[ctoa23]

It's been leaked early, and I thought it might be nice to have a separate WC ball thread from the general one.



Presser:

adidas and FIFA present the adidas “JABULANI”, the Official Match Ball for the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™. The “JABULANI”, which means “to celebrate” in isiZulu, features a South African inspired design and radically new technology. The new match ball will be available in retail from December 5th onwards.

The newly developed “Grip’n’Groove” profile provides the best players in the world with a ball allowing an exceptionally stable flight and perfect grip under all conditions. Comprising only eight, completely new, thermally bonded 3-D panels, which for the first time are spherically moulded, the ball is perfectly round and even more accurate than ever before.

The name:

The name ”JABULANI” originates from the indigenous language isiZulu, one of the eleven official languages of the Republic of South Africa, which is spoken by almost 25% of the population. Literally translated, “JABULANI” means “to celebrate”. Football is a passion that unites the world. The name of the new match ball appropriately pays tribute to the passionate football celebration international fans will enjoy in South Africa next summer.

The design:

Eleven different colours are used in the adidas “JABULANI”, the eleventh adidas World Cup ball. These 11 colours represent the 11 players in every team, the 11 official languages of South Africa and the 11 South African communities that make the country one of the most ethnologically diverse countries on the African continent. The colourful design brings together the tremendous diversity of the country in harmonious unity. Four triangle-shaped design elements on a white background lend the ball a unique appearance in African spirit. And like the outer facade of Johannesburg’s Soccer City Stadium, individual design elements also capture the colourfulness of South Africa.

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. Following the first tests, players all over the world are enthusiastic and are
promising many goals with the new ball.

Once launched, the "Jabulani" will be available for purchase in the BigSoccer Shop.

[illdthedj]

interested to see some different angles of it.



im actually liking the design of the country specific capitano balls better right now, although only the italy one has been shown. this italy ball reminds me of a cross between a europass ball and a tango....it looks like they took the europass ball, enlarged the circles...and those three lines make that curved-inward triangle shape like the tango ball.


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[ctoa23]

Those Capitano's just look cheap to me. The panel design makes it look like some blow up beachball you'd buy at Shop-Rite.

I like the Jabulani based off that stock photo, but will need to see it in person before I judge it further. The triangles on it are interesting, and the "fuzzy" pattern on them is the same one that's used on the instep of the new Predators.

Don't quite understand the "spherically molded bonding" part though. Wasn't that technology introduced back in '05 before WC2006? All this breakthrough technology makes my head hurt, and you just have to wonder how different this ball is from the Teamgeist with the exception of aesthetic changes.

[illdthedj]

oh yah, that capitano ball looks cheap and beach ball-ish....but i think that is the mini ball version....also, i was moreso talking about the visual/aesthetic design on it.

arn't the capitano balls supposed to look aesthetically the same as the upper tier balls? like, pretty much same visual design but different colors? the italy capitano ball looks quite a bit different than the world cup ball...

[WorldGame]

I recall how the 2006 WC Teamgeist ball was supposed to be such a huge revolution because it went from the 32-panel design down to a 14-panel design. But this Jubalani ball has gone to an 8-panel design. It's as if Titelist announced a new advance in golf ball design with 50 dimples instead of 250 or 300.

It makes me wonder if the ultimated barriers of design and engineering for a soccer ball is a one-piece/one-panel design. Or maybe, a one-piece design, but with golf ball-like dimples all over the surface. I'd assume that's not the case for various physics-related reasons (ie: dimples work on a golf ball in part because of its size, but wouldn't necessarily be exactly 1-for-1 translatable to a soccer ball's design). If that were the case, it'd have to be true dimples on a one-piece/one-panel surface, and so would be different from that MLS ball from Puma a few years ago that had a dimple-like surface on it, but the dimples were embosses (?) into the traditional 32-panel surface design.

All of which is to say, an 8-panel soccer ball seems sort of crazy revolutionary and sort of exciting, however much that can be said about something as otherwise trivial as a soccer ball.

[sam_]

Originally Posted by WorldGame

Or maybe, a one-piece design, but with golf ball-like dimples all over the surface. I'd assume that's not the case for various physics-related reasons (ie: dimples work on a golf ball in part because of its size, but wouldn't necessarily be exactly 1-for-1 translatable to a soccer ball's design).

funny you say this as i just read this on theworldgame.com.au

"This time, Adidas is convinced the Jabulani, which means "to celebrate" in isiZulu, will sail true because small dots on the surface improve reliability in the air for "an exceptionally stable flight and perfect grip under all conditions."

rest of the story here

http://www.theworldgame.com.au/2010-...up-ball-264682

[actusreus13]

In my opinion, this is one of the best looking ball Adidas has ever designed. Every time I look at it, I like it more and more. I've been waiting for a top Adidas ball that had a lot of white in it since the white/orange Champions League ball, which I think is one of the best looking balls ever released as well. Almost all of the Teamgeist II balls had silver metallic color in them that just made the balls look dull and uniteresting. Nike hit a jack pot with the Arrow and the red Omni balls and it was time Adidas realized a combination of white and other colors makes for a better design than silver metallic. Plus the ball looks like it's one of the sickest balls ever to play with. Considering how good the T2 ball is, this must be a blow-your-mind ball.

[WorldGame]

The Bayern Bundesliga match last Friday used the new ball for the first time. By next year, there will be an MLS matchball version of the new ball. So, to MLS, adidas, FIFA, and whomever else: please, in the name of all that is holy and pure, make the new MLS version of Jabulani predominantly white, with blue, green, and black MLS corporate colors in the trim...and nothing else! Please---no more silver!

[Zé Bill]

I agree with actusreus13 and WorldGame about the silver soccer ball --- to my eyes a mainly silver ball is just a less-visible ball. Like in a crowded penalty area scrum or in a low-quality YouTube clip, or a dimly-lit pitch etc.

My criticism of the good-looking Jabulani ball is that it likely might, like the Korea/Japan WC '02 ball did, look unnecessarily wobbly as it rolls or flies along due to the LARGE and FEW (4) "triangle-shaped design elements".

IMHO more and smaller "design elements" on a ball give players and viewers alike a truer picture of the ball's path and spin.

The worst ball design ever imho was that one at a particular Bundesliga stadium where one hemisphere of the ball was red and one hemisphere white. (any design to draw attention, tho, I suppose)

neither here nor there:

Marcelo Balboa mentioned during a CO Rapids MLS broadcast, back in the Puma ball days, that that ball's pattern (swirly cat-eye or old-school Cincinnati Bengals helmet, sort of) made it tough for a player to predict its trajectory. I did hear from a former NASL player that he loves the feel of that Puma ball, though. (no not during NASL days)

AND FURTHERMORE! I'm still waiting for the soccer ball/microphone convergence!......................... you know? the ball has sound-sensing layers built-in?... and the audio wirelessly transmitted to the broadcast signal?

[endlesswinterco]

got mine today, playing with it on sunday!