmidt, co-founder and managing director of KINEXON, who manufactured the sensor, said..
‘Data is sent in real time from sensors to a local positioning system (LPS), which involves a setup of network antennas installed around the playing field that take in and store the data for immediate use.
‘When a ball flies out of bounds during the course of play, and a new ball is thrown or kicked in to replace it, KINEXON’s backend system automatically switches to the new ball’s data input without the need for human intervention,’ said Schmidt, giving fascinating insight into the incredible technology.
Argentinian superstar Lionel Messi launches the Adidas balls, which feature eye-catching fluro colouring, prior to the World Cup
Hawk-Eye, which many sporting fans will associating with cricket and tennis, also combines with the sensor
Though machines are not infallible, with many slamming the VAR in the opening game between Qatar and Ecuador for disallowing a goal to Enner Valencia.
It’s not just about the data the ball can pull, either.
Franziska Loffelmann, the Design Director of Football Graphics and Hardwear at Adidas said the ball was also lightning fast.
Information released by Adidas about the ball explains how the high-tech features work. A ‘speedshell’, high-tech sensor and water-based inks and glues combine to make it faster and more advanced
‘The new design allows the ball to maintain a significantly higher speed as it journeys through the air,’ he said.
‘For the biggest global stage in all of sport, we set out to make the impossible possible with radical innovation by creating the fastest and most accurate FIFA World Cup ball to date.’
That extra speed comes from the fact the ball is made with water-based inks and glues, with dimples on the skin also giving it a much smoother feel; rather than using raised textures like previous balls.
This claim is strongly supported by Uruguay goalkeeper Sergio Rochet; who said the extra speed makes his job much tougher.
‘Year after year, it gets better for the strikers and for us goalkeepers it gets very tough … this is a very fast ball,’ he told reporters recently.
Basketball or football? The World Cup balls are so high-tech that French star Kylian Mbappe thought he’d give a jump shot a try
It’s easily the most high-tech World Cup football ever, though not everyone is a fan.
England star Kieran Trippier appeared to blame the balls for the side’s struggles with set pieces; something that has previously been a strength for the Three Lions.
‘Every time I’ve crossed the ball I’ve felt the balls are a bit different but there are no excuses really,’ Trippier told reporters.
‘I would just say the balls are a bit different, but it is not the heat or anything. I feel it’s a bit lighter. It feels if you put too much power on it it’ll just fly away.’
It doesn’t come cheap, though.
Fans who want a replica of the ball – which of course doesn’t include the technology – at Rebel Sport for $240 AUD.
History of World Cup footballs
Telstar Mechta 18 – Russia 2018
The ‘Telstar Mechta’ is fit with a ‘vivid red design’ which was supposed to reflect the colours of the host nation and the ‘rising heat’ of knockout football.
It featured the latest technology and an innovative NFC chip to enable digital interaction.
Brazuca – Brazil 2014
The unique scientific feature was that it had six polyurethane panels which were bonded to keep the ball the same weight and roundness in heavy rain.
With the Jabulani far from popular, the pressure was on FIFA and adidas to ensure the latest instalment of the World Cup ball merited more positive coverage.
Jabulani – South Africa 2010
The Jabulani, which means ‘to celebrate’ in Zulu, was adorned in 11 colours in tribute to Adidas’ 11 previous World Cup balls.
It used for the first time ‘grip and groove’ technology – thermally-bonded panels twisting around the ball for extra aerodynamics.
But it was met with a storm of criticism from players during the tournament.
Teamgeist – Germany 2006
This was Adidas’ best performing ball ever. Tests confirmed that the Teamgeist was more round, precise and consistent than any other competetive match ball.
According to FIFA: ‘Thanks to a revolutionary 14-panel ball configuration, players were able to show their true skills, as the quality and performance characteristics were identical every time they kicked the ball.’
Fevernova – Japan/Korea 2002
This was the result of three years of improvement on the ‘Tricolore’ at the adidas research centre in Scheinfeld in southern Germany.
The adidas triad design had now become two single, enlarged triads with the points turning into clockwise arrows in the colours of grey, red and gold.
Tricolore – France 1998
The ball itself was based on an entirely new synthetic material featuring ‘syntactic foam’, claiming to give better compression and more explosive rebound characteristics than its predecessor.
The foam was made up of gas-filled micro-bubbles that distributed energy equally when the ball was kicked.
Questra – USA 1994
Inspired by space technology, high velocity rockets and America’s ‘quest for the stars’, the USA 1994 match ball was named the Questra.
Enveloped in a layer of polystyrene foam, the Questra had greater ball acceleration when kicked, felt softer to the touch gave players better ball control.
Azteca – Mexico 1986
This was a completely new model, developed for the World Cup in Mexico.
Made of synthetic material in layers, each with different properties to give strength to the ball, it was able to retain its shape and be fully waterproof.
The Azteca Mexico was a hand-sewn ball, and for the first time, synthetic material, rather than leather was used to produce it.
Tango Espana – Spain 1982
This was the first ball to be made of a mix of real leather and synthetic material.
It was once again composed of 32 hand sewn panels, with the same black and white Tango design: the curved triangles were printed on every hexagon, which formed circles around the 12 pentagonal panels, giving the ball a visual illusion of 12 identical circles.
Telstar – Mexico 1970
The World Cup in Mexico in 1970 was the first FIFA World Cup to be televised around the globe, so, Adidas added 12 black pentagonal panels to make it more visible on black and white television and named it after the Telstar satellite.
The black and white pattern also helped players to see the spin of the ball as it traveled through the air.
To this day, the Adidas Telstar remains the common design template for all generic soccer balls.
