from a story on premierleague.com about the new premiership ball:

QUOTE:
To help players make better split-second judgments, Nike introduced performance graphics and colour to the game in the original Total 90 Ball. The new ball takes the idea to the next level. A new, red asymmetrical band encircling the ball generates a more powerful visual signal as it rotates, providing a quicker read on ball location, spin rate, speed and trajectory from any angle. It is designed to help players make better decisions at top-speed, when the pressure is on.

"Nike strives to improve the game for both elite athletes and everyday football players. The original Total 90 Football pioneered the concept of performance graphics," said Nike's Football Design Director, Tom De Blasis.

surely they're taking the piss... i wonder which marketing guy came up with this after deciding not just to say they put a bit of red on the ball so it didn't look exactly like the old one.

Sorry, but I saw 'performance graphics - will dance for food' on the menu page and thought, "that's basically my job title and career statement".

will dance for food wrote:

QUOTE:
from a story on premierleague.com about the new premiership ball:

QUOTE:
To help players make better split-second judgments, Nike introduced performance graphics and colour to the game in the original Total 90 Ball. The new ball takes the idea to the next level. A new, red asymmetrical band encircling the ball generates a more powerful visual signal as it rotates, providing a quicker read on ball location, spin rate, speed and trajectory from any angle. It is designed to help players make better decisions at top-speed, when the pressure is on.

"Nike strives to improve the game for both elite athletes and everyday football players. The original Total 90 Football pioneered the concept of performance graphics," said Nike's Football Design Director, Tom De Blasis.

surely they're taking the piss... i wonder which marketing guy came up with this after deciding not just to say they put a bit of red on the ball so it didn't look exactly like the old one.

I am having flashbacks to the early-mid eighties official Football League ball with the red band and some kind of badge on it that always looked to me like an asymmetrical bowls ball.

I always picture Andy Gray scoring with it for Wolves but can't find a photo online.

This one from Minerva?

Not a surprise that 200percent would have the photo.

That might not be total bullshit. In baseball, hitters can sometimes know what the pitch is by picking up how it's spinning and the red laces make that possible. It would be near impossible to the spin on a plain white ball.

But a baseball is much smaller and moving much faster. I doubt these "performance graphics" will make it any easier to see the spin on a the ball than any other graphics. As long as there's some sort of pattern, the spin should be visible.

UA: What are you implying? Actually, don't answer that. I already know the answer and, yeah, it's largely true.

I'm not implying anything, 200.

I am, however, telling all and sundry that you are The Man when it comes to football design history.

BTW, Serie A will be using the same ball this season, but the stripe will be blue instead of red.

I don't think it's a bad design, actually. Could be a hell of a lot worse (the first Nike Premier League ball, for example, had a design that strangely made it look bigger than it actually was).

I'll reserve judgement until I see one in the flesh, but I agree that it isn't that bad. It still isn't a Tango or Telstar, though.

There'll never be another Tango or Telstar.

*sniff*

*hands 200 a hankie*

*makes sure to get it back, as I have a need for same*

Fine article there by twohundredpercent on great balls. Completely second those props for the old Stuart Surridge ball with the red stripe, which is my all-time number three - after the Telstar (of course) and the Nike Aerow Red (the original one from 2004 or 2005 with the proper stripe going all the way round, not last season's ugly-assed update).

I was never that keen on the Tango. It stuck around too long, as well.

I loved the Nike ball from the 1998-99 Champions League, which was pure white with a single Nike logo on it. Another good recent(ish) no-bullshit ball was the Derbystar Brilliant TT, a very old-school thing which resembled the old Minerva balls - just white with "DERBYSTAR" written on it in thick black letters. Popular with Dutch clubs, and one or two German ones. Of course, it didn't last: they brought out stupid versions called things like the Derbystar Flamenco with ridiculous splodges all over them, undermining the simple retro style of the original and making it look like a cheap petrol station crapout.

The one from the just-gone Euro Champs would have been OK if they'd just left it as polka dots and not put in those stupid panels you can only see close up.

Mitre balls were always the best.

/biased

ursus arctos wrote:

QUOTE:
This one from Minerva?

Not a surprise that 200percent would have the photo.

That's the one, though you ideally need it in colour and moving pictures to get the full disorientating effect.

"Nike strives to improve the game for both elite athletes and everyday football players"

No, Nike strives to make more money than its rivals from selling stuff.

The point made above about Baseball makes sense to me but the main difference being that pitcher and batter are standing still. In the hurly burly of the super soaraway premier league I doubt whether anyone has the time to adjust their technique to change the spin of the ball according to what it looked like in mid air last time they did it. It may be of some help for free-kicks etc.

It won't help any of the English players, unless Nike put some sticky stuff on the ball to help them keep it for more than a millisecond.

Greatest ever ball is the black and white hexagon style. Looked great in real life and on the subbuteo pitch too.

When I first saw the mention of the old 80s red-striped ball I thought, 'Ah, the Alan Brazil ball'. Then I saw the photo . . .