Ahead of the 2025 MLS Season, adidas revealed the latest official match ball – their 20th in the 30 years of MLS. It’s a storied design that celebrates 30 years of league history through a vibrant and nostalgic graphic presentation. And we wanted to dive into that story to find out more with the adidas design team.
In a year that bridges a rich legacy and a hugely promising future, the 2025 MLS Official Match Ball emerges as a celebration of 30 years of league history and a nod to North America’s soccer revolution. Following its reveal and ahead of it being kicked in anger when the 2025 campaign gets underway on 22 February, we sat down with Joe Stothard, Senior Graphic Designer, and Cairo Salvatierra, Senior Product Manager at adidas Football, to delve into the creative process behind the ball’s design.
With anniversaries, the newly revamped FIFA Club World Cup, and a huge World Cup on the horizon, the duo reflects on crafting a ball that at once builds into all the hype Stateside right now, while also embracing the unique past that the league boasts. From bold visual cues inspired by archival gems to cutting-edge performance, the MLS 2025 ball is more than just a matchday essential—it’s a symbol of soccer’s ongoing rise in North America, and we wanted to explore the journey behind what is a milestone design.
The next two years are obviously huge for MLS and North American soccer in general, with anniversaries and the World Cup. How did that shape your approach to this project?
Cairo Salvatierra – You’re correct, the next two years are absolutely massive for soccer in North America, with the continued growth of the MLS, the US hosting the expanded FIFA Club World Cup this summer, and of course (what is sure to be) the largest World Cup ever in 2026. For the 2025 MLS ball, we celebrate not only the 30th anniversary of the league, but also the 20th consecutive year that adidas has provided the Official Match Ball for the MLS. Thus, we wanted to highlight and celebrate that rich history in a unique way on the actual ball design. Adidas will also be providing the Official Match Ball for the 2026 World Cup, so while we can’t give anything away on that front just yet, we did want to ensure that we created an MLS ball that did not clash with anything we will be doing there.
Joe Stothard – Yeah, I would just underline what Cairo just mentioned, that the rich visual history of MLS match balls was our main inspiration from a design side. Obviously with eyes on the US, Mexico and Canada leading up to the WC, celebrating a homegrown football movement which has evolved so much over the years felt like the right story to tell. There are so many memories embedded through the years, and we wanted to tap into the passion people have for MLS through returning to those icons on this match ball.
Talk us through the aesthetic design?
JS – We always aim to create the best performing matchballs on the planet, both from a construction side and how they work aesthetically. From our conversations with athletes we try to get to the bottom of what they need visually. How a ball moves during a match can obviously change how your graphics work, and how it looks in this movement can have a massive effect on a player. These objects are an essential part of their equipment, that relationship is a serious one, the difference between winning and losing. But you also aim to create something beautiful even if it’s not being kicked at 100+MPH, when resting on a shelf, nestled next to your training boots in a kitbag or signed by your favourite local player.
Hopefully we’ve added to the legacy of all those fantastic designs through the years!
How about the performance elements and technology behind the ball – has this changed at all, and if so, how?
CS - The construction of the ball will be the same as it was for the 2024 MLS Pro. We will continue to utilize the 2022 Al Rihla panel shape (with 20 panels) that was introduced for the 2022 World Cup and will keep the added debossing elements introduced on the 2024 Fussballliebe, used in the 2024 Euros. These both constitute the latest and greatest technology and best-performing football that adidas has ever created.
How early on was the iconic colour scheme settled upon? Was there any debate around it at all?
CS - The colour scheme was settled upon almost immediately. If you look through the archives at the history of balls adidas has created for MLS, the vast majority of those – especially recently – have been white, red and blue. This is always a very traditional, winning colour scheme, as it celebrates both the United States and Canada. However, as this is the 30th anniversary of the league, we looked at the original MLS logo from 1996 and the first ever ball used in the league, the Mitre Ultimax. That iconic white, silver, green, and blue colour scheme is incredibly unique to MLS, and is something that we hadn’t brought back for a while. We also thought it was something that would resonate extremely well with consumers and evoke a bit of nostalgia. Additionally, as gemstone associated with a 30-year anniversary is the “pearl,” we added in a gorgeous pearlescent finish on top of the white base of the ball.
The design encompasses the three most popular styles of adidas paneling and includes small details from all 18 adidas MLS balls ever made – how much of a challenge was it to incorporate all of this?
JS - We really wanted to reflect the past, present and the future of the MLS through the design choices. Starting with bringing back the distinctive and much celebrated original blue/green/white MLS colourway was something we were set on from an early stage. Picking distinctive and iconic matchballs like the Jabulani, Team Geist 2 and Adidas Prime, then mashing those up to create our basic graphic ‘blocking’ then gave a us great platform to build from.
Then we scoured our archives to find all the distinctive graphics from our 20 year collaboration with the MLS, we knew we wanted to continue the ‘mash up’ idea. Combining different graphics elements and patterns together felt right, but was a challenge at times to create a ‘unified’ look, this is where the colour scheme and blocking really helped to harmonise and house all the visual stories. On the ball you get so many different seasons living side by side but that’s how history is sometimes displayed. It’s the collective memory.
What’s your favourite element of the ball design?
JS – It’s more of a painful memory of my computer continually shutting down while editing the brush strokes on one particularly complicated graphic part. I could have cooked an egg on my laptop at some points in the process. Now we have the final match ball I’m in a much calmer design place.
CS – Tough to say, there are honestly so many, as Joe absolutely crushed the design. I’d say the fact that he so seamlessly and uniquely incorporated graphics from essentially every single MLS ball that adidas has created in the past. It’s done in a way that is clean, classy and doesn’t seem too jumbled.
What’s the feedback been like, both from players and fans alike?
JS – Very positive in general. We take all the feedback seriously, on both sides. That’s the job, distill the reactions and put it into the next projects. It’s a continual process to improve our connection to football and how it’s played.
CS – Completely agree with Joe, but we really have seen extremely positive feedback from markets, accounts and consumers thus far. The attention to detail has been much appreciated, as well as the differentiation to previous MLS balls.
What’s the most exciting part of the design process?
JS – So many! I’ll list a few: For me it’s maybe the realisation the crazy ideas and visual experiments might just work out, seeing those concepts come to life on a physical ball. Or the first prototype samples from our suppliers arriving in the office, or perfecting a colour combination. Showing players test designs. Seeing it on pitch, on TV/Streaming. Seeing it on best goal compilations, skills, tricks, slow motion replays. In store, on the street. Or even being interviewed about the process! Haha. It’s an exciting process from start to finish let’s put it that way.
CS – Joe has it pretty much all covered, but for me it’s really the end-to-end process… initially briefing in the concept and finally seeing it come to fruition and being played with on-pitch is a surreal feeling. Also, getting to work with some fantastic Designers along the way and knowing that you’re (hopefully) creating an icon that will be loved and remembered by players and fans for years to come.
How will you be feeling when that ball kicks off the 2025 campaign, and who’s your money on for finding the net first with it – opening match being Inter Miami v New York City, would be pretty sweet and poetic if it was Messi…
JS – I never gamble. Just calculated risks. However, Messi netting a brace would be a perfect Adidas moment… I always just want players to score as many goals as possible. To just have fun out there and do what they do best.
CS – Seeing it on-field for the very first time is going to be an incredible moment, and the culmination of a process spanning almost 18 months. The fact that the first game will be Inter Miami vs. NYCFC, at Chase Field in Miami… it has to be Messi.
The adidas MLS 2025 Official Match Ball is available now at prodirectsport.com/soccer
