Coronavirus has put paid to many sporting events this year, and one such event was the Olympic games, which were set to be hosted in Tokyo. The plan is for the games to now be hosted in 2021, but as with other products, the Official Match Ball from adidas that would have been used for the competition, has now been unveiled.
Following in a similar theme to that of the Club World Cup official match ball that was released back in December of 2019, what would have been the Olympics’ official match ball is inspired by the famous Manga series, Captain Tsubasa, with graphic representation relating to the animation across the surface. The inspiration is taken in a quite literal sense, with the ball being called the ‘Captain Tsubasa’ ball.
The ball features specially-commissioned graphics that were created by Captain Tsubasa artist Yōichi Takahashi, and they have been designed to project a message of unity and equality, much like the Uniforia match ball – the official match ball of Euro 2020 – which features a similar design. The graphics also include the names of the classic football manga's male and female stars. Technology-wise, the ball is the same as has been present in all of adidas’s match balls since the 2018 World Cup ball.
It's not clear whether this ball will be used for the Olympics in their rescheduled date, although it looks unlikely, with no mention of the Olympics now being attached to this release. What's more likely is a new design being produced for the competition next year.
Pick up the Captain Tsubasa official match ball at adidas.co.uk
