Is the official World Cup ball to blame after goalkeepers unable to stop Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe long-range strikes?
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By Ben Grounds
Updated 18/06/2026 at 21:15 GMT+1
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Across the opening 24 matches of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, 75 goals have been scored, producing an average of 3.1 goals per game - the highest figure recorded after the first round of group-stage fixtures since 1958.
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It has left some pundits wondering if it has anything to do with the official adidas match ball, known as the Trionda.
Given 104 matches will be played in total, it is likely this will become the highest-scoring World Cup of all time. With the opening round of fixtures now complete, several players have already made their mark.
According to Opta, six players registered at least six shots in their first match, but only two converted those opportunities into goals: England captain Harry Kane and Argentina talisman Lionel Messi.
That said, there have been goals scored so far at this year's tournament where goalkeepers with a reputation for keeping out long-range shots have been beaten.
England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford got a hand to Martin Baturina's shot from the edge of the penalty area during Croatia's 4-2 defeat on Wednesday night, but with a speed of 124 km/h, the Everton stopper was unable to prevent it from finding the net.
Speaking as a pundit for the BBC, Wayne Rooney believes there were other elements to the goal which were preventable from England's perspective.
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"It starts with Jude Bellingham being a little flat-footed," Rooney said. "There's a nice little ball through, but then I think John Stones could have stayed on his feet. There was no real danger, and Pickford was in a good position.
"But Stones doesn't stay on his feet and he gambled. When he dives in and gambles, it means Nico O'Reilly then has to come across, which allowed space for a nice set and good finish. Personally, I wonder if Pickford could actually do a bit better with the shot.
"It's a bit quick, but he does manage to get a full hand on it. I'm usually quite critical of goalkeepers, and so I think Jordan will be a bit disappointed that it's ended up in the net."
Joe Hart, however, has made a case for the defence of goalkeepers at this tournament, claiming the official adidas match ball has been designed to favour outfield players.
"It's something I noticed earlier in the tournament," the former England and Manchester City goalkeeper told the BBC.
"I've noticed it with the higher balls in this game. I honestly feel as though this ball is coming onto the goalkeeper quicker than they feel it is off the foot.
"What you notice with this is that Pickford flies at this ball, and you may ask, 'why has he gone at it with his thumb rather than his hand?
"It just feels like it's on him. I noticed it with Kylian Mbappe against Edouard Mendy for his second goal against Senegal.
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"As it leaves his foot, it's a decent strike of course, but Mendy is a Champions League winner. He just doesn't time getting his hands up correctly. I'm noticing it more and more with the higher balls.
"These are world-class goalkeepers playing in the World Cup. For Lionel Messi's goal against Algeria goalkeeper Luca Zidane, it's not a brilliant strike. It's a good strike, but Zidane is more than capable of saving that ball.
"Again, he doesn't quite time it, and it feels as though the ball is onto him before he's got his hand up in the right position.
"As the tournament goes on, and the players become more used to the atmosphere and the speed of this specific World Cup ball, we'll see these sorts of shots being saved.
"It's an issue of hand-eye [coordination], not feet. I'm not saying Jordan should have saved Croatia's first goal, as it's a really good strike.
"But because he's such a good goalkeeper and he has got himself into a position to save it that it is just the speed of the ball that means he hasn't timed the tip he's looking for, and so it ends up going through his thumb and not being tipped over the bar by his fingers."
During Iraq's 4-1 defeat at the hands of Norway 24 hours earlier, Akam Hashim's thunderous volley had commentators thinking the ball had gone in as the ball shook the frame of the goal, having crashed onto the roof of the net.
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Akam Hashim very nearly scored a candidate for goal of the tournament
Image credit: Getty Images
One player who has shown little hesitation in testing the new adidas match ball is Turkey’s Arda Guler. The 21-year-old could not prevent his side from falling to a 2-0 defeat against Australia, but he has attempted more shots than any other player at the tournament so far.
However, the quality of those opportunities tells a different story.
Guler’s eight efforts generated a combined expected goals (xG) value of just 0.26, highlighting the speculative nature of much of his shooting against Australia - perhaps aware of the speed at which the ball is tending to fly off the boot.
While the Real Madrid midfielder possesses exceptional talent, the chances he elected to take were of such low quality that, historically, a player would be expected to score from only one in every 31 similar attempts, according to Opta's xG model.
That said, the examples of goals scored already suggest the second round of group-stage fixtures will lead to managers instructing their players to attempt more long-range strikes given the unpredictable movement of the ball's rotations.
England had 22 shots against Croatia, suggesting Thomas Tuchel had encouraged his players to shoot on sight - especially as the roof was closed.
Rooney, who played MLS football towards the end of his career at DC United, became accustomed to playing in stadiums where a retractable roof was in use, and the former England and Manchester United striker believes the speed of the ball is far different when playing indoors.
"It makes a massive difference," Rooney added. "When you play indoors, the ball moves a lot quicker. It flies through the air a lot quicker, so what Joe is saying is spot on. It's different in open air. It's only a small details, but those details make a big difference."
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