MOSCOW: Keeping the tradition alive, the official match ball for FIFA World Cup 2018, Telstar 18, is produced in Pakistan’s Sialkot city.
Designed by the company Adidas, the football was officially presented in Moscow by Argentina and Barcelona player Lionel Messi.
The British High Commission in Pakistan tweeted and congratulated Pakistan for keeping alive its tradition of making the FIFA World Cup footballs.
According to FIFA’s official page, the Telstar 18 evokes unforgettable memories of the 1970 FIFA World Cup – and of legends like Pelé, Gerd Müller, Giacinto Facchetti, Pedro Rocha and Bobby Moore – and will feed the dreams of those who will play for football’s most coveted prize in Russia next year.
“I was lucky enough to get to know this ball a bit earlier and I managed to have a try with it,” Argentina star Lionel Messi said. “I like all of it: the new design, the colours, everything.”
“The original Telstar is one of the most iconic footballs of all time and one which changed football design forever, so developing the Telstar 18 while staying true to the original model was a really exciting challenge for us. The new panel structure and inclusion of an NFC chip has taken football innovation and design to a new level and offers both consumers and players a completely new experience,” said Roland Rommler, Category Director of Football Hardware at Adidas.
The name of the original Telstar came from its status as the “star of television”. The first ball to be decorated with black panels, the pattern was designed to stand out on black-and-white TVs, and changed football design forever.
