In the AFC Asian Cup, prior to 2004, various match balls were used for the tournament, and therefore it was difficult to determine what was considered the official ball of the Asian Cup. It was only after the start of the new millennia when the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) began to declare one official match ball. The following match balls were used in the AFC Asian Cup over the years.
Edition | Official match ball | Manufacturer | Additional information | Refs |
---|---|---|---|---|
2004 | Roteiro | Adidas | First Asian Cup to register an official ball for the tournament.[ citation needed ] Also official UEFA Euro 2004 ball. | [1] |
2007 | Mercurial Veloci | Nike | First independent official Asian Cup ball not brought from UEFA European Championship or FIFA World Cup | [2] |
2011 | Total 90 Tracer | Nike | [3] | |
2015 | Ordem 2 | Nike | [4] | |
2019 | Acentec | Molten | First official Asian Cup ball not manufactured by Adidas or Nike | [5] |
2023 | VORTEXAC23 VORTEXAC23+ | Kelme | After VORTEXAC23 was unveiled, VORTEXAC23+ was announced as official match ball for the final | [6] [7] |
2027 | TBD | TBD |
The AFC Asian Cup is the primary association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), determining the continental champion of Asia. It is the second oldest continental football championship in the world after Copa América. The winning team becomes the champion of Asia and until 2015 qualified for the FIFA Confederations Cup.
The Japan national football team, also known by the nickname Samurai Blue, represents Japan in men's international football. It is controlled by the Japan Football Association (JFA), the governing body for football in Japan.
The Indonesia national football team represents Indonesia in international football. They were the first Asian team to participate in the FIFA World Cup, particularly in the 1938 edition as the Dutch East Indies. The 6–0 loss to eventual finalists Hungary in the first round remains the nation's only appearance in the World Cup. Thus, Indonesia holds the World Cup records as the team with the fewest matches played (1) and one of the teams with the fewest goals scored (0).
The AFC Champions League is an annual continental club football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation, and contested by Asia's top-division football clubs. It is the most prestigious club competition in Asian football, played by the national league champions of their national associations.
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The Australia men's national soccer team represents Australia in international men's soccer. Officially nicknamed the Socceroos, the team is controlled by the governing body for soccer in Australia, Football Australia, which is affiliated with the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and the regional ASEAN Football Federation (AFF).
The 2011 AFC Asian Cup was the 15th edition of the men's AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial international football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). The finals were held in Qatar from 7 to 29 January 2011. It was the second time that the tournament was hosted by Qatar, the previous occasion being the 1988 AFC Asian Cup. Japan won the cup after a 1–0 win against Australia, and earned the right to compete in the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil as the representative from AFC.
Molten Corporation is a sports equipment and automotive parts company based in Hiroshima, Japan.
The 2015 AFC Asian Cup was the 16th edition of the men's AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial international football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). It was held in Australia from 9 to 31 January 2015. The tournament was won by Australia after defeating South Korea 2–1 in extra time in the final, thereby earning the right to participate in the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup, which was hosted by Russia. The win was Australia's first Asian title since their move from the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) in 2006. It was also the first time a men's team has become champions of two confederations, following Australia's four OFC Nations Cup titles: 1980, 1996, 2000 and 2004; right after the Australian women's team won the 2010 AFC Women's Asian Cup. Australia thus became the final and permanent holder of the old AFC Asian Cup trophy, as the new trophy would debut in the tournament four years later.
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The Nike Ordem is a brand of association footballs designed by Nike. The ball consists of 12 panel in a three-layer casing system, with traditional hexagonal and pentagonal patch patterns, similarly to Adidas' classic 1970 Telstar design.
The 2023 AFC Asian Cup was the 18th edition of the AFC Asian Cup, the quadrennial international football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). It involved 24 national teams after its expansion in 2019, with hosts Qatar the defending champions.
The 2019 AFC Asian Cup final was a football match which determined the winner of the 2019 AFC Asian Cup, the 17th edition of the AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial tournament contested by the men's national teams of the member associations of the Asian Football Confederation. The match was held at the Zayed Sports City Stadium in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on 1 February 2019 and was contested by Japan and Qatar.
The Asian section of the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification acted as qualifiers for the 2022 FIFA World Cup held in Qatar for national teams who are members of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Apart from Qatar, a total of 4.5 slots in the final tournament were available for AFC teams.
The Adidas Al Rihla is a ball for association football produced by Adidas. It was the official match ball of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar and has also been used as the official match ball for the Saudi Professional League and Qatar Stars League for the 2022-23 season as well as the men's Olympic football, beginning the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. The ball contains a suspended inertial measurement unit inside its bladder that supplies the video assistant referee with instantaneous highly detailed ball movement data. The ball was designed for sustainability, being the first FIFA World Cup official match ball to be produced with environmentally-friendly inks and adhesives.
The Adidas Conext is a family and brand of association football balls. The Conext balls have had different numbers in their names applied to them to distinguish them in their construction. The balls had been produced for various competitions including the FIFA Women's World Cup, the football competition of the Summer Olympic Games, the UEFA Super Cup, the FIFA Club World Cup, and various club national competitions.