ETHLETIC SportsballsFAQ's:
- How is the Fairtrade premium spent? How do we know the money is being used properly?
- Why are sports balls not delivered inflated?
- How long will it take for a sports ball to reach me after ordering?
- What is the difference between our footballs and the major brands?
- What is the difference between footballs offered by Fair Deal Trading and cheap footballs?
- What are the quality criteria for Footballs?
- My Sports ball is losing air - is this normal?
- What are balls made of?
- Who monitors that the fair trade criteria are complied with?
What are balls made of?
Balls made with genuine leather became history around 1980 (although a tiny niche remains for “retro balls“). Today“s balls have an outer made with PVC (low quality), or (as is the case with Fair Deal Trading“s balls) with PU (Polyurethane). The inside construction consists of textile backing (usually cotton or polyester for higher strength). The bladder is made from Butyl (artificial rubber) or natural latex. With the exception of our full size rugby, basket, netballs as well as the GreenStar football, which have rubber outers, all our balls are made with high quality strong PU, to which up to four textile backings have been laminated. For environmental as well as quality reasons, most of our balls have bladders made from natural latex and we never use PVC in any of our products.