Soccer has been played in various forms though out history. Many sites on the world wide web have information on the history of football or soccer. Of course, here at Soccer Ball World, we will concentrate on the history and evolution of the soccer ball.

Early Ball History
Through out history, humans have enjoyed kicking a ball or something like a ball. South American Indians were known to use a light elasticized ball. However; rubber was not to be practically manufactured until a few thousand years later.

According to historical references and legend, early balls ranged from human heads, stitched up cloth, animal and human skulls to pig or cow bladders.

During the Ts'in and Han Dynasties (255 BC-220 AD), the Chinese played 'tsu chu', in which animal-skin balls were dribbled through gaps in a net stretched between two poles. Certain ancient Egyptian rites are said by historians to have similarities with football, and both the ancient Greeks and Romans also played a game that entailed carrying and kicking a ball.

According to pre-medieval legend, an entire village would kick a skull along a path to a nearby village square. The opposing village would in turn attempt to kick the skull to the first village's square. Wow, that probably caused more riots than in modern soccer games.

A Medieval custom was to take pig bladders used from live stock killed in preparation for winter sustenance and inflate them. They would play a game using their feet and hands to keep the "ball" in the air. Sounds like hacky sack to me.

The animal bladder balls were eventually covered with leather for better shape retention.

Balls in 1800's
In 1836 Charles Goodyear patented vulcanized rubber. Prior to this, balls were dependant on the size and shape of the pig's bladder. The more irregular the bladder, the more unpredictable the behavior of the ball was when kicked. However; it would not be until the twentieth century until most balls were made with rubber bladders.

In 1855, Charles Goodyear designed and built the first vulcanized rubber soccer balls (footballs). The following picture shows the Charles Goodyear ball that is on display at the National Soccer Hall of Fame which is located in Oneonta, NY, USA.

In the 1862, H.J. Lindon developed one of the first inflatable rubber bladders for balls. Tragically his wife previously died from lung disease. Reportedly from blowing up many hundreds of pig's bladders. Lindon was probably inspired to develop the inflatable rubber bladder because of the ill effects of blowing up pig's bladders. The balls with the rubber bladders ensured that the ball remained hard and oval. Lindon also claimed to have invented the rugby ball but did not patent the idea. In those days, the round ball was preferred because it was easier to kick and the oval ball was easier to handle.

In 1863 the newly formed English Football Association met to hammer out the laws of the game. No description of the ball was offered in the first set of rules. When the rules were revised in 1872 it was agreed that the ball "must be spherical with a circumference of 27 to 28 inches" (68.6 cm to 71.1 cm). That rule remains in today's FIFA laws. Very little has ever been written about the ball, probably because it has remained very much the same over the years. The official size and weight of the ball was first fixed in 1872. It was changed ever so little in 1937 when the official weight was increased from 13-15 oz to 14-16 oz. The Encyclopedia of Association Football (first published in England in 1956) says as follows "According to the Laws of Football, the ball must be spherical with an outer casing of leather or other approved materials. The circumference shall not be more than 28 in., nor less than 27 in, while the weight at the start of the game must not be more that 16 oz., nor less than 14 oz." The Laws of the Game as published in 2001 say exactly the same thing as to size and weight. What has changed drastically over the last 30 or so years is the material the ball is made of and the shape of the panels that make up the ball.


Developments in soccer ball design is continuing. Many companies have recently come out with new high tech materials and designs for soccer balls. The object is to develop the optimum soccer ball that is flight accurate, water proof, fast in flight and transfers all of your kicking force to the ball (does not absorb energy), has soft feel, and is safe to head the ball. Optimum soccer balls should also adhere to ball specifications given by governing bodies such as FIFA.

New balls such as Adidas' Roteiro, Finale and Fevernova, Nike's Geo Merlin, Spalding's Infusion, Puma's Shudah, and Mitre's ISO use the latest design innovations and high tech materials. For more information on the latest innovations, check out Soccer Ball World's Soccer Ball Developments page.

 

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