The 22nd edition of the ongoing FIFA World Cup has created many upsets, setting various new records but some have become histories which will a long way in shaping the fortunes of the game.

Yes, since the FIFA World Cup has kicked up on November 20th, 2022, in Qatar, it is full of surprises and sensations.

The biggest history of the Cup was made by none other than Morocco which stunned Portugal to create history.

Earlier, the soccer fans were on cloud nine with massive upset when Japan stunned four-time champions Germany 2-1. And last but not the least, Saudi Arabia  brought the soccer friend on their feet at the FIFA World Cup by their  stunning upset of Argentina.

To be very specific, the World Cup may be defined as a tournament of the underdogs so far.  On the one hand, Saudi Arabia created as huge upset when it  stunned.  Next t came the Japan’s victories over Spain and then the powerful Germany, and of course S. Korea getting ahead of Portugal, and then the Morocco’s stunning victory against Belgium. So is the Tunisia’s victory over defending champions France, the mega event is full of great moments so far.

In fact, Morocco team has rightly been described as one of the most compact outfits in the ongoing World Cup because everyone has sacrificed for the team. They play a close unit with everybody playing like a one soul.

After reaching the semis in style, they are now set to horn locks with France for a great place in the next great encounter.

Though France is the defending champions, yet they are wary of Morocco in the wake of latter’s historic performance in the World Cup so far.

The soccer gurus are predicting a   difficult match and sensational encounter in which the fight may continue till the last moment. The ongoing FIFA Football World Cup is giving goosebumps to every fan with the spectacular performances seen in the sensational matches, especially dominance by the Asian regions like Saudi Arabia, Japan, and Iran who have won their matches against big teams.

Pakistan may not have qualified for the World Cup but the football from the city of Shaheens, is ruling the world football. Pakistan has manufactured footballs in the 2014, 2018 and now in 2022 for the third consecutive world cup in Qatar. Just like always the host of the world’s most popular event names the ball according to their tradition. This time Arabs have named the footballs, AL RIHLA.

Earlier, Pakistan  manufactured football for the 2018 World Cup in Russian and it was named as Telstar 18, which was aos produced by Forward Sports Company, the trusted name among soccer player countries,

It is manufactured in Pakistan by Adidas through a company in Sialkot named Forward Sports, which produces over 750,000 balls per month to global brands. To be very specific, the AL RIHLA means “The Journey” in Arabic. The name is referred to a travelogue written by the famous Ibn-e-Battuta, who explored Asia, Europe and Africa in the 14th century. The colourful ball describes the culture, architecture, iconic boats and the flag of Qatar. The ball consist of a CRT core which provides speed, accuracy and consistency for fast paced action and precision indeed.

As a matter of fact, the speed shell in the ball is a textured polyurethane skin with a new 20-piece panel shape, improving accuracy, flight stability and swerve and includes a sensor in the middle to help decide offside calls.

Sialkot, is a renowned city of Pakistan for the manufacturing of international export level sports equipment.

To be very specific, Sialkot has created a niche for itself in the world sports goods.

It has producing an estimated 70% of the world’s supply of the soccer balls, which speaks volume of its capabilities.

This city houses more than one thousands factories and manufacturing units, which is a unique feature of it. In terms of employment, these manufacturing units provide job opportunities to an estimated seventy thousand people.

It may be recalled here that Sialkot has been in the business producing soccer balls since the British rule in undivided Sub-continent.

It may be recalled here that during  the early 80s, Pak made football became very popular the world over and its in 1982, when Sialkot company secured a contract for supply soccer balls to  the FIFA World Cup 1982 in Spain. The footballs provided for this World Cup in Spain also became the first water-resistant  balls for the World Cup in those days.

What makes our football special is that   till now, not a single complain regarding quality has surfaced. That’s why Sialkot produced soccer balls have become a name synonymous with quality and the soccer players believe in Pak-made balls for the soccer encounters.

A day will come when Sialkot will soon become a trusted name for other suppliers of world-class sports goods like bats, rackets, squash and badminton accessories and other sports goods at world level. One hopes, the export-oriented sports goods business would further flourish at world level, earning valuable foreign exchange as well. On the other hand, one would also hope for the promotion of the game of soccer in the country, so that along with our soccer balls, our players also become famous at international level.

To be very specific, one is optimistic about Pak future in football and our players will learn from the example of the Morocco which has created history in the FIFA World Cup.

Published in The Daily National Courier, December, 15 2022

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