Adidas presents the official match ball for the London 2012 Olympic Games football tournament – ‘THE ALBERT’

London, 1st March, 2012 – The Albert, the official match ball to be used at the London 2012 Olympic Games football tournament was officially revealed today at The City of Coventry Stadium by Tom Cleverley of Manchester United and Robert Ashcroft, the 43 year old from Derbyshire who named the ball.

Tom Cleverley was on hand to present the ball to Robert Ashcroft, before they both stepped up to the penalty spot to be the first individuals to play with the ball in a London 2012 Olympic hosting stadium.

Cleverley said at the launch, “The Albert certainly has a unique name and striking identity. It is like no other ball I’ve seen before and it is going to really stand out on the pitch. The ball looks youthful and that is what London 2012 is meant to be about. The Olympic Games is going to be a huge event for Great Britain and if selected I would be delighted to represent Team GB.”

The name ‘The Albert’ was chosen after Adidas, Official Sportswear Provider for the London 2012 Olympic & Paralympic Games, invited the Great British public to ‘name the ball’.

Over 12,000 unique names were suggested over a ten day period in February 2011 and the name of the ball was announced in July 2011, one year ahead of the football tournament.

The Albert carries the London 2012 logo and features additional design elements in striking colors from the London 2012colour palate. The ball will be used to kick off the Olympic Football Tournament in Cardiff on 25th July, two days before the Opening Ceremony.

Ashcroft submitted his suggestion of ‘The Albert’ with his own interpretation of cockney rhyming slang where he proposed the London iconic landmark ‘The Albert Hall’ could mean ‘Ball’. Information

Technology:

‘The Albert’ features a series of triangular panels that are thermally bonded together to ensure a true, stable flight path. Covering each panel of the ball is a grip texture which supports boot to ball contact and enhances ball control. Beneath the outer surface of the ball is a woven carcass and a new bladder for increased air retention and reduced water uptake.

‘The Albert’ meets and exceeds all FIFA Approved Standards for an Official Match Ball making it the most tested ball adidas has ever produced.

From Alberto Izaguirre Serrano, Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico:

Just like the Questra Europa in 1996, the Adidas Gamarada was designed similar to the Adidas Terrestra Silverstream, Official Match ball in the Euro 2000. This was the fourth Equipment ball after Adidas Tricolore, Icon and Terrestra Silverstream.  Adidas indicated the balls where softer, faster and more durable.

The Gamarada ball features synthetic foam, a special layer of highly compressible gas-filled-micro-balloons of equal size which returns energy in equal measures in all places. This gives the ball greater rebound characteristics, which means that it’s faster and more accurate and predictable ball flight. The millions of individual cells of air bedded in a polyurethane matrix also make it a much more durable ball.

The design of the Equipment Gamarada reflects the colors of the Australian outback. And the name is derived from the Language of the aborigines, and means “camaraderie” or “friend”.

Above picture provided by Jacques Barralon

Adidas Japanese J-League Version of the Gamarada

Used
in all the Japanese league matches in 2000

The following pictures are from Soccer Ball World visitor Sheridan Bird

Adidas Etrusco

Women’s World Cup 2015 Match Ball

For FIFA Women’s World Cup Canada, 2015

Adidas unveils Match Ball for 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup

FIFA and Adidas celebrate women’s football  05-Dec-2014Adidas today unveiled the official match ball of the FIFA Women’s World Cup Canada 2015, the Adidas conext15. The ball features a new green, red and blue ribbon design inspired by the elements of nature: earth, wind and fire.

The Adidas conext15 features the same ground-breaking technology that was used so successfully in Brazuca, the official match ball of the 2014 FIFA World Cup. The ball has a new structural innovation with a unique symmetry of six identical panels alongside a different surface structure that provides improved grip, touch, stability and aerodynamics on the pitch

Thank you Jacques Barralon for the above picture.

Engineered to the same specifications as the Equipment Tricolore (the Official Match ball of World Cup France 98′), the Adidas Equipment Icon was FIFA’s Official Matchball for the Women’s World Cup in 1999. This ball was the first one designed specifically for the Women’s World Cup.  Unlike traditional soccer balls, the Equipment Icon uses the same syntactic foam technology which debuted in the Equipment Tricolor at France 98′. According to Adidas, “syntactic foam’s tight, uniform matrix of gas-filled micro-balloons distributes energy more equally, enabling more rebound characteristics that make the ball faster and more accurate off the foot”.  The Equipment Icon’s design features colorful “icons” from the eight venue cities of Women’s World Cup 99′ including: San Jose, San Francisco, Portland (OR.), Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, Boston, and Washington D.C.  These icons are integrated into the Adidas “Tango” pattern, with an overlay of stars in honor of the US flag.  FIFA approved. The Equipment Icon is only the second ball to feature the Adidas Equipment logo.

Sizes: 5

Information and pictures supplied by Alexander Djolev from Sofia, Bulgaria

By 1998, FIFA World Cup France was played with a ball which sported the French red-white-blue tri-color. A complete departure from the old traditional black and white pattern.  The first official World Cup soccer ball that was in color. The TRICOLORE used underglass print technology with a thin layer of syntactic foam.

The above picture was provided by Sebastiano Calì from Italy. Thanks!

The above Tricolore soccer ball (football) picture provided by Sheridan Bird. Visit  www.sheridanbird.com.

Thank you Jacques Barralon for the above picture.

Featured a newly engineered hi-tech syntactic foam layer. This new foam material had better compression and more explosive rebound characteristics, making the ball softer and faster than its predecessor, Questra. The first World Cup ball in color was a revolutionary concept in ball surface design. 

Graphics

Was the first ever multi-colored Match Ball. France’s flag and national colors (the Tricolore) and the “cockerel” the traditional symbol of the French nation and Football Federation, inspired the ball’s name and design.