Wilson’s connected football will satisfy your post-Superbowl sports cravings
A Bluetooth-powered pigskin that'll teach you to throw like a champ
Wait, isn’t Stuff British? Why are you getting all excited over fake football?
Where have you been? American football is taking off here in the UK – the NFL will play four matches here this year, to sell-out crowds. We’re not just in it for the beer and hot dogs. Honest.
Plus, there’s not a sport out there that can’t be improved by adding accelerometers and Bluetooth sensors. Case in point: Wilson’s X connected football.
It doesn’t look so futuristic to me…
That’s the point. It’s still the same weight and size as balls used in the NFL, so you won’t notice the difference if you get called up to the big leagues and have to leave your Bluetooth training tools behind.
We can’t all be Tom Brady, though, so while you’re working on that throwing arm, you’ll be able to pair this to your phone and track all kinds of figures and statistics to help you get better. Think spin rate, spiral efficiency and throw velocity – everything you need to master if you want to be throwing touchdowns instead of ten yard fumbles.
Handy until it runs out of battery, right?
You’ll have to be playing a whole lot of football for that to happen – the sensors inside are constantly napping. You’ve got to wake ‘em up by holding the ball vertically for two seconds, then flipping it 180°.
That way, you’ll be good for 200,000 throws, or up to 500 hours of connected usage. Not bad when the average American football game has a mere 11 minutes of ball-in-play action. You’ll probably have worn the rubber away before you completely drain the battery.
Can the rest of my starting eleven join in too?
Yup, just as soon as you’ve paired the ball to your phone. Wilson’s app has built-in games you can play with the rest of your team, to see who’s got the best throwing arm. It’ll even show how you stack up to the pros.
The X Connected football has been available in the UK for a while now, but only popped onto our radar once Super Bowl fever started shifting from overused turn-of-phrase to “Do we have enough beer and hotdogs” panic buying and “I can’t come in on Monday” excuses at work.
Now that we’ve finally reached game day, we’re betting they’re going to prove popular. Football fans can pick one up from the NFL UK shop for £160.
Tom Morgan-Freelander
Deputy Editor 
