Football (sports equipment)
A football , also Pigskin ( English for pigskin ), is a ball that is used in American football and its variants. Its shape resembles an elongated ellipsoid of revolution with pointed ends. The outer skin usually consists of four pieces of brown leather , rubber or plastic . There used to be white footballs that were used in the evening or at night. There are also so-called tackified football balls, which consist of specially processed pieces of artificial leather with knobs and are mainly used in youth leagues. In upper-class leagues such as the National Football League or the German Football League , the use of real leather balls is mandatory, in lower-class leagues rubber or plastic balls are often used, as these are much cheaper to buy.
The balls of the National Football League are monochrome, while the balls in college football are distinguishable by two white markings on only one half of the ball. In Canadian football , these stripes are continuous rings.
For the game operation z. B. in the German Football League the ball is standardized according to the NCAA :
- Weight dry 396.9 to 425.2 g (14 to 15 ounces ), slightly lighter than a soccer ball
- Longitudinal circumference 70.5 to 72.5 cm, similar to a football
- Length 27.5 to 29 cm
- Transverse circumference 52.7 to 54 cm
- Pressure 0.86 to 0.93 atm
history
At the beginning, football, like rugby ball, was flattened and had no pointed ends. This only changed years after the first legal forward pass in American football in 1906. Previously, the ball was only run without the need for a small, easy-to-throw ball. In 1912 the shape was changed, in particular the diameter was reduced. Even so, the football was still very much like a rugby ball. It was not until the late 1920s that it got its current shape with eight seams and roughly the same size, and the metal valve, which often caused injuries, was replaced by a rubber valve. For more than 20 years there were no uniform footballs, which is why the balls had very different dimensions. From the late 1940s, the NFL had a fixed regulation on the size of balls. In 1941 The Duke , after Wellington "The Duke" Mara , was presented. Thus, the design of all balls in the NFL was the same. The Duke was used until 1970, when the NFL and AFL merged , when the design was changed. In 2006 the old design was reverted to. The only variable part of The Duke is the commissioner's signature, which changes when the commissioner changes.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ PopularMechanics.com The History of Football (in English). Accessed July 19, 2009.
- ↑ Giants.com ( Memento of the original from October 21, 2006 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Michael Eisen: The Duke is back! Accessed July 6, 2009.
