This Day in History: 2023-05-31

Nr. 466

‘TELSTAR’ TAKES FLIGHT (1970)

The kick-off in the opening match of the 1970 World Cup hastened in a new era in match balls. As Mexico faced the USSR, out went the old brown and misshapen balls, which were heavy and painful to head when wet. In came the Adidas Telstar, light and almost perfectly round. The Telstar – 32 hand-stitched panels of 12 black pentagons and 20 white hexagons – also became the World Cup official match ball for TV reasons. Mexico 1970 was the first live televised World Cup and the revolutionary design of Telstar – the name contrived from ‘star of television’ – made the ball far more visible on screen.

Italy’s Alessandro Mazzola and Brazil’s Brito and Gerson all tangle for the new Telstar ball with it’s distinctive panels clearly visible.