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In Canada and the United States, a football (also called a pigskin) is a ball, roughly in the form of a
prolate spheroid A spheroid, also known as an ellipsoid of revolution or rotational ellipsoid, is a quadric surface obtained by rotating an ellipse about one of its principal axes; in other words, an ellipsoid with two equal semi-diameters. A spheroid has ci ...
, used in the context of playing gridiron football. Footballs are often made of cowhide leather, as such a material is required in professional and collegiate football. Footballs used in recreation, and in organized youth leagues, may be made of
rubber Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Thailand, Malaysia, an ...
,
plastic Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as a main ingredient. Their plasticity makes it possible for plastics to be moulded, extruded or pressed into solid objects of various shapes. This adaptab ...
or composite leather (
high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...
rule books still allow inexpensive all-rubber footballs, though they are less common than leather).


History


Early balls

In the 1860s, manufactured inflatable balls were introduced through the innovations of English shoemaker
Richard Lindon Richard Lindon (30 June 1816 – 10 June 1887) was an English leatherworker who was instrumental in the development of the modern-day rugby ball by advancing the craft for ball, rubber bladder, and air pump. Life and career Lindon was born at ...
. These were much more regular in shape than the handmade balls of earlier times, making kicking and carrying easier. These early footballs were plum-shaped. Some teams used to have white footballs for purposes of night practice. The football changed in 1934, with a rule change that tapered the ball at the ends more and reduced the size around the middle. This new, sleeker ball made it much easier to handle, particularly for passers, while at the same time making the drop kick unreliable and obsolete. Hugh "Shorty" Ray, at the time a college football official and later the NFL's head of officiating, is generally credited with conceiving the pointed football.


"The Duke"

From through and since , the official game ball of the
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
(NFL) has been stamped with the nickname "The Duke" in honor of
Wellington Mara Wellington Timothy Mara (August 14, 1916 – October 25, 2005) was the co-owner of the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL) from 1959 until his death. He was the younger son of Tim Mara, who founded the Giants in 1925. Wellingto ...
, the longtime owner of the New York Giants, who was named after the
Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish people, Anglo-Irish soldier and Tories (British political party), Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of Uni ...
by his father,
Tim Mara Timothy James Mara (July 29, 1887 – February 16, 1959) was the founding owner of the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL).''Wellington, the Maras, the Giants, and the City of New York'', Carlo DeVito, Triumph Books, 2006, pp ...
, founder and first owner of the Giants.
Wilson Sporting Goods The Wilson Sporting Goods Company is an American sports equipment manufacturer based in Chicago, Illinois. The company has been a subsidiary of Finnish multinational company Amer Sports since 1989, and is, in turn, now under the Chinese Anta Spor ...
, the manufacturer of the NFL ball since 1941, named the ball after Wellington Mara at the urging of George Halas, the owner and head coach of the Chicago Bears, to reward Tim Mara for arranging the contract that made Wilson the official supplier of footballs to the NFL. The nickname was originally used until , when Wilson changed the game ball upon the merger of the NFL and American Football League (AFL). Wellington Mara died in 2005 (at age 89), and Wilson returned "The Duke" to the game ball the following year in his honor.


Properties

Coach John Heisman (the namesake for today's Heisman Trophy) was a
Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...
an actor in the offseason, and would open each season by saying to his freshmen football players: Leather panels are typically tanned to a natural brown color, which is usually required in professional leagues and collegiate play. At least one manufacturer uses leather that has been tanned to provide a "tacky" grip in dry or wet conditions. Historically, white footballs have been used in games played at night so that the ball can be seen more easily; however, improved artificial lighting conditions have made this no longer necessary. At most levels of play (but not, notably, the NFL), white stripes are painted on each end of the ball, halfway around the circumference, to improve nighttime visibility and also to differentiate the college football from the pro football. However, the NFL once explored the usage of white-striped footballs – in
Super Bowl VIII Super Bowl VIII was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Minnesota Vikings and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Miami Dolphins to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for ...
. The leather is usually stamped with a pebble-grain texture to help players grip the ball. Some or all of the panels may be stamped with the manufacturer's name, league or conference logos, signatures, and other markings. Four panels or pieces of leather or plastic are required for each football. After a series of quality control inspections for weight and blemishes, workers begin the actual manufacturing process. Two of the panels are perforated along adjoining edges, so that they can be laced together. One of these lacing panels receives an additional perforation and reinforcements in its center, to hold the
inflation In economics, inflation is an increase in the general price level of goods and services in an economy. When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services; consequently, inflation corresponds to a reduct ...
valve. Each panel is attached to an interior lining. The four panels are then stitched together in an "inside-out" manner. The edges with the lacing holes, however, are not stitched together. The ball is then turned right side out by pushing the panels through the lacing hole. A
polyurethane Polyurethane (; often abbreviated PUR and PU) refers to a class of polymers composed of organic units joined by carbamate (urethane) links. In contrast to other common polymers such as polyethylene and polystyrene, polyurethane is produced from ...
or rubber lining called a ''bladder'' is then inserted through the lacing hole. Polyvinyl chloride or leather laces are inserted through the perforations, to provide a grip for holding, hiking and passing the football. Before play, according to the NFL rules, the ball must be inflated to an air
pressure Pressure (symbol: ''p'' or ''P'') is the force applied perpendicular to the surface of an object per unit area over which that force is distributed. Gauge pressure (also spelled ''gage'' pressure)The preferred spelling varies by country and e ...
between . The ball weighs .


Other leagues

In the CFL the stripes traverse the entire circumference of the ball; its ball used slightly different dimensions prior to the 2018 season, when the league adopted the NFL specifications for its ball with the previous striping retained. The UFL used a ball with lime-green stripes. The 2001 XFL used a novel color pattern, a black ball with red curved lines in lieu of stripes, for its footballs; this design was redone in a tan and navy color scheme for the
Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...
in 2003. The 2020 XFL is standard brown but with X markings at each point. Three
indoor American football Indoor American football, or arena football, is a variation of gridiron football played at ice hockey-sized indoor arenas. While varying in details from league to league, the rules of indoor football are designed to allow for play in a smaller ...
leagues; the
Can-Am League The Canadian American Association of Professional Baseball, commonly known as the Can-Am League, was a professional, independent baseball league with teams in the Northeast United States and Eastern Canada, founded in 2005 as a reorganization ...
, UIFL, and AIF, used a ball with red, white and blue panels. Both the 1980s and 2020s incarnations of the
USFL The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league played a spring/summer schedule in each of its active seasons. The 1986 season was scheduled to be ...
have used the same Wilson football the NFL used at the time, with the only differences being the word markings and signature. The World Football League's football was a distinct orange color, said to be more visible during the night as most of that league's games would be played in the evenings. Prior to the merger, the American Football League's balls, the J6V (or J6-V / "Cushion Control") and J5V (or J5-V) by Spalding were narrower and longer than the NFL football. In
Super Bowl I The first AFL–NFL World Championship Game (known retroactively as Super BowlI and referred to in contemporaneous reports, including the game's radio broadcast, as the Super Bowl) was an American football game played on January 15, 1967, at the ...
, the two teams played with their respective footballs from each league; the Chiefs used the AFL ball, and the Packers played with the NFL ball, "The Duke" by Wilson.


Regulations

In an NFL game, the home team must have 36 balls for an outdoor game or 24 for an indoor game, and they must be available for the referee to test with a pressure gauge two and a half hours before the game to keep players from cheating. Twelve new footballs, sealed in a special box and shipped by the manufacturer, are opened in the officials’ locker room two hours and 15 minutes before the game. These balls are specially marked with the letter "K" and are used exclusively for the kicking game. The visiting team may also present 12 balls to the referee for outdoor games for inspection. The NFL introduced kicking balls (K-balls) to prevent teams from doctoring balls after the NFL Competition Committee determined that teams conditioned balls so they would fly higher and travel farther. Since 1941,
Horween Leather Company Horween Leather Company is an American company specializing in the manufacturing and refining of leather and related products. It is one of the oldest continuously running tanneries in the United States of America. Since its founding in the early ...
has been the exclusive supplier of leather for National Football League footballs. The arrangement was established by Arnold Horween, who had played and coached in the NFL. Horween Leather Company also supplies leather to Spalding, which, at one time, supplied game balls to the now-defunct
Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...
. Despite the moniker "pigskin" sometimes used to refer to footballs, cow leather is used.


Recreational variations

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansi ...
kicker
Fred Cox Frederick William Cox (December 11, 1938 – November 20, 2019) was an American professional football player who was a kicker for 15 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) for the Minnesota Vikings. After playing college football for ...
, during his NFL career, is credited with developing an all-
polyurethane Polyurethane (; often abbreviated PUR and PU) refers to a class of polymers composed of organic units joined by carbamate (urethane) links. In contrast to other common polymers such as polyethylene and polystyrene, polyurethane is produced from ...
foam football, which he sold to Nerf. Nerf later added the ''vortex football'', also made of foam, with a smaller body and
torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, s ...
tail fins, resembling a
Ketchum Grenade The Ketchum Hand Grenade was a type of grenade used in the American Civil War. It was patented on August 20, 1861 (U.S. Pat. #33,089) by William F. Ketchum, a mayor of Buffalo, New York, and was partially adopted in the Union Army. They were used ...
. Foam footballs such as Nerf's, especially the vortex football, can be thrown greater distances than a traditional air-filled leather or rubber ball, but in turn, kicking range is greatly reduced, with the vortex football being practically unkickable.


See also

* Football (ball) * Ball (association football) *
Rugby ball A rugby ball is an elongated ellipsoidal ball used in both codes of rugby football. Its measurements and weight are specified by World Rugby and the Rugby League International Federation, the governing bodies for both codes, rugby union and rugby l ...


References

{{Gridiron football equipment American football terminology Balls