On the day of the draw for the 2010 World Cup finals, adidas has revealed the official images of the match ball the players will use in South Africa next summer.
Called the adidas JABULANI, which means ‘to celebrate’ in the Bantu language of IsiZulu, adidas say the ball will please both outfield players and goalkeepers as it has been designed to fly through the air with deadly accuracy, even at altitude. Additionally, goalies will be doubtless happy with an exceptional surface grip.
And it seems that the players do indeed agree as the following four statements show:
Michael Ballack:'Â “Fantastic, the ball does exactly what I want it to.”
Petr Cech: “You can feel the energy coming towards you, like a shot.”
Frank Lampard: “A very strong ball, true to hit.”
Kaká: “For me, contact with the ball is all-important, and that’s just great with this ball.”
The ball is made up of eight thermally bonded 3-D panels and features newly developed ‘Grip n Groove’ technology. The panels are for the first time spherically moulded which allows the ball to be rounder than ever before.
The integrated grooves provide unmatched flight characteristics, making this the most stable and most precise ball adidas have developed. The JABULANI has a dimpled surface making it easier to grip and control, whatever the weather. It also allows more spin to be put on the ball when kicked so the World Cup should see incredible goals and saves.
Much of the background research on the ball was carried out at Loughborough University in the UK and Dr Andy Harland of the University’s Sports Technology Institute said:
The research team at Loughborough University has been working since 2006 to help adidas develop the most aerodynamically advanced ball ever.
The JABULANI'Â outperforms all other balls in a wide range of tests and is 20% more accurate.
As well as testing at Loughborough, top names from around the globe have also been busily trying out the ball including players from AC Milan, Bayern Munich, Orlando Pirates and Ajax Cape Town.
The JABULANI is the eleventh adidas World Cup ball and the design is influenced by South African culture. Eleven colours are used representing the 11 official languages and the 11 tribes of South Africa that make the country so diverse and unique.
The adidas JABULANI World Cup 2010 match ball will go on sale from December 5th with a retail price of £80 for the match ball and £15 for the replica.
Tech Specs and R & D
Accuracy
Prototype ball aerodynamic research was conducted by Loughborough University’s Sports Technology Institute and the adidas football laboratory in Scheinfeld, Germany.'Â Wind tunnels were used from 2006-08 and real ball development testing from 2008-present.'Â This included using a kicking robot repeatedly aiming the ball towards a target.
Aero grooves
Aero grooves create the clearly visible profile on the ball’s surface. The integrated grooves provide unmatched flight characteristics, making this the most stable and most accurate adidas ball ever.
Grip
Since the introduction of the “goose bumps” surface for the last European Championship ball, the microtexture of the new ball’s outer skin has also been given a visible improvement. The JABULANI has fantastic grip, giving players full control over the ball under all weather conditions.
3-D Panel Shapes
The Match Ball for the 2010 Fifa World Cup features a completely new, ground-breaking technology. Eight 3-D spherically formed EVA and TPU panels are moulded together, harmoniously enveloping the inner carcass. The result is an energetic unit combined with perfect roundness.
Saw that the ball must be approved by the fifa to be able to be used in all fifa events, including the world cup, saw under footballs.fifa.com
Very beautiful, but not even close to be as good as the 2002 world cup ball.
sick sick sick,nice ball! love da name:JABULANI ;D
wow like the teamgeist
2006 ball was better
Maybe the Teamgueist was more sober and classical, but it was because of the way German people are, or at least is what they look like, this new ball has plenty of colors and the design is more agressive and joyful because that´s the way Africans behave. Loved the ball, can´t wait to kick it…
Excited to see how the new 8 panel design works out.
good design..,
I think they’re trying to turn the ball into a balloon.
Yes I am also excited to see how the new design works. The new design for 2006 made a massive impact. Can you guys remember all the long range goals scored in the last world cup? By germany in particular? Most memorable was a certain schweinsteiger scoring a long range double from the same spot against portugal in the third place playoff. It even provided the inspiration for my IB extended essay. It’s not just a gimmick and I proved that with experimentation on bounce, spin and parabolic trajectory. The goal of these guys seems to be to get as far away from the “golf-ball” model as possible and therefore eliminate the Magnus effect……….but I digress, I don’t want to bore you guys with the technical details.
This design looks innovative and intriguing…in pursuit of the perfect roundness. I would have preferred less white space on the ball and a more liberal use of colour like on the african cup of nations ball…but this is suitably nice. Africans are very big on explosions of colour and noise (vuvuzelas).
every time they say its the ’roundest’ ball ever, how much more round can it get!!?
well, less panels, more round. ie. less seams.
making a one-piece ball any time soon?
kuuku, I think that’s a fantastic IB Extended Essay topic. I’m trying to figure out mine, but that’s actually not a bad idea, shame I’m not taking Physics, lol.
Just curious, where’d you get the image before the unveiling?
brick – I think you’ll find it was splashed across the back page of the Sun in the UK a few days ago then picked up by all the other British newspapers.
Since then it’s been featured on a load of web sites too.
It is awesomely awesome..!!
its ok i think. i dont get as excited with new balls as i get excited with new boots. think thats the case for most people.
Fantastic! Im gettin it 4 X-Mas
Nice ball…but im curious if they will continue the same way they did in ’06, for the final have a different colorway of the ball.
Incredibly & perfectly designed football in pursuit of roundness. The Jabulani as its called reflects the true Africa with the integration of the 11 colours & i know with the technological improvement of the ball, the World Cup is going to hve a bumper harvest of goals. Thumbs up to Adidas.
will Italy use a special gold ball cos they were the winners??
it dosent matter what it looks like its what ya do with it ? :S
nice ball, and he is not very round 🙂 he is just normal