Things we take for granted
By
Yasmine El-Rashidi
It appears to be an inherent part of human nature to take essentials in life for granted. It starts with life itself, and extends to man-made inventions that have fast become the norm. From thick woollen coats and warming, knee-high socks, to instant, mobile, and portable everything. We think it's a given that we have a roof to sleep under, shoes to wear and food to eat. And so, conveniently, we take them all for granted.
One of those essential elements of life -- a seeming bare necessity for over one-sixth of the world's population -- is football. "The football" -- be its modern-day or ancient form -- is one of the largest, global unifying pillars of cultures, nationalities, ages, races and religions. And so naturally, we take this black and white creation of mankind entirely for granted.
The "ball" was first invented -- in some distorted form -- by the Ancient Egyptians.
"Balls games were as popular in Ancient Egypt as they are today," Zahi Hawass, secretary-general of the Supreme Council for Antiquities (SCA), told Al-Ahram Weekly. "Many balls have been found in excavations, stuffed with palm or papyrus fibre, or straw, and covered in sewn leather or cloth." [see next week's 130-page 'Having a ball' supplement for more on sports in Ancient Egypt].
Things kept on rolling from there -- coming a long way since those Pharaonic days, and even further since a pig or sheep's bladder was first inflated in medieval times. The bladder was later surrounded by a leather shell and eventually rubber replaced animal gut. The size of the ball was irregular, erratic, graced with the "hand-made" touch -- the governing football body, the Football Association not stipulating the size of the ball until 1872. Until the 1960s leather footballs were brown, heavy -- heavier when muddy and wet -- and they had laces in them; painful contraptions to kick, let alone head.
The synthetic ball -- made of polymers -- was invented in the 1960s, and the first World Cup Final played with a synthetic ball was in 1986. Footballs were brown and tanned, or orange -- as in the case of the 1966 World Cup Final. The white look -- an idea introduced by Santos for night games -- came with the evolution of the near-spherical object's new "light" -- and either synthetic or plastic coated -- look. In colder climates -- where snow is at times a concern -- high-visibility luminous orange balls have been devised.
Perhaps only referees fully appreciate the design of the match ball. Law Two of the FA rules states that the referee must check the ball for weight (410-450 grammes), size (68-70cms circumference), shape (spherical), pressure (0.6-1.1 atmospheres) and material (leather or other approved material). The design, however, conforms to today's consumer-driven market -- it is adaptable to suit needs. In leagues for the partially sighted, 150 ball bearings are placed inside a standard football to create a ball that you can hear coming.
While usually silent, the ball occasionally reminds mankind of its existence. The FA Cup Finals of both 1946 and 1947 were delayed by a burst ball, and in the first World Cup Final of 1930, a different ball was used in each half after a dispute between Uruguay and Argentina.
More often than not, however, the football does not burst or bang, but simply gets kicked around. The most important, unifying, and somewhat empowering spherical object in the world, is basically ignored.
Perhaps one of the few people who fully understood the significance of the football, was Brian Clough, the legendary former manager of English clubs Derby County and Nottingham Forest. Ten minutes before kick-off he would enter the dressing room, place a football on a towel, and announce: "This is what we play with. Go and get it!"
Perhaps we could all take a moment to envision life without the elements that have become intrinsic to existence. Imagine life, for example, without the ball.
