FIFA World Cup 2022: Is 'Al Rihla' the fastest soccer ball ever? Here is everything you want to know

FIFA World Cup 2022: The spotlight is on Qatar, for the all-important FIFA World Cup. It seems like yesterday that team members of France were holding the World Cup in their hands in Russia. Since then, the world has gone through many massive changes. With COVID wreaking havoc on the world, the future of live sports looked pretty bleak, but thankfully, it is all in the past and the world as of now has geared itself up for the much-awaited FIFA World Cup that is played every four years.

This is the 14th consecutive collaboration between FIFA and Addidas. With every World Cup, the ball that is to be used garners a lot of spotlights. As far as the 2018 World Cup goes, it was played with the Addidas Telstar 18 and was the first football to show a black & white pattern. This was deliberately done to give the audience a perfect idea about where the ball was in the match. Come the 2022 World Cup, there have been some notable changes and the 'Al Rihla' will be under the pump when the soccer fest starts.

The overview

The ball is called 'Al Rihla' and is touted as one of the fastest balls to travel through the air. As the name suggests, 'Al Rihla' means 'the journey' in Arabic. The design of the ball is heavily inspired by the culture, architecture, iconic boats, and also the flag of Qatar. The vibrant colours inked on the ball are the representation of the host country and the ever-increasing popularity of the sport. The ball was launched in the presence of many soccer legends such as Casillas, Kaká, Farah Jefry, and Nouf Al Anzi and it has travelled through Dubai, Tokyo, Mexico City, and New York. As of now, Al Rihla is being called one of the most environmentally-friendly World Cup balls.

The tech involved

With the new edition that is in our hands, both FIFA & Addidas have worked closely to upgrade the ball and raise the bar higher as compared to its predecessor Telstar 18 which was used in Russia. The sporting company Addidas has certainly done a lot of research and as compared to the Telstar, this time around they have added a new bladder and carcass on the inside of the ball for better rebound & consistency. The ball also has a new panel design aka the speed cell. They are nothing but 20 diamond-shaped panels, both big and small which ensure flight stability on the ball.

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Aerodynamics

If the Al Rihla is compared to the 'Teamgeist' (2006) and 'Jabulani' (2010), the surface isn't that smooth. Both Teamgeist and the Jabulani had pretty smooth surfaces and there wasn't much that the air could've done on the ball. The Al Rihla is pretty different in that sense, it has a grainy surface to it and the air can attach itself to it and creates a lesser vacuum. This enables the ball from losing speed and it travels through the air much more quickly. The Al Rihla works on the same aerodynamics with which a golf ball functions. 

Is it environment-friendly?

Al Rihla, the ball that is to be used in FIFA 2022 is being touted as one of the most environment-friendly balls that have ever been used in the history of the tournament. The ball is much more sustainable as compared to the Telstar 18, the ball used in Russia in the year 2018. The ball has been created with a lot less material waste and uses more water-based ink, water-based blue, and water-based polyurethane amongst all the other things which makes it much more sustainable

The Performance

There is not much difference when you start playing with it, but it certainly feels quite soft and spongy to the feet. A higher responsive rate upon striking makes it much more feasible to plan the game and the passes. The most important thing about the new ball is the grip and how it sticks to the feet. This differentiates it from all the previous balls and also the ones that were used in the Champions League. The coating has a matte stickiness to it which ensures that the players have a very balanced grip on the ball. The movement is pretty stable and the ball is more controllable. The ball can move through the air if it is struck with power.

In all likeliness, the ball is certainly up for a challenging task and it will be quite a spectacle to see how the players adjust to the new technology.