The Greatest Show on Earth!
It has been labelled “the greatest show on earth”, with the best football players on the planet coming together every 4 years to compete for the most coveted prize in international football. The 2014 FIFA World Cup promises to be a phenomenal tournament, and its setting in Brazil (the spiritual home of football) will add some extra spice to an already potentially exciting show. From a technology point of view, there have been so many advancements since the previous world cup that will add to this year’s spectacle. In this article, we look at the new technology that is to be used at this year’s tournament and the impact it will have.
The Ball
You can’t play a football match without a football, and this year’s tournament sees the introduction of the “Brazuca” from Adidas. Adidas claims that the ball has been in production for the past two and a half years, and it has been tested by over 600 players in 10 countries over 2 continents There are different views as to whether the ball is advantageous to certain players, while scientists and indeed some of the players at this year’s tournament have praised the new ball, saying it’s a huge improvement from the one used four years ago – including some goalkeepers and match officials. The ball itself is heavier than the “Jubilani”, which results in fewer movements when in the air. It’s the Brazuca’s outer shell where the magic happens, however. The carcass is made of only six inter-locking panels, all the same shape, which are thermally bonded together. The whole interior is taken almost one-to-one from the balls used in the Champions League and Euro 2012, as are the pimples on the exterior, which maximizes foot-ball-contact.
Goal-Line Technology
Goal-line technology has been a talking point in professional football for years. It has divided opinion at all levels, including players, coaching staff, officials, club delegates etc. This World Cup will be the first to deploy goal line technology – a system supplied by the German firm “GoalControl” (www.goalcontrol.de) who were selected by FIFA ahead of a rival bid by British rivals Hawk-Eye. Fourteen high-speed cameras will relay a verdict within a second to watches worn by match officials. FIFA President Sepp Blatter has described the new technology as a “necessity”. In the last two years, the technology has been gradually rolled out across various competitions and leagues, particularly in Europe with the English Premier League adopting it, despite the fact the technology has been in existence for nearly 10 years. When a goal goes in, the referee will be able to check his or her smartwatch to see whether ‘Goal’ has flashed up on the screen, which will hopefully put an end to phantom goals and some of the most controversial moments in the game.
The jerseys
This year’s competition will see the introduction of technologically advanced jerseys worn by the players. Kit suppliers PUMA (which supplies kits to the teams such as Italy, Ghana, Cameroon, and Algeria, amongst others) have designed new jerseys for the tournament which combines athletic taping and compression fit fabric. ACTV technology is a compression technology used in these PUMA garments that helps to reduce the muscle vibration in athletes. Think of it as stretching rubber bands tightly along the players’ bodies, holding the muscles tightly to prevent vibration while running. This gradual compression promotes stamina recovery. Adidas (who supply countries such as Germany, Spain and Argentina to name but a few) have designed “Climacool” technology. This new fabric has reduced the overall weight of the jerseys by 40% down to 100g. The fabric which is highly breathable removes the moisture from the skin and pushes it to the surface for quick evaporation, combined with mesh linings in critical heat zones to aid the comfort of the player on field. One of the main causes of fatigue is sweat, which reduces the breathability of the players major muscle groups. Looking at the biggest kit supplier for the competition, Nike (who will be supplying 10 teams including Brazil, England, USA to name but a few), they have devised a similar shirt technology to Adidas, it’s known as “Dry-fit”. Dri-FIT, according to Nike, is a high performance microfiber which moves sweat away from the body to keep the players comfortable. This, along with the laser cut holes that form a mesh layer, works towards creating a body-mapped fabric which is designed keeping natural body contours in mind. Combined with ventilation zones this allows for more air to travel through the fabric.
So with all these new enhancements to the technology at this year’s competition, it should make for an exciting, improved and ultimately enjoyable World Cup.
About Metrifit
Metrifit is an athlete monitoring system that gathers subjective and objective information from both coaches and athletes in a simple but effective manner with intelligent visualization helping coaches and athletes to act on that data. Why not have a look at our Ready to Perform product and gain insight on the physical and mental state of your athletes through our daily wellbeing questionnaire? To find out more visit our Metrifit Product Overview page or get in touch for a free demo.