Adidas Fevernova > Reviews > I haven't got any sort of fever!

Author's product rating:   

Durability	OK
Value for Money	Poor

Advantages:	Is now very cheap
Disadvantages:	Poor in flight, doesn't last long, gives an untrue bounce and kick

Recommend to potential buyers:

no

Full review

I have had the misfortune of having purchased and played with the Adidas Fevernova. I purchased it for £14.99 a couple of years ago because I thought it was a very good football, I was wrong. This ball was the official football in the 2002 football world cup in Japan and South Korea. It was supposed to be the most revolutionary football of all time and make the games more exciting.

I play quite a bit of football and have used many different balls in my time. They have ranged from Mitre, Nike and Umbro balls. I had generally found Adidas balls to be the best, the UEFA Champions League balls in particular, until I purchased the Fevernova. I think I am in a good position to air my comments on this particular football, so that is what I am going to do in this review.

The actual outer leater shell of the ball, is around three millimetres thick, but consists of eleven layers. There are numerous layers of tiny gas filled balls, which give the ball added strength and make it last a lot longer. This is also designed to make the ball more spnge like than most other footballs. This then allows the ball to ping off the players foot or which ever part of the body the ball contacts. The ball was made within FIFA's regulations and the weight was the maximum permitted, around 435g, which allegedly gives the ball a more accurate flight pattern.

Personally, I greatly dislike this football. The technology used to make this ball, was very good and revolutionary and it had the desired effect. However, this affect was a rather negative one for the footballers in the world cup and all the others who use it. If you hit the ball relatively gently, it tends to fly off the boot in all sorts of directions. It is very hard to control and a lot of the professionals complained about it. The colour and styling of the ball is also very annoying. When the ball is in flight, it is hard to tell which way it is going and the type of spin on it. This can cause problems and I have found that it is hard to judge headers and for goalkeepers when they are defending corners.

As this ball is a couple of years old, they are starting to be reduced in price. I saw a size five ball in JJB the other for £7.99. If you want a ball for a mess around in the back garden then it is definetly a bargain. However, if you want a football for a match down the park with your mates, don't turn up with this. It just isn't good enough and it won't last you very long because it tends to deflate for no apparent reason. It is really a horrible looking football and it makes playing with it even harder. It does come in white which is a lot better to see and judge the flight of. Overall, I would stay clear of this football.

Just as a little bit of light humor for all of you and all my friends that were there, I have a little story about this Fevernova football. We were sitting on a platform at the station waiting for our train to come. We were heading off to play football for the afternoon and one of my friends asked to borrow my ball. He sat down on the floor and started doing some 'keepy-uppies', as in the T-Mobile advert. We were all mightily impressed, until he tried to be too clever. He ended up firing the ball straight onto the trainline, into the path of a train travelling in the other direction. The train somehow managed to miss the football and after it had passed, I got a right ticking off from a station worker. It wasn't even me and I got the blame. They confiscated the ball and I had to go with my parents and make an apology to get it back. Friends eh!