Adidas wants to bring back the Roteiro

Each edition of a major international competition is defined by its official football, models that have changed over the years, creating a sort of common thread between the different eras of football. One of the most appreciated and recognizable remains the one from the beginning of the millennium, when a new generation of top players and new technical materials emerged, making the game even more spectacular. And when adidas created the Roteiro for the 2004 European Championship in Portugal, the revolution was finally tangible, with a ball without any seams thanks to an innovative thermal bonding process between the panels that made up the sphere. Additionally, for the first time, each ball used during the matches was personalized with the name of the teams on the pitch, the name of the stadium, the date, and even the latitude and longitude of the center of the pitch. A ball that can be rightfully called iconic without fear of contradiction.

So much so that adidas, according to authoritative sources, seems intent on bringing back the model dedicated to the great Portuguese explorers of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries at the upcoming European Championship this summer in Germany. A release that should accompany the release of the event's official ball, the Fussballliebe ('love of football' in German), which features stylised geometric elements in 10 small triangular panels. It will be a ball that combines the design of 2004 with the technology of 2024, creating a bridge between the twenty years of the German brand during the European Championship played at home. A choice that will turn up the noses of the most purely nostalgic, but which aims to refresh a rather tired ball market with a few models that have stood the test of time. On the other hand, adidas has opted for the safest route at the moment: when you're in trouble, it's better to take what has worked before and just change a few details.