ABSTRACT
Aerodynamics plays a prominent role in defining the flight of a football that is struck or thrown through the air. The basic structure of the wind tunnel consists of a drive section where flow is generated, a settling section where flow is settled, and a test section where measurements are taken. A wind tunnel test is used to compare drag characteristics for the Adidas Brazuca and Adidas Jabulani footballs. Additionally, the flight characteristics of the footballs were studied using 2D flight trajectory simulation. Drag and lift forces of a spinning football display properties that are different to when they do not spin but are instead fixed in a wind tunnel. A wind tunnel test was used to compare the lift characteristics for the Brazuca and the Jabulani for non-spinning conditions and when using an impact-type kicking robot.
