Adidas Trionda

Last updated
Trionda
Type Football
InceptionOctober 2, 2025
Manufacturer Adidas
AvailableYes
Current supplier Forward Sports

The Adidas Trionda is a football produced by Adidas. It is the official match ball of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, hosted by Canada, Mexico, and the United States. [1] [2] It was introduced on October 2, 2025. The ball is stitched together from just four panels, the smallest number yet for a FIFA World Cup ball. [3]

Contents

History

Adidas unveiled the Trionda on October 2, 2025. [4]

The Trionda's debut as a match ball came during the first matchday of Kings Cup Mexico on October 18, 2025. [5] While the Kings League format which it was held under, a seven-a-side indoor football code with rules such as "secret weapons" and "president penalties", [6] is not officially sanctioned by FIFA (who instead endorse futsal as their preferred indoor football format), the Trionda's usage came due to Adidas being the "technical partner" of the Kings League organization.

Description

The Trionda's membrane is made of four stitched polyurethane panels, the lowest number for any FIFA World Cup match ball so far. [3] . Like with the Al Rihla in 2022, its surface is textured with debossed macro and micro patterns (specifically on the ball's icons), meant to improve the ball's flight stability, swerve and grip in wet conditions. [7]

The ball also features "connected ball technology," a side-mounted inertial measurement unit (IMU) chip inside one of the four panels (instead of suspended within the bladder like the Al Rihla) to provide the video assistant referee (VAR) with highly accurate ball movement data within seconds. [7] [8] This technology was developed with FIFA and Kinexon based in Munich. [8]

The ball's color scheme and symbols are inspired by the iconography of the three nations – red with a maple leaf for Canada, green with an golden eagle's head for Mexico and blue with a five-pointed star for the United States.

Etymology

Trionda is created from the combination of the prefix "tri-" in English, which means "three", referring to the number of countries hosting the tournament, and "onda", which in Spanish means "wave", thus "Triple Wave" or "Three Waves". [9] [7]

References

  1. Mewis, Joe (September 9, 2025). "'An assault on the eyes' Leaked World Cup ball slammed as design dubbed one of the worst ever". FourFourTwo . Retrieved September 11, 2025.
  2. "FIFA World Cup 2026 'Trionda' Match Ball Leaks, Featuring U.S., Mexico and Canada Colors". SI. May 2, 2025. Retrieved September 11, 2025.
  3. 1 2 Hasson, Emma R. "The Surprising Math and Physics behind the 2026 World Cup Soccer Ball". Scientific American. Retrieved 2025-09-11.
  4. "2026 World Cup Ball Revealed! Inside the Details of 'TRIONDA'". Fox Sports. 2025-10-04. Retrieved 2025-10-20.
  5. "TRIONDA: el balón del Mundial rodará en la Kings Cup Mexico". kingsleague.pro (in Spanish). Retrieved 2025-10-20.
  6. "Welcome to the Kings League..." BBC. 2024-05-01.
  7. 1 2 3 "adidas unveils 'Trionda' – the Official Match Ball of the Fifa World Cup26™". adidas News Site | Press Resources for all Brands, Sports and Innovations. Retrieved 2025-10-20.
  8. 1 2 Yao, Yuchen; Dixon, Gareth (2022-11-02). "IP grandstanding at the 2022 soccer World Cup". Spruson & Ferguson. Retrieved 2022-11-21.
  9. "Adidas 'Trionda' 2026 World Cup Ball Leaked - 9 New Close-up Pictures". Footy Headlines. Retrieved 2025-09-11.