Footgolfers prize scarce Jabulani balls as makers seek an alternative
Elite players say the 2010 World Cup ball gives them valuable distance, but its dwindling supply has prompted a search for replacements.
The Adidas Jabulani, criticised for its unpredictable flight at the 2010 football World Cup, has become a prized ball in elite footgolf. Players interviewed by the Guardian say its distance helps them on courses where every kick counts, while limited supplies are pushing them toward purpose-built alternatives.
Footgolf players kick a football around a course and into oversized holes in as few strokes as possible. Ben Clarke, who has topped the sport’s world rankings five times, told the Guardian that players trust the Jabulani despite its reputation in football. He keeps several boxed balls and inflates his collection regularly to help preserve them.
A costly ball to replace
Clarke said boxed Jabulanis now cost £500 or more, compared with roughly £250 for the last one he bought about three years ago. Those figures describe his experience and reported asking prices, rather than a measured market average.
Sean Rontree, a director of footgolf’s governing body in England, told the Guardian that talks with Adidas had not produced another run. He estimated that an order of around 10,000 balls would be needed to make production worthwhile. Adidas did not provide a statement in the reporting cited here.
What the replacements must match
The Guardian reported that FGB, Squb, Triero and Birdie have released balls designed for footgolf. FGB founder Jeffrey Cottam said his company’s ball travels about five to seven metres less than the Jabulani and that he aims to launch another version next year. His distance comparison is a manufacturer’s assessment, not a result from a controlled footgolf test.
The Jabulani’s flight has long attracted scientific attention. A 2011 study listed by Aston University measured aerodynamic forces on the Jabulani and two other footballs at different wind speeds. Caltech also reported wind-tunnel work in 2010 while footballers were complaining about the ball’s trajectory. Those studies provide background on its unusual behaviour; neither establishes how far it travels on a footgolf course.
Sources and context
- Footgolf and the Jabulani: a second life for ‘the worst ball I’ve seen in my life’The Guardian
- Aerodynamics of contemporary FIFA soccer ballsAston University Research Explorer; Procedia Engineering
- Caltech Scientists Test Air Flow Over the 2010 World Cup Soccer BallCalifornia Institute of Technology
AI-assisted article checked against the listed sources. NewsJaws did not conduct interviews or attend the reported events.
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