Just Arrived: adidas Tango EURO 2012 Matchball

June 12, 2012 by 8 Comments

The last time we had a summer time international football tournament, the football used was perhaps the biggest talking point from the tournament itself. While that might be a sign of the quality of play at the ’10 World Cup, adidas will be hoping that the same thing doesn’t happen this time with their new Tango EURO 2012 matchball. Thanks to the generosity of adidas, Soccer Reviews has just got it’s hands on their latest football.

Let’s face it, while we review football boots, you can’t go too far in the game without the ball. While some do claim that all footballs are the same, the Jabulani certainly proved this isn’t the case. Plus we’ve all used some horrible hard football that is impossible to get airborne and to control. Nike and adidas are the market leaders when it comes to producing the top quality matchballs. While Nike’s top range footballs haven’t changed too much lately, adidas’ certainly has.

There are a few differences between the infamous Jabulani and it’s predecessor (well, if you don’t count the SpeedCell). The Jabulani had an 8 panel design, while the Tango has been bumped up to 32 (I kid you not, it took me over 5 minutes to count all the panels on my football, and I’m still not sure I’m right!) But unlike any regular 32 panel ball, all of these panels are a series of triangular patterns, which should ensure a true flight path. It still keeps the grippy surface of the Jabulani, but the bladder has been improved to increase air retention and reduce water uptake.

Plus something I’ve noticed is that adidas say the preferred air pressure of the ball is 11.6-14.5 psi. That’s actually really high, a regular football normally has a psi range of 10-12. It’s something I think is a little strange, as it suggests that adidas recommends the ball be pumped up to be really hard. Considering referees are recommended to pump footballs to 10-12 psi, pumping it to 14.5 psi will probably leave a player heading the ball concussed. Strange advice methinks…

Anyway, the design of the ball is a reference to the decorative art of paper cutting. Three bespoke paper cutting graphics are used on the ball, which is a tradition in the rural areas of Poland and Ukraine. The flags of each country also borders these three graphics. Considering the Tango has undergone two years of laboratory testing (making it the most tested ball in adidas history), we’ve got big hopes for it.

While we’ll be completing the review in due course, I’ll also be getting my hands on the Nike Maxim ball around the start of the 2012/2013 season, so we’ll definitely be able to compare the two footballs. Until then, have you got your Tango matchball yet? Get yours now!

About Jordon English

Jordon is the go-to boot spotting and unreleased boot news writer for Soccer Reviews. Joining the site way back in 2010 (where Soccer Equipment Reviews was not even a blip on the football boot radar), Jordon makes the world famous Soccer Reviews boot spotting and, if there is an unreleased boot, Jordon probably knows about it. Jordon is not looking to make a playing career out of football (he hopes to break into the Australian A-League as a referee within the next 3 years), but he still trains with one of the University of Melbourne football sides where he studies Commerce.

Comments

  1. Alex
    June 12, 2012 at 8:05 pm

    I guess the big companies have sent you guys stuff to review in order to slow down the leaks, huh?

    Reply
    • h.Elite
      June 12, 2012 at 10:15 pm

      That’s what I’ve been thinking aswell. Ever since that what was told to be the Vapor IX and the Laser V leak occurred Soccerreviews hasn’t really been a place for leaks other than player spotting. Really wish the site would leak images like it did before although I really like the way things are now and I’m sure it would save them a lot of issues with Nike and Adidas.

      Reply
  2. Simon
    June 13, 2012 at 3:17 am

    I’m not saying this is the case at all, but just a word of warning, the second this website starts becoming a community channel for Adidas and Nike to promote their stuff, is the second most people will stop visiting. We come here for leaks, when they stop coming, we do.

    Not saying there is anything wrong with this article! Just want this site to continue to head in the right direction.

    Reply
    • Jon Nicholson
      June 13, 2012 at 8:37 am

      Hey Simon,

      I’m a relative newbie compared to the guys who have done a fantastic job at establishing the website, such as Jordon, Isaac and Ben! But, believe me.. Soccer Reviews will NEVER become a commercialised website. I completely understand your concerns, but these reviews are not part of the process of us becoming a ‘community channel’ as you say. Instead, we are reviewing products so you guys can find out whether they are worth buying or not.

      Not one review on this website will ever be biased towards the company that has supplied the boots. That is simply not how we work. Soccer Reviews has become a website renowned for exclusive boot leaks, for example the K-Leather Vapors, that you will simply not find anywhere else!

      I hope this allays your concerns,

      Jon

      ReplyReport user
      • Alex
        June 13, 2012 at 8:51 am

        Don’t get me wrong. I think this website is fantastic. But the last boot leak with images was an Umbro color update in March. The next big leak before that was the CTR360 Maestri III. In December. If you do a little searching, there are pictures floating around on the internet of upcoming boots from Nike and Adidas that have not been touched on at all here. So it may just be me, but I would think that Adidas may want something in exchange for gear to test out.

        Reply
    • Isaac Abraham
      June 13, 2012 at 9:15 am

      Hey Simon and Alex,

      While we most certainly won’t become a site that just posts whatever Nike and adidas want us to, we’ve become so large that we quite simply can’t post as many leaked images as before without getting into serious legal issues that would ultimately lead to the closure of the site. That being said, we do pride ourselves on our independence and will strive to bring you guys the latest on all the newest boots – one example that comes to mind is that we were the only site around that posted about the CTR Maestri III being spotted a couple of weeks ago. Our boot calendar and unreleased boot spots will most certainly continue on for a long, long time, and periodically we will try our best to give you guys a glimpse at what’s next to come in the boot world. It’s also important to note that in a couple of months you should see a fair few changes around the site that also will involve people posting their own images.

      Thanks for the comments, they really do help!
      Isaac

      ReplyReport user
  3. ben
    June 13, 2012 at 4:53 am

    got this ball , only used a couple times but disappointed. glad i only paid £50 and not the recommended £82. pumped up to 12psi and ball makes a strange hollow noise when kicked. no great feel about it , does however fly great which is the main thing i suppose very straight and accurate. but also not easy to bend . would give it 6/10

    Reply
  4. Ben Perkins
    June 14, 2012 at 9:38 am

    Thanks for all the comments and for the concerns regarding the website. We really appreciate our viewers and their devotion and loyalty, so thanks for that. Isaac and Jon have really outlined what I’d like to say, but regarding leaked images, we have been waiting on our new site to launch which will include forums and I can guarantee that that will become a haven/paradise for leaked images as well as leaked images’ fans, so stay tuned for that. The integrity and objectivity of our site and the content we publish has not been compromised in anyway, and we say what we see, so don’t worry about that. Thanks again!

    Reply

Speak Your Mind

*