Aerodynamic drag of contemporary soccer balls

The advancement of technology, demand for performance and market competition force the sports ball manufacturers to introduce new designs. As a result, spherical soccer ball made of 32 leather panels (stitched) in 1970s have become as low as 6 panels (thermally bonded) ball today. Despite being most popular game in the world, scant data is available on aerodynamic properties of recently introduced Adidas made FIFA approved soccer balls such as Brazuca (used in World Cup 2014 in Brazil) and its comparative aerodynamic behaviour with other FIFA approved Adidas made balls since 2002. Therefore, the primary objectives of this study are to determine the aerodynamic behaviour of these balls and undertake a comparative analysis. The aerodynamic properties such as forces and moments were measured experimentally for a range of wind speeds in the wind tunnel