AFCON 2019: Black Stars receive match balls

The senior national soccer team, the Black Stars, have received thirty Umbro official match balls from CAF for the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt.

This forms part of the organizing body, CAF’s commitment towards participating countries. Each participating country has been supplied 30 Umbro leather footballs to train with ahead of the tournament.

The essence is for all 24 countries to get accustomed to the round ball before the tournament commences on June 21, 2019.

The Black Stars used the new Umbro leather football during their friendly game against South Africa at the Police Stadium in Dubai.

Umbro, the English Sportswear and football Equipment supplier won the bid to manufacture the official match ball for this year’s tournament, having wrestled the rights from mitre who produced the official match ball during the previous edition.

The evolution of African football is visible in the development of the AFCON ball, which has gone from a leather-bound pig’s bladder to the high-tech, synthetic spheres we see sold in stores and marketed around Africa and the rest of the world.