MEXICO 1970

The Adidas Telstar was completely made of leather like all other balls in its time; however, unlike any other ball, it featured 32 hand-stitched panels. The revolutionary design of Telstar re-wrote soccer ball history: it was the first white football ever to be decorated with black pentagons. Mexico 1970 was the first live televised FIFA World Cup and the revolutionary design of Telstar. The name derives from “Star of Television” which made the ball far more visible on black and white television.

 GERMANY 1974

Two adidas match balls were used for Germany ‘74. Telstar made a repeat appearance with new black branding replacing the previously gold branding. Adidas introduced a new all-white version named Adidas Chile. The materials and techniques used in the Telstar and Chile were identical to those used four years earlier.

ARGENTINA 1978

Soccer ball design experienced another revolution in 1978 with the introduction of the Adidas Tango. Adidas had created what would become a ‘football design classic’. Twenty panels with ‘triads’ created the impression of 12 identical circles. For the following five FIFA World Cup tournaments, the Match Ball design was based on this design. Tango featured improved weather resistance qualities, and took its inspiration from the deep passion, emotion and elegance of Argentina.

 SPAIN 1982

In Spain, 1982, the Tango España, the new generation of the Tango. The Tango España, made of real leather, was the head of a family whose members were specialists in particular fields. For example, the Tango Mundial was the top of the range model tested in the wind tunnel, the Tango Alicante was the special floodlight model, the Tango Malaga for hard grounds and the Tango Indoor for indoor football. The range of models was available not only in the basic white color, but also in orange and yellow.

MEXICO 1986   

 A completely new model was developed for the World Cup in Mexico. The Azteca Mexico was a hand-sewn ball, and for the first time, synthetic material, rather than leather was used to produce it. The ball consisted of an outer polyurethane wearing coat and three lower layers, which mutually complemented one another with their different "Adicron" structures. These were intended to ensure the ball's resistance, ability to retain its shape and its waterproof properties. With its never-before-achieved performance on hard ground, at high altitude, and in wet conditions, Azteca represented a massive leap forward for the game. Its elaborately decorated design was inspired by the hosting nation’s native Aztec architecture and murals.

 ITALY 1990

This ball was a high-tech product which was manufactured entirely from quality synthetic fibers. The lowest covering consisted of textiles impregnated with latex for form stability and resistance to tearing, the neoprene layer made the ball water-tight and the outer skin made of polyurethane layers was used for abrasion resistance and good rebound properties. The name and intricate design took their inspiration from Italy’s magnificent, ancient history and the contributions and fine art of the Etruscans. Three Etruscan lion heads decorate each of the 20 Tango triads.

USA 1994

The technical development for the Questra took place in the adidas center for ball development in France, followed by test games in France, Germany and the USA with professional players, amateurs and youth teams. The design embodied adidas's theme for the World Cup: innovation and "the quest for the stars". The ball was manufactured from five different materials with a flexible but durable outer layer made from polyurethane.  Inspired by space technology, high velocity rockets and America’s “quest for the stars”, Questra set new performance standards.

 FRANCE 1998

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.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. 

KOREA & JAPAN 2002

Adidas's Fevernova soccer ball was the official ball of the Korea Japan, 2002 FIFA world cup.The adidas Fevernova was the first World Cup Match Ball since 1978 to break with the traditional Tango design introduced in 1978.  It is three millimeters thick (11 layers). This includes a special foam layer with tiny gas filled balloons imbedded in a syntactic foam. The foam is based on an abrasion resistant polyurethane made by Bayer called Impranil® polyurethane. The outer cover of the ball consists of a combination of special synthetic polystyrenes (polyurethane) and natural rubber. Embedded within the layers are equal sized, highly elastic, exceptionally resistant gas-filled microcells

GERMANY 2006

The adidas +Teamgeist™ Berlin, the Match Ball especially produced for the final game in Berlin on July 9th, was officially unveiled by the President of the Organizing Committee, Franz Beckenbauer at the Brandenburger Gate in Berlin. The golden adidas +Teamgeist™ Berlin will only be used in one game, the single most important game in global football, the FIFA World Cup™ final.´

“The FIFA World Cup final is the most important match in the history of sport. There really is no greater thing than to play in a World Cup final. That is why I think it is a fantastic idea to have a very special ball especially for this match,” said Franz Beckenbauer President of the FIFA World Cup™ Organizing Committee: “Sure, the ball will still be round, no change there. But it will be a very special game and it is going to be played with a golden match ball that was especially designed for it. I think that's absolutely fantastic!”

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