Summary
- In 2014, Adidas created the Brazuca ball, which was used in the World Cup, for the first time since the Adidas Jabulani in 2010.
- This recent ball underwent a decrease in the panels from the widely known 32 panels to just six, making the seams smoother than ever.
- However, in the previous World Cup, Adidas created the Jabulani ball, which was the smoothest ball ever made at the time.
- It had only eight panels, and while it did result in an unpredictable flight path, this made the ball seem “supernatural” to some.
- But this led to a phenomenon known as “knuckling,” resulting in a ball that would change direction unpredictably while in flight.
- This “knuckling” peaked at a critical speed of around 50-55 mph, which is around the sort of speed a professional striker can kick a ball at.
- Older 32-panel balls “knuckled” at around 30 mph, so unpredictable flight was less of an issue.
By Lewin Day
Original Article