Not Just Any History, It’s Indian Football History

If you are a fantasy football fan, you must know all the beautiful tales linked to the sport. Aren’t we right? Apparently, forming your own fantasy football league and playing is more thrilling if you go for knowing about the sport. 

Indian national team’s small international ranking does not quite reflect the sport’s fame in the nation. People widely play and view football here. European club-level football matches and the international matches are a big hit among the younger gen in India. Let’s know about the football game origin and evolution. 

Rich Tradition of Football in India:

Football has a rich tradition in India. And the history of the game in this nation is significant and something which is worth discussing. The starting of football journey in India traces back to the mid 19th century. It was when British rulers introduced the game in our nation. According to the records available, the first game on Indian soil has arranged between ‘Calcutta Club of Civilians’ and the ‘Gentlemen of Barrackpore’ in 1854. The first official football club of India, ‘Calcutta Football Club’, was established in 1872.  Loads of us might be ignorant of the fact that Asia’s oldest football tournament. It is also the world’s third oldest football contest, has its roots in India. Branded as the “Durand Cup”, named after the then Foreign Secretary of India, Sir Mortimer Durand, this celebrated football tournament began its journey in Shimla in 1898. 

The Taste of Victory 

The very first notable achievement for Indians in football was Mohun Bagan winning IFA Shield Trophy on 29th July, 1911. They defeated East York Regiment by 2-1 victory margin. Mohun Bagan’s victory over the British sovereign had then become an issue of political nationalist upsurge; football had turned out to be an outlet of aggression for the young generation. 

As a result of that victory, new football tournaments and football clubs grew rapidly in the nation, mostly in Calcutta (present day Kolkata). With an increasing number of activities in the football sports, the need for a regulatory body arose and thus the “All India Football Federation” – AIFF came to life in 1937. AIFF got recognized by FIFA in the year 1948 and it was one of the founder members of Asian Football Confederation (AFC), which was established in 1954. All these chronological events are a few unforgettable landmarks in the history of Indian football. 

The Golden Period 

Then saw the “Golden Period” of Indian football, which deserves special mention. India qualified for the World Cup – 1950, but later withdrew its participation because FIFA would not allow them to play bare foot. The year 1951 through 1962 will be remembered forever for the decade long worthy triumphs in the international space. The Indian footballers brought glory to the nation by winning the Gold medal in the 1951 Asian Games held in New Delhi. Then in 1956, India became the first Asian nation to register a semi-final appearance in Melbourne Olympic Games. India further established itself as the most dominating force to reckon with in the Asian sector with another Gold medal in the 1962 Asian Games held in Jakarta. 

This is the glorious tale of football in India. Enjoy playing fantasy football in future! 

Fantasy Football Calling Luis Suárez

Football has been and will continue to be the most popular sport in the world and now people are also taking part in playing football through fantasy football sports. The sport continues to grow on both the national and international stages. The international intrigue is not reserved for the World Cup every four years, so the compounding interest has created a market for daily fantasy football leagues. 

Yes, the secret is out, football still appeals to the masses as it rightly should. With the emergence of dream football, the benefactor is the fan. He can now take interest in a sport that has often been labelled uninteresting. So get your Luis Suárez jersey and check out what it takes to assemble your own Fantasy team. And know about your favourite footballer a bit. 

Luis Suárez plays for FC Barcelona

Suárez has won 16trophies in his career. This includes five league titles and a UEFA Champions League title at club level. It also includes a Copa América with Uruguay. Perhaps the best striker in the world lately, Barcelona forward Luis Suárez has had a roller coaster ride in his career so far. Let us take a glance at nine of the most interesting facts about him. 

The Uruguayan trimmed his iconic long hair as a token of respect. This is after getting the captaincy at Ajax from Thomas Vermaelen. Thomas Vermaelen afterwards joined the forward at Barcelona under Luis Enrique. 

During his days in the Premier League, Luis Suárez scored a hat-trick or more every 18 games, formally making him the most regular hat-trick scorer in the English top flight, a feat which no one has ever got in the historic league. 

Suárez is pet named as ‘El Pistolero’

His pet name means ‘The Gunfighter’, clearly demonstrating the Uruguayan’s goal-scoring ability and his brilliant brain for the football game. Following his terrific goal-scoring record for Liverpool, his skill has only enhanced during his time at Barcelona. 

Prior to teaming up with fellow South Americans Lionel Messi and Neymar Jr. at FC Barcelona to form the MSN, frequently coined by numerous to be the deadliest attacking trio in football history, Luis Suárez has had an alarming record of joining pacts with attack-mates Daniel Sturridge (Liverpool) and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar (Ajax). 

Luis Suárez has scored 43 goals for Uruguay so far, which makes him his nation’s highest goal-scorer in their history. Suárez has moved above such fruitful strikers such as Diego Forlan, Enzo Francescoli and Edinson Cavani, with his best years ahead of him, expect the striker to break all records for his nation. 

Luis Suárez has protested against the ‘unjust’ ban he got after his wicked biting incident in the 2014 FIFA World Cup. The striker has mentioned several times that the penalty was ‘too harsh’ and ‘unjust’. He has chosen not to attend any FIFA Gala’s in future as well. 

Enjoy reading and play online games! 

A Timeline Of Football History And Facts

Soccer or football is a team sport between two teams of 11 players with a spherical ball. Football is the most popular sport of the world with the craze for it increasing more and more day by day and the major cause for it is the advent of fantasy football sports.  

Playing online fantasy football having detailed knowledge about the historical facts of the sport is much fun than playing without knowledge. Hence, know about the timeline of football from the early times. 

The Beginning of the Sport 

  • The very early form of the game with scientific proof was an effect from a military manual in China. It dates back in 206 B.C. to 220 A.D. 
  • The Han Dynasty predecessor of a football was termed Ts’u Chu. It was a leather ball of 30-40cm in diameter full with hair and feathers. 
  • In Japan, a similar form of this game, known as kemari. It started about 500-600 years after the creation of Ts’u Chu. It then followed by chuk-guk in Korea and woggabaliri in Australia. 
  • The Greek episkyros and the Roman harpastum were soon after played with a smaller ball by two teams on a rectangular field marked by boundary lines and a centreline. The aim was to get the ball over opponent’s area. 

Introduction to the global game of football 

  • In 1314, football grew in fame in Europe, but authorities issued decrees forbidding the sport within the city due to the chaos it normally caused. 
  • In 1365, King Edward III of England really made the game punishable by law as it distracted soldiers from practising more helpful military disciplines, in particular archery. The ban lasted nearly 500 years. 
  • Although football was famous from the 8th to the 19th century, it muddled, violent, and more impulsive and normally played by an imprecise number of players. 
  • It was 9 years after the rules of football were first recognized in 1863 that the size and weight of the football was ultimately standardised. 
  • At the beginning of the 19th century, school football became the custom, in particular in the famous public schools. But the rules were still relatively free and easy, with no standard form of the game. 
  • Handling the ball was at first authorized, but on 8 December 1863, football ultimately barred it. The game that adapted ball-handling became the official sport of rugby. 
  • On the same year that the Football Association formed. 

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Worldwide Membership 

  • The world’s oldest football competition is the FA Cup. C.W. Alcock found it and has been contented by English teams ever since 1872. 
  • The first official international match took place in 1872 in Glasgow, between England and Scotland. 
  • England is also home to the world’s first football league, which was founded in Birmingham in 1888 by 
  • Aston Villa director William McGregor. The original format has 12 clubs from Northern England and the Midlands. 
  • When FIFA was founded in Paris in May 1904, it had 7 founder members: France, Denmark, Belgium, Spain, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Sweden. 
  • By 1925, the number had increased to 36, while in 1930 – the year of the first World Cup – it was 41. 
  • Over the next half-century, football’s fame continued to attract new fans and at the end of the 2007 FIFA Congress, FIFA had 208 members in all parts of the globe. 

Women and Football 

  • While football was played in several nations, in 1921 women of London were banned from playing the game. The banning lasted for 50 years. 
  • By contrast, Italy and France formed women’s leagues in early 1930s. 
  • The 1996 Olympics in Atlanta initiated women’s football as an Olympic event. 
  • The first Women’s World Cup was held in China from 16-30 November, 1991. It was followed by Dr. Hao Joao Havelange, who is the president of FIFA. 
  • At that event, the U.S. team won, beating Norway 2-1 in the finals. The U.S. later won the third Women’s World Cup in 1999, beating China. That event was held in the US. 
  • At present, football is played at the pro level in many nations in the entire world and 176 national teams partake globally. 
  • Twice the FIFA World Player of the Year, Mia Hamm led the United States to FIFA World Cup titles in 1991 and 1999 and Olympic gold in 1996 and 2004. 

Happy reading and playing fantasy football! 

Interesting Facts About The Brazilian Sensation Neymar

Brazilian football superstar Neymar aka Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior is the biggest superstar.  He is in his home country and the best player in the Brazilian National Football team. To play fantasy football skilfully, you need to know the right things about the players you are selecting in your fantasy football teams. 

That is when you will be called as the wise and smart fantasy soccer team creator. Let’s know about Neymar: 

Neymar has just played for Santos prior moving to Barcelona 

Even though Neymar has displayed his skills at Santos for years now. Not many folks know that it is the only team he has ever played for. He joined the Santos Academy in 2003 when he was just 11 and improved his skills there. 

Neymar scored his 100th professional goal on his 20th birthday 

On 5 February 2012, the day of his 20th birthday, Neymar scored his 100th professional goal against Palmeiras in classic Neymar way. 

Neymar nearly joined Real Madrid when he was 14 years old 

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Real Madrid’s interest in getting Neymar has been quite famous lately, but the deal fell through in the summer of 2011. But, Neymar could have joined the Spanish side long back when he just 14 years old. 

West Ham is the first club which made a bid on Neymar 

He could have been a player for West Ham if things had fallen into place some years back. In fact, West Ham is the first club that took notice of Neymar’s skills. And it made a bid of £12 million, which instantly turned down. 

Neymar could have been played in the 2010 World Cup 

Neymar got his chance to play under the manager, Mano Menezes, in August 2010 in a friendly match against the USA. He grabbed the chance with both hands and scored on his debut for Brazil. 

Barcelona’s ninth-most and PSG’s most expensive purchase is Neymar 

Barcelona paid almost $100 million for Neymar transfer from Santos in 2013. And, Paris Saint-Germain remunerated a whopping $263 million for Neymar in 2017. 

The only Brazilian athlete to be featured on the cover of TIME magazine 

Even though Brazil is a nation known for its sports legends, Neymar is the only Brazilian player to grace the cover of TIME magazine. In actual fact, the only other Brazilians to be featured on the cover of TIME magazine are politicians. This is truly an amazing and one of the most interesting facts about Neymar. 

Neymar is very rich and very young 

In 2012, Neymar was the seventh-richest footballer in the world, while Forbes named him the third highest-paid player under 25 in the world. And presently Neymar is the 3rd highest paid soccer player in the world in 2018 Forbes list.  

Enjoy reading and playing fantasy football! 

Cristiano Ronaldo – The Superstar Goal Scorer

Love him or hate him! Juventus’ Portuguese forward Cristiano Ronaldo is the crown jewel. And watching him play on the field, or putting him on your fantasy football team, it is just a dream coming true.

A lot of football fans just can’t breathe without the mention of Cristiano Ronaldo in their online fantasy football team. Hence, we are here with some amazing facts about your superstar footballer. Read on these amazing facts. It is likely that you will discover many unknown things about him.

Ronaldo’s birth name is Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro. His father is a gardener, Jose Dinis Aveiro. And his mother’s name is Maria Dolores dos Santos Aveiro, a cook. His father named him after Ronald Reagan.

All-time top international goalscorer

Cristiano Ronaldo is Portugal’s all-time top international goalscorer. He is the winner of the Ballon d’Or, footballer of the year. In the years 2008, 2013, 2014, 2016 and 2017, Ronaldo got award for his contribution to football. He also got the European Golden Shoe four times in the years 2007-08, 2010-11, 2013-14 and 2014-15.

Ronaldo inspires to do various goodwill works. Ronaldo paid for the brain surgery of a 10-month-old boy. Even he raised money for survivors of the 2004 Indonesian tsunami and paid for treatment for a 9-year-old cancer patient.

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His Early Playing Timeline:

Cristiano Ronaldo joined local amateur team Andorinha in the early 1990s, .

During the late 1990s, Ronaldo joined Clube Desportivo Nacional da Madeira. Moreover, it is one of Portugal’s leading professional football clubs.

Ronaldo signed with Sporting Clube de Portugal in the Early 2000s.

Besides, Cristiano Ronaldo signed with Manchester United on August 12, 2003.

He debuted for Portugal’s national team on August 20, 2003.

In June-July 2004, Cristiano Ronaldo started representing Portugal in the UEFA Euro. And he also scored a goal in the opener. With this one, he was playing his first major international tournament.

Ronaldo played for Portugal during the Summer Olympics. In addition, Portugal was eliminated in the group stage on July 2004.

He won the FIFPro Special Young Player of the Year award in 2005.

Cristiano Ronaldo scored his first World Cup goal against Iran. Portugal won 2-0 on June 17, 2006.

He won the FIFA World Player of the Year award in 2008.

Ronaldo transfered to Real Madrid. The deal had a £80 million transfer fee in 2009.

His Later Playing Timeline:

Cristiano Ronaldo opened a museum, which devoted to his football career in his hometown Funchal, Portugal on December 15, 2013.

Cristiano Ronaldo scored the 400th goal of his football career during January 6, 2014.

In addition, he was named Grand Officer of the Order of Prince Henry on January 20, 2014.

He officially turned Real Madrid’s all-time leading goalscorer. In the club’s 3-0 victory over Levante at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in October 17, 2015.

A documentary in his name, “Ronaldo”, premiered in London on November 9, 2015.

Cristiano Ronaldo signed a “lifetime” endorsement deal with the sports shoe company, Nike on November 8, 2016.

Also, Ronaldo has named the opening Best FIFA Men’s Player of 2016 on January 2017.

Ronaldo banned for five games. It followed his red card in Real Madrid’s 3-1 victory over opponent Barcelona. And top of the one-game ban for the red card, he missed four further games. Moreover this was for pushing referee Ricardo De Burgos Bengoetxea as he was leaving the field on August 14, 2017.

Cristiano Ronaldo won the FIFA Best Men’s Player Award for the second year in a row in October 23, 2017.

Ronaldo claimed his fifth Ballon d’Or, equalling the record set by undying opponent Lionel Messi in December 7, 2017.

Cristiano Ronaldo ranked number three on Forbes’ list of the world’s highest-paid athletes on June 2018.

Enjoy reading and playing online football!

The Birth of Red and Yellow Card

Have you just begun playing the fantasy football? Have you made your fantasy football league team? Can you imagine a football game without the coloured cards? We see every time a footballer misbehaves in the field during an ongoing match.  

No, modern soccer world cannot imagine playing without red and yellow card, also known as the penalty cards. Ken Aston was famous English referee of the infamous football match of 1962 World Cup in Chile. He was the inventor of these cards.  

Red and yellow cards oftentimes used for deciding vital match results. These cards have the power of switching the mood of the football field in split of few seconds. Perhaps from a cheering crowd to miserable. Observing how often clash occurs during a tense match; it seems hard to believe, yellow and red card system only started being used from about 48 years ago. 

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Why were the cards invented? 

During the 1962 World Cup in Chile, a vicious fight broke out between Italy and Chile. It proved as one of the most horrible brawls in football history. Ken Aston forced to whistle the first foul 12 seconds into the match and again at the 12-minute mark when he decided to take away Giorgio Ferrini, a footballer from the Italian team, from the football field. The non-English-speaking player could not understand Aston’s request and denied to leave the field, growing more and more violent and upset until he finally forced off with the help of the cop. Ken Aston realized the need of a system punishing players for bad sportsmanship. For the language barriers, it was tough for referees to send the players away only with words. 

When Ken Aston returned home, drawn to a set of traffic lights where he inspired to invent the red and yellow cards. He figured that two cards and colours would be a clear code for players who did not speak the same language, as the colours universally understood. The red and yellow card system was first used at the 1970 World Cup in Mexico and they are still used in every football match today. 

Enjoy reading and playing fantasy football! 

The Inevitable Striker – Lionel Messi

Discussion about soccer or fantasy sports is not complete unless we talk about our favourite footballers or trying to include them in our fantasy football leagues 

Knowing about our favourite footballers is as interesting as including them to play fantasy football 

Lionel Messi is firmly the greatest footballer of all-time. At 31, he still got plenty of time left to possibly end the debate. 

Also called a winger

He is a footballer whose placement is a striker. Also called a winger, for the FC Barcelona and Argentina national football club. Messi has already received many citations and awards for his extraordinary playing abilities. And he is also at the moment one among the ideal in his years. 

He once was a member of Club Atletico Newell’s Old Boys. But he swiftly transferred to Barcelonna to acquire his human growth hormone problem dealt with. At his debut, he was able to break his team record as the most youthful footballer to attain a league goal. 

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He executed 14 goals during the 2006-2007 season as a very first team regular who obtained a hat-trick in El Clasico, producing that period his break-out period. In 2008-2009, he has scored 38 goals. But throughout the 2009-2010 season, he obtained a wonderful 47 goal in all of his competitions. It was overturning, again, when he have scored 53 goals in the 2010-2011 season. 

He was the most notable scorer in the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship scoring six goals. Messi then become a regular member of Argentina’s worldwide team. He won a runners-up medal at the Copa America in 2006 when he gamed as the youngest Argentine in the FIFA World Cup. Messi also won his initial Olympic gold medallion in Beijing Olympics. 

Personal life

Nonetheless he has not only made names in the gaming community. Lionel Messi has additionally done properly in hid very own life. As of January 2009, he was announcing that he’s very happy together with his girl who had previously been then residing in Argentina. This girl grown to be Antonella Roccuzzo, also from Rosario where Messi originated. In past times, he said to have been passionately related to a glamour model from Argentina and another Rosario local. 

With a very soft heart for youngsters, their education and health care, he founded the Leo Messi Foundation. In an interview, he was quoted saying that his popularity and reputation now has granted him the opportunity helps little ones as he knows what they are experiencing. Over the foundation, youngsters are assisted with their medications, transportation and hospital stay charges. On March 2010, he was called as a UNICEF goodwill ambassador concentrating on protecting children’s legal rights. 

Based on a number of Lionel Messi biography, the German sportswear corporation Adidas is the major support of Messi by which he was included within their tv and print advertising campaigns. He has also settled a three-year contract with Herbalife, a company which assists his foudation. He has also been highlighted right in front cover of the gaming Pro Evolution Soccer 2 times. 

Enjoy reading and playing fantasy football! 

Tale of Captain’s Armband in Football

You may be a big fan of soccer and regularly play fantasy football to test your knowledge. But you may not know many of the detailed facts about this sport. 

Knowing the detailed and interesting facts about them will make your fantasy football league more interesting to play and also watch the real matches.  

Like most of the sports, team captain is the key link of a football team. Sometimes, they get to know as skippers. He is a team member selecting to be the on-pitch leader of the team. It is frequently one of the older or more experienced members of the squad. Or it is a player that can greatly influence a game. The soccer team captain normally identified by the wearing of an armband. 

Liability of a captain

The only official liability of a captain which is specified by the Laws of the Game. It is to participate in coin toss prior to kick-off (for choice of ends) and before a penalty shootout. Contrary to what sometimes said, captains have no special authority under the Laws to challenge a choice by the referee. But, referees may talk to the captain of a side about the side’s general behaviour when needed. 

During an award distribution event after playing a tournament such as a cup competition final, the captain typically leads the team up to collect their medals. Any trophy won by a team will be received by the soccer team captain who will also be the first one to hoist it. The captain also normally leads the teams out of the dressing room at the beginning of the match. 

Captain normally gives a rallying point for the team

If morale is low, it is the captain who will be looked upon to boost their team’s spirits. 

Captains might join the manager in deciding the starting eleven for a certain game. In youth or recreational football, the captain frequently takes on duties, which would, at a higher level, be given to the manager. 

So wearing the band, the skipper band, gives the captain of the soccer team quite a number of duties. 

Happy reading and playing fantasy cricket! 

Interesting Facts About Telstar 18 FIFA World Cup 2018 Football

Globally the football fever remains at peak always. But 2018 is special for the online fantasy football users as this is the year for the World Cup. 

The fantasy football users are in full mode this year as the soccer players are having their adrenaline pumping. 

Let us know a few interesting facts about the Telstar 18, the World Cup 2018 Russia Football 

This World Cup sees a restoration of the original Adidas ball. It had used in FIFA World Cup Mexico in 1970. The Adidas Telstar 18 is ‘the’ ball of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia. The name of original Telstar comes from a combo of television and star. It had white with black panels so the ball is prominent on the black and white television screen watched in the era. The original ‘Telstar’ totally reinvented the design of footballs for the future. 

The design and feel 

Designed by Adidas with better aerodynamics and an improved shape, the Adidas Telstar 18 made up of a synthetic leather covering and has six panels. The panels thermally bond using heat to seamlessly patch the panels together. This is a lot more durable than stitching the panels; it gives the ball a seamless touch and feels so the ball can glide through the air and maximize performance. 

The Telstar 18 also comes fixed with an NFC chip so consumers can interact with the ball through a smartphone and get elite detail data of each ball and content which includes challenges that they can enter and try to beat. 

Concentrate on sustainability

The Telstar 18 based around the idea of sustainability and made up of recycled packaging and backing stuff. 

Pakistan – the manufacturing nation

The Telstar 18 is manufacturing in Sialkot in Pakistan which is the world’s biggest manufacturer of hand-stitched footballs, and a hub of local factories that manufacture around 40-60 million footballs each year. In actual fact, the ‘Brazuca’ football used in the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil also manufactured in Pakistan. 

The company manufacturing the Telstar 18 for 2018’s World Cup is known as Forward Sports. It manufactures around 700,000 footballs per month and like its name brings forward thinking and pioneering footballs that have also been used in major league football tournaments such as the France Ligue 1, German Bundesliga and Champions League. 

Tested by experts 

The Telstar 18 has been widely tested for its speed, performance and agility. Players of famous football clubs use it on the field such as Juventus, Manchester United and Real Madrid. Football teams such as Colombia, Argentina and Mexico. Top football players around the globe use it such as Alessandro Del Piero, Leo Messi, Lukas Podolsk, Zinedine Zidane and Alessandro Del Piero. It is also tested by the 32 football teams playing in the World Cup before the start of the tournament with the intention to prepare for the matches. 

Enjoy reading and playing fantasy sports! 

The Official FIFA World Cup Match Balls

Fantasy sports mean making teams online and sit back to watch the players beat each other and earn points to make your created team win. Online fantasy sports, most exciting matches are the World Cups, whether it is of cricket or football. Let’s talk about fantasy football 

The World Cup Ball has changed plenty eventually, getting lighter and more technical in design. The materials have changed eventually as has the manufacturer responsible for designing and offering the balls for the tournament. Below we have put together a list of official football at each of the World Cups, including this year one. 

1930 World Cup – T-Model 

Called as the ‘T-Model’ due to the T shaped panels on the sides, this ball was the very first one to use in the World Cup. 

1934 World Cup – Federale 102 

Italy was the host for 2nd World Cup and this resulted in Mussolini insisting the ball to be made there. The outcome was the Federale 102. 

1938 World Cup – Allen  

Allen manufactured in France by a Paris based manufacturer whose name was also Allen design the ball. For the first time, a company’s name used to brand the ball. 

1950 World Cup – Duplo T 

This inflatable 12 panel ball used during the iconic 1950 World Cup where Uruguay shocked Brazil in front of nearly 200,000 people. 

1954 World Cup – Swiss World Champion 

In this version of WC ball the most notable aspect was its zigzag edges. 

1958 World Cup – Top Star 

This was the first tournament where the ball design was a competition. The winning design came from a Swedish company, and their ball called the Top Star. It became famous for its waterproof waxed surface. 

1962 World Cup – Crack 

Simply called as ‘the Crack’ this ball made of uneven shapes, which was a design never seen before. 

1966 World Cup – Challenge 4-star 

Slazenger, a British company were tasked to make ball for the 1966 tournament held in Britain. The ball was made of 25 rectangular panels and had no markings or branding on it. 

1970 World Cup – Telstar 

This version was named after the satellite put into orbit in 1962, the Telstar was the first ball made by Adidas for the World Cup. It is composed of 20 white hexagons and 12 black pentagons. The ball is iconic.  

1974 World Cup – Telstar Durlast 

After the success of the 1970 Telstar, Adidas did very little to change the 1974 ball.  

1978 World Cup – Tango 

The design for the 1978 ball was supposed to reflect the passion and zing of the nation of Argentina. 

1982 World Cup – Tango Espana 

The Tango Espana was the first ball to combine leather and synthetic materials and yet despite having better water resistant qualities, the ball still had issues which meant it had to be modified numerous times. 

1986 World Cup – Azteca 

The Azteca, the first fully synthetic ball, designed with aztec frescoes, the ball used in Mexico in 1986. 

1990 World Cup – Etruscan Unico 

Italy, the host nation of WC 1990 and the ball designed to celebrate that. The design was to celebrate the history of ancient Italy and the Etruscans. 

1994 World Cup – Questra 

The 1994 World Cup ball made of five different materials and polystyrene foam which made the ball waterproof. The name Questra derives from an ancient word meaning ‘pursuit of the stars’. 

1998 World Cup – Tricolore 

The Tricolore was the first colour ball in the World Cup Finals. The blue design signified the French flag. 

2002 World Cup – Fevernova 

The Adidas Fevernova was a ball like no other, in terms of design and colour way. It had a special foam layer, and had thicker inner layers to increase accuracy. 

2006 World Cup – Teamgeist 

This is the first World Cup ball with a triangular design. The ball for the 2003 Women’s World Cup was technically identical to the Fevernova, but had a different visual design. 

2010 World Cup – Jabulani 

In Zulu language, Jabulani means ‘celebrate’ but this official ball is one of the most controversial balls. 

2014 World Cup – Brazuca 

Brazuca, the first World Cup ball named by the public. Brazuca was selected as it is an informal term for Brazilian national pride in their way of life. 

2018 World Cup – Telstar 18 

This is the football of 2018 FIFA WC, Telstar 18 by Adidas. Designed to be a modern interpretation of the iconic 1970 Telstar ball, the ball only has six panels in an innovative design whereas the original Telstar had 32 panels fastened together. 

Happy reading & playing fantasy sports!