Adidas today launched the OCEAUNZ, the official FIFA 2023 Women's World Cup match ball for Australia and New Zealand. This is the ninth ball Adidas has supplied for the FIFA Women's World Cup in a row and is designed to cope with the speed and demands of the modern game.
The OCEAUNZ features white pearlescent spheres and blue and green decor inspired by the unique landscapes of Australasia, with visuals reminiscent of the mountains and oceans of Australia and New Zealand.
The cultural symbols and initials of the two hosts, Australia and New Zealand, celebrate their union as they make the final preparations for what will be a spectacular event. The Australian design was created by Chern'ee Sutton, a well-known local artist, while the New Zealand design was created by Fiona Collis, a local artist.
The OCEAUNZ is also decorated with patterns representing different elements of the sport, such as footballs and goals, ensuring that the details of the game are represented on the sphere.
Franziska Loeffellman, Director of Football design at Adidas, said: "With the Women's European Cup reaching record levels of attention last year, the upcoming World Cup is another important moment for the sport we love. We will be presenting our proud ball, which uses our innovative technology and is designed to reflect the natural beauty of the host country. The game is always evolving and OCEAUNZ is designed to help players cope with the pace and demands of the modern game. We are very excited about the upcoming Women's World Cup and hope to see the women's game elevated to a higher level in two unparalleled host countries."
Like the 2022 official AL RIHLA and AL HILM, the OCEAUNZ official BALL is equipped with "CONNECTED BALL" technology, an innovation that was invaluable during last year's World Cup to help make decisions faster and more accurately. Combined with player location data, the 'CONNECTED BALL' provides video assistant referees (VAR) with instant information to optimize decisions, improve the accuracy of decisions and create a smoother experience for fans. In addition, the technology combines data captured by sensors inside the ball and artificial intelligence technology to help referees make offside calls more quickly and accurately.
The OCEAUNZ design is supported by data. In addition to numerous rigorous tests in Adidas LABS and wind tunnels, the Oceaunz has also been tested by hundreds of players on the field, using new splicing shapes and surface textures that bring the highest accuracy and stability on the field.
CTR-CORE -- This core technology delivers excellent shape memory, air tightness and bounce accuracy, ensuring speed, precision and stability at high speeds, helping to control the ball accurately.
SPEEDSHELL -- Textured Polyurethane (PU) spheres contain 20 pieces that improve soccer ball accuracy, flight stability and arc motion through texture size and embedded surface design details.
Following the 2022 World Cup official match balls AL RIHLA and AL HILM, Adidas continues to allocate 1% of net sales from OCEAUNZ, the official FIFA 2023 Women's World Cup match ball, to its "Global Goal 5 Accelerator" program to support the Common Goal campaign, The project aims to increase women's participation, representation and leadership in grassroots games.
The project focuses on increasing girls' participation and the proportion of female coaches and female leaders in football to achieve good community planning and help ensure that every girl participant has a female athlete role model in their community.
The FIFA Women's World Cup 2023 between Australia and New Zealand will kick off on July 20, 2023, with co-hosts New Zealand taking on Norway in the opening match. After a month of fighting, the tournament will culminate in the final on August 20.
