Adidas’ Official Match Ball of the FIFA World Cup™ 2022 (“Al Rihla“) will feature new technology that provides match officials with unprecedented data and information to make faster and more accurate decisions. As a result, Al Rihla will provide video match officials with accurate data in real-time. Combined with player position data and through the use of artificial intelligence, the innovative technology of the networked ball contributes to FIFA’s semi-automatic offside technology and provides video referees with instant information to optimize their decisions.
A new Adidas suspension system in the center of the ball houses and stabilizes a 500Hz Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) motion sensor that provides insight into every element of the ball’s movement. The technology goes unnoticed by players and does not affect the ball’s performance. An induction rechargeable battery powers the sensor. The new technology, developed in close collaboration with FIFA and Kinexon, a specialist in sensor networks and edge computing, allows video match officials to review live data for the first time by automatically providing highly accurate information 500 times per second about when a player touched the ball.
According to Adidas, the technology has been rigorously tested (including blind tests) at several professional and grassroots football clubs worldwide, most notably at the FIFA Arab Cup and the 2021 FIFA Club World Cup in Abu Dhabi, with no change in performance detected.
Al Rihla will be used in all 64 matches of the tournament, starting with the first match on November 21. The raw data submitted will remain wholly owned and managed directly by FIFA. The networked ball will not be commercialized or available in retail.
