New World Cup ball will help refereeing decisions, claims Adidas | OneFootball

Adidas has unveiled its official match ball for next summer's World Cup and claimed the Trionda's new technology will enable faster offside decisions and help identify handball offences.

England and Real Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham helped launch the ball, the name of which translates as ‘three waves’, featuring a red, green and blue design to represent the three host nations – the USA, Mexico and Canada.

But Adidas said the most advanced features of the ball are hidden from view, with the Trionda featuring the company's latest “connected ball technology” to aid in-game officiating decisions and offering more insight into gameplay.

open image in gallery

The Adidas Trionda will be the official matchball of the 2026 World Cup (AFP via Getty Images)

The ball's inertial measurement unit chip sits inside a specially created layer rather than a centre-mounted system as used previously.

It is designed to send real-time data to the video assistant referee system which, when combined with player position data, should provide faster offside decisions. The technology can also help identify each individual touch of the ball, which can help with possible handball incidents.

“If you look at certain [key performance indicators] in football – the amount of passes, the amount of high-speed running, the amount of sprints throughout the game, all these things are increasing,” said Hannes Schaefke, Adidas’s football innovation lead.

“From a technological perspective, in performance tracking, the ball was sort of the last frontier because it was super hard to track this from an optical standpoint, almost impossible. Some things like touch frequency during a dribble, you [could] never track that without a sensor inside so this is where I think, from an understanding of the game, the depth of how well you understand it and anticipate the future of it, is where having all tracking unlocked is a huge, huge promise for the future.”

open image in gallery

The Trionda is constructed from four panels which come together to form a triangle, said to represent the three nations coming together to host the World Cup (Getty Images)

open image in gallery

Retired superstars Jurgen Klinsmann, Cafu, Alessandro Del Piero, Zinedine Zidane, and Xavi Hernandez were on hand for the official launch of the ball in New York (Getty Images)

The ball is constructed from four panels which come together to form a triangle, said to represent the three nations coming together to host the 48-team tournament, which will kick off on June 11 and culminate in the final in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on July 19.

The panels are embossed with stars to represent the United States, maple leaves for Canada and eagles for Mexico. Deeper seams and the embossed icons should, according to Adidas, provide great in-flight stability while also offering better grip.

The ball, now on sale, retails for €160 (£139.50).