Welcome to Soccer 101, the podcast where we explain the beautiful game and it's accoutrement.

On today's show, we're looking at the most important aspect of soccer, The thing that no soccer game can take place without corporate sponsorship. Just kidding, we're talking about the ball today. We're going to be finding out how that spherical object became part of the game, what they've been made of through the years, some of the best and the worst ones out there, all kinds of fun stories about balls. Joining me today, my name's Ryan Bailey, by the way. We have a man who is more than used to talking a load of old balls. It's Graham Ruddvan. That is certainly me, and I knew you would get a balls joke in there pretty quickly, Ryan, and you did not let me down. Here comes another one. Also, here is a man who loves playing with balls possibly.

I don't know.

Joe Lowry.

Goodness, I should stop. That was such low-hanging fruit, Ryan. Like, come on. I know you can do better than that, but also, again, not surprised because this is just the perfect opportunity for this stuff. Can I do better than that, Joe? Can I? I don't know that. I don't know. I guess I don't know either, Ryan.

The temptation was too strong. I guess I don't know either, Ryan.

Yeah, the temptation was too strong. I apologize, but we're talking about soccer balls in particular

here. I'd like to start off to cleanse our palates gents and talk about the first ball that you

owned as a child. I'll kick off. During Italian 90, which was the 1990 World Cup, I believe it was McDonald's.

If you went a certain amount of time, so you got some coupons or something, you got this Coca-Cola

mini skills ball and it was sort of had red panels and white panels and it had the little

Italianity mascot. And everyone I knew had one of those.

I was like five or six years old,

however I was older I was back in 1990.

And it was like the thing that everybody had

and everyone was very excited about on the playground.

That is my first memory of a soccer ball.

It was a tiny little one that you could use indoors

and break loads of your parents' precious furniture and whatnot.

Graham, did you have anything like that?

The ball that I remember having as a kid, like as a young kid, was the one that you mentioned

to me off air, yesterday I think it was Ryan when we're talking about doing this podcast,

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