Introducing Adidas Trionda, the 2026 FIFA World Cup™ Official Match Ball

A concerted bid from Canada, Mexico, and the United States of America to host the 2026 FIFA World Cup™ was made back in 2017. The tournament is now just eight months away, leading the North American trio to speed up all prep work to ensure the biggest stage for "the beautiful game" is ready to see young and old stars alike battle it out for sport's most important achievement.

Official sponsors of the World Cup are also fast at work with their new product launches and campaign materials. Adidas, the event's official match ball manufacturer, has just unveiled its proposal for the tournament: the Trionda.

When dissected, "Trionda" draws inspiration from the fact that three ("tri") countries will host all FIFA World Cup 26™ matches. "Onda" translates from Spanish to mean "wave," a callout to the match ball's curved lives and the collective wave of joy and euphoria that will ripple across the globe due to the competition.

The Trionda bears resemblance to the Adidas Brazuca used throughout the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. The next tournament match ball, however, only features four panels.

A white base sets the stage for hits of red, blue, and green, colors that've been chosen to represent each of the tournament's host countries: Maple leaves appear throughout ruby-colored areas as a nod to Canada, while stars gotten from the U.S. flag accompany blue-colored regions. Finally, a green eagle icon honors Mexico, the sole country to have hosted the World Cup on three separate occasions.

FIFA World Cup 26™ and Adidas Performance logos join the mix throughout the sphere. Akin to the UEFA Champions League 25/26 Ball, the Pro edition of the Trionda includes the aforementioned symbols as raised motifs all across its surface, adding a functional luxe touch to the product: the embossed country icons provide enhanced grip when dribbling in wet or humid conditions.

In addition to outfitting the FIFA World Cup 26™ Official Match Ball with a narrative-driven ensemble, the Three Stripes will use Trionda as an opportunity to introduce an updated version of its Connected Ball Technology. The newest iteration of the innovative tech is assisted by Artificial Intelligence (AI) and now lives in a new side-mounted chip system; a previous version of Adidas Connected Ball Technology was secured at the center of the ball via a proprietary suspension system.

Modifications made to the tech (developed in partnership with Kinexon) promise to leverage the combination of a 500Hz inertial measurement unit (IMU) motion sensor chip and AI to better track positional data, alerting video match officials (VMOs) and the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) System in real-time. Thorough testing by the German sportswear institution has found that the updated Connected Ball Technology helps make faster offside decisions and assists in identifying individual touches on the ball (e.g. handballs), resulting in faster resolution times for specific incidents.

Players who've tested the Adidas Trionda Official Match Ball have expressed no notice of a change to performance.

The Trionda Match Ball is available via Adidas.com beginning today for $170. Budget-friendlier Club versions will also be available globally, with special editions inspired by footballing nations participating in the World Cup also landing before the event.

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