Seems like the sport is turning into a science fair more than a game.

“The +Teamgeist (“team spirit”) ball, as the New York Times deftly explained yesterday, was engineered with a “free-flowing” set of 14 pre-shaped panels—fewer than the traditional 32—resulting in a smoother, more consistently round surface that supposedly responds more accurately to the force of a kick. Adidas backs up this claim with its own experimental data, including tests with a robotic kicking machine that diligently shot the +Teamgeist against a wall a few hundred thousand times.”

Via: Popular Science