By Albatross
November 8 2005

Is it a quiet news day then? It seems it may be, as Martin Scott's criticism of the ball used in Hartlepool United's FA Cup 1st round victory hits the press.

It seems the Panto Season has started early, with Scott and Mitre engaged in an "Oh no it isn't, Oh yes it is" argument about the ball used for this seasons FA Cup.

Scott has been highly critical, backed up by Thomas Butler, claiming that constant Ball Tampering is not a recipe for good football, and that he's unhappy about the ball used in the FA Cup this year. Mitre however have expressed surprise, with the company responding by saying that it is essentially the same ball that is used week in week out throughout the pro game in the UK - just with a different name and a slightly different cosmetic design.

Short of getting hold of examples of each ball and trying them out, I'm not in a position to say whether Scott, Butler and the rest of the squad are imagining things. However, there's no doubt that the issue of balls is an emotive one and is sure to raise it's head again in the near future.

Balls however have been a subject of controversy pretty much since the dawn of Football as an organised sport. Although the standard was set fairly early on, different countries tended to favour different balls: in the first World Cup in 1930, FIFA had to defuse an argument over whether an Argentinian or Uruguayan ball would be used for the final. The compromise - using each type for half of the game - saw the Argentinians win the half with their ball 2-1, and Uruguay win the half with their ball 3-0 to take overall victory.

Every major tournament now sees a new ball developed, usually by Adidas, and as a result every tournament starts with complaints about the ball - that it's too light, flies too quickly, is harder to control, is making players look like chumps.... meanwhile the big manufacturers will say that they are producing the roundest, most waterproof and reliable balls in the history of the game. They will talk about aerodynamics, about strict quality standards that mean every ball of a particular type is the same to within microscopic margins. And none of this prevents players and managers from criticising.

So has the world gone mad? When the yellow ball for use over the winter was first introduced, the claim was made by the manufacturer that it was no different in terms of it's characteristics other than luminosity; players, managers and fans begged to differ. With competing manufacturers constantly looking for an edge, the accusations look likely to continue.

For more information about the history of the football than you probably ever want to know, visit Soccerball World - the source of some of the info used in this article.