Have a look at the Premier League vs EFL Carabao Cup vs Champions League game ball difference explained
Different football competitions and leagues across the world seemingly tend to have different balls despite all playing the same sport, find out the reason behind it below.
Notably, each league or competition has its own official ball suppliers who design and manufacture all the match balls used.
Premier League vs Carabao Cup vs UEFA Champions League game ball difference explained, manufacturer, design, size, weight and materials used
The ball in the competition is made by Puma, while the ball used in the Premier League is manufactured by Nike and all major manufacturers make balls that satisfy the IFAB laws and FIFA operate a quality programme that assesses key criteria of ball performance. Approved balls are branded with a quality pro logo, and this ensures that basic dimensional, rebound, and other criteria are within all the acceptable ranges.
Tottenham and Liverpool will both be hoping there are no problems with the Puma Orbita 1 ball tonight.
Mikel Arteta lamented Arsenal’s inefficiency in front of goal against Newcastle last night, complaining about the 'tricky' ball used in the Carabao Cup.
He said: “We also… pic.twitter.com/PJMYX9wzZS
— The Athletic | Football (@TheAthleticFC) January 8, 2025
Nike are the suppliers for the Premier League match ball ever since the 2000-2001 season, with Puma set to take over from 2025-2026.
Meanwhile, Adidas has been supplying the UEFA Champions League match balls since 2001.
Football criteria for match balls
While competitions and leagues have different football designs and suppliers, they all follow similar criteria. All competitions must ensure that each match ball complies with specifications that the International Football Association Board (IFAB) sets. The IFAB tightly regulates the size, weight, dimensions, and pressure for all elite competitions.
Given below are the International Football Association Board’s (IFAB) ball specifications for professional competitions around the world:
- Made of suitable material
- Between 68cm and 70cm in circumference
- Between 410g and 450g in weight at the start of the match
- Of a pressure equal to 0.6-1.1 atmosphere at sea level (between 8.5 psi and 15.6 psi).
These dimensions are of a size five football, which is the standard size for an official competition.
Football match balls materials and technology
While the IFAB have fixed the dimensions of the balls set, companies are free to use different materials and technologies. These factors can often alter the way that the ball moves through the air during matches.
For example, the Premier League’s Nike Flight is made from polyurethane, rubber, polyester, and cotton and features grooves in the casing that allow air to travel around the ball. Meanwhile, the Carabao Cup uses Puma’s Orbita 1 ball, featuring reduced seams and larger panels, helping players to make a better connection.
Interestingly, Adidas announced it would use more bio-based substances like sugar cane and wood fibres ahead of the 2024-2025 season. While companies are free to use any material and technology, they still have to undergo tests and receive a ‘Fifa Quality Programme for Footballs’ regulatory mark.
All manufacturers make their balls from different materials and using different manufacturing methods and even different brands (who have the contracts for different competitions and tournaments) use different methods within their range of balls. This means there will be subtle differences that can be measured in controlled environments and it is likely that players will indeed notice differences between balls during play in the same way that temperature, environmental conditions, playing surface will also affect the way the ball performs.