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The Ball: Football’s Olympic Torch

The Ball 2014

The Ball is a symbol of tradition, fair play and respect and a celebration of football’s capacity to bring people together all over the world.

New Model Army’s “Beautiful Game”

The Spirit of Football Network

A game of football with 3 halves

Official Kick-Off of The Ball and 1st half: Midday to 12:30pm
Kick-off and afterwards play with old school rules (up to 30 aside), including costumes and twirly moustaches: 30 minutes

2nd half: 12:30pm to 1pm
Modern football match (11 aside): 30 minutes

3rd half: 1pm to 2:30pm
FairPlay matches: several smaller pitches (dividing up the main pitch) using Spirit of Football’s FairPlay Rules Everyone can play regardless of gender, age, race, religion, intellectual capacity, physical ability, sexual orientation etc.

The 2018 route

The Ball 2018

The Ball 2018 left England on 25th March 2018 and travelled to the World Cup in Russia.

The 2014 route

The Ball 2014

The Ball 2014 kicked off from England on 9th Jan 2014 and headed to the World Cup in Brazil.

The 2010 route

The Ball 2010

The Ball 2010 left England on 24th Jan 2010 headed to the Opening Ceremony in Johannesburg, South Africa.

The 2006 route

The Ball 2006

The Ball 2006 travelled from London to the Opening Ceremony in Munich, Germany.

The 2002 route

The Ball 2002

The Ball 2002 was carried 7000 miles across Europe and Asia to the World Cup finals in Korea & Japan.