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The founders of the RoboCup competition have a simple, reasonable dream: to build a team of robotic soccer players who'll win the World Cup by 2050. Here's a sample of the finest fútbol-bots from Virginia Tech's Robotics and Mechanics Laboratory. More »
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In 1997, Brazilian soccer player Roberto Carlos scored on a free kick that first went right, then curved sharply to leftwards in what looked like a physics-defying fluke. We've finally discovered the physics equation that shows it was no fluke. More »
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Stupid World Cup, breaking my sorta-but-not-really-interested-in-soccer heart every 4 years. Well, I'm done. This is the only sport I'm following. In 2012, nobody's going to be watching fútbol or checkerball or whatever. They'll be watching this. Trust me. [Japanator] More »
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Whether or not you're enthralled by the World Cup, this Roberto Carlos score — dubbed "the Impossible Goal" — is a wonder from the perspective of physics. More »
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This new ad for Puma's v1.08 soccer boot freaks me out. In the year 2178, soccer players will have their legs ripped off and replaced with weird cyber-horse legs, so they can trot around and do kangaroo jumps for the amusement of their beer-swilling orthohuman masters. Until then, the ad says, the closest you can get to being a deformed cyber-beast athlete is to buy Puma's newest model. It's just the latest in a long line of freaky dystopian adverts. More »
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Adidas yesterday announced the rollout of a new space-age soccer ball that knows where it is. As it rolls around the soccer field, the smart ball uses a magnetic field to figure out its location — particularly when it's near the goal — and relays the data to the referee. No more analyzing footage to figure out what happened: Just ask the ball. That's great, but I want the ballcam, guys. I want to see what your balls see. Sorry, it had to be said. Photo by KEN SHIMIZU/AFP/Getty Images. More »
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