SIALKOT
\nEven though it is a cricket-mad nation, Pakistan is playing a big part in the soccer World Cup by making the balls used on the training fields in Qatar and the replicas sold to fans worldwide.
\nForward Sports, a multinational sports equipment company in the northeastern city of Sialkot, has been working with Adidas AG for almost 20 years. It is one of two manufacturers of Adidas\u2019 Al Rihla, the official World Cup ball.
\nForward Sports Director Hassan Masood Khawaja said his company had made 5.5 million Al Rihla balls, including 60,000 high-quality replicas of the balls used in matches, only without the real-time technology helping referees with offside and line calls.
\nThey are used by the teams as they train in Qatar, and sold as a premium product to football enthusiasts across the globe, with the rest sold as lower-priced leisure and souvenir balls. The match balls are made in China. Adidas declined to identify the manufacturer.
\nFor the company, the contract is a source of pride.
\n\u201cMore than business, it is a matter of prestige and honour for us to make the World Cup ball,\u201d Khawaja said.
\n\u201cHow do we do it? It\u2019s the skill of the people … and our love for the sport,\u201d he said.
\nWhile soccer is popular among fans, the national side is ranked 194 out of 211 countries by FIFA. Cricket reigns supreme.
\nSialkot has a rich history of making soccer balls and other sporting equipment dating back to colonial times.
\nPakistan remains one of the world\u2019s biggest manufacturers of soccer balls, along with China and India. The local chamber of commerce said more than 43 million balls valued at $191 million were made in Sialkot in the 2021\/22 financial year.
\nAbout 8% of Sialkot\u2019s population of around 1 million people work in the industry, but many say they have little time to actually see their product in action.
\n\u201cWe work all day,\u201d said Forward Sports quality control inspector Amna, when asked if she watched soccer. \u201cAt night, when we go home, we need to rest.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
SIALKOT Even though it is a cricket-mad nation, Pakistan is playing a big part in the soccer World Cup by making the balls used on the training fields in Qatar and the replicas sold to fans worldwide. Forward Sports, a multinational sports equipment company in the northeastern city of Sialkot, has been working with Adidas […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":300388,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-300362","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports"},"yoast_head":"\n