The Adidas Brazuca is the official match ball of the 2014 FIFA World Cup, which is being held in Brazil.It is made by the company Adidas, a FIFA Partner and FIFA World Cup Official Match Ball supplier since 1970.
Naming
The name of the ball was revealed on Sunday 2 September 2012. It was selected by a public vote organised by the Local Organising Committee and Adidas, with over one million Brazilian football fans voting. The name Brazuca was chosen with 77.8% of the vote.Two other voting options were given: Bossa Nova (14.6% of the vote) and Carnavalesca (7.6% of the vote).
According to FIFA, "the informal term 'brazuca' is used by Brazilians to describe national pride in the Brazilian way of life", and "mirroring their approach to football, it symbolises emotion, pride and goodwill to all". The term is also used as slang for "Brazilian" and became well-known abroad due to the Brazilian diaspora.
Technical aspects
The ball is a developmental successor to the Adidas Tango 12 series of balls, with the same bladder and carcass but a different surface structure. The ball weighs 437 grams and has a circumference of 69 centimetres. The ball has been made of six polyurethane panels which have been thermally bonded; the reduction in the number of panels is claimed to increase the consistency in the ball.The Brazuca ball has been stated to be more aerodynamic than the Jabulani ball used in South Africa for the previous World Cup. It is textured to feels more like the Adidas Finale 13, the official UEFA Champions League ball, than the Adidas Jabulani.
Testing
The Brazuca has gone through an extensive testing process before its use at the World Cup. Adidas had been developing the ball for over 2 years, and had worked with many teams and players to ensure the ball was acceptable. The ball has appeared in the FIFA U-20 World Cup, DFB-Pokal (German Cup) final as well as disguised as the Adidas Cafusa in international friendly matches.
Production
The Brazuca is produced in China and Pakistan. The original manufacturer is Taipei-based Long Way Enterprise who manufacture the ball in their subsidiary YaYork Plastic Products in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, China. The company has been associated with production of Adidas balls since 1997.
However Long Way was unable to meet the high demand for the ball. A second supplier, Forward Sports (based in Sialkot, Pakistan), was brought in to help manufacture the ball. Forward Sports, who have been associated with Adidas since 1995 and already supplied footballs for both the Champions League and the German Bundesliga, were awarded the contract by Adidas at short notice after the original manufacturer in China failed to meet the demand[citation needed]. Over 42 million Brazuca balls were exported from Sialkot.
Each ball is expected to be sold for around US$160.
No comments:
Post a Comment