World Cup is a load of balls

Every time the World Cup comes around, we expect a load of balls to be talked.  Particularly if the pundits are talking up England’s chances.  But this year (just like last time(, we are being asked to believe that theworld cup ball will be a problem.  The engineers who have designed the official football for the 2010 World Cup have hit back at criticism of their ball by some players.  Maybe the engineers should have made it rond.

Fabio Capello said his players gave the new ball bad reviews, with some players saying it moves too quickly.  Now I am quite prepared to believe that balls move around at altitude because the air is thinner – but you can’t blame the ball for that.

And goalkeepers have claimed the new Jabulani ball is difficult to handle.

But engineers at Loughbrough University claim that their tests show it is the most “consistent” football ever manufactured.  And there was I thinking a football is a football.

The football that former England international Geoff Hurst belted into the goal in the 1966 World Cup final was made from 18 pieces of leather, stitched together and fastened with laces.

We want a ball that is very consistent that allows the best players to shine

Dr Andy Harland Loughborough University

The new World Cup football is made from just eight pieces of shaped synthetic material glued tightly together.

The result – for the first time in football history, say the manufacturers – is an undistorted, perfectly spherical ball.

But some players say it moves too quickly, and a number of goalkeepers say it is difficult to handle.

The engineers who helped design the ball, called the Jabulani, say it should be the most consistent football ever made.

Dr Andy Harland at Loughborough University used a robot to kick the ball.

His set up is able to reproduce corners, free kicks, passes and shots on goal – even more reliably than David Beckham.  Which is not saying very much of course – because Beckham can’t kick a ball at the moment.