The fourth epic journey will kick off on January 9th, 2014, from Battersea Park, London, exactly 150 years to the day after the very first official game of football to FA rules was played in that very same field.
What better way could there be to celebrate this momentous event than by kicking off The Ball’s pilgrimage to the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, the country that has taken to football like no other?
FC Barcelona and Spirit of Football announced a joint social initiative on 23rd January 2013. To kick it off, the first-team players all signed a ball called "The Spirit of Barça" — a replica of The Ball 2014. This special ball will visit more than 100 schools across Brazil, including schools in a number of favelas.
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The short film below is an overview of the journey of The Ball 2010, which travelled from England to South Africa, supporting the work of Special Olympics and Alive & Kicking.
