Ball (gridiron football)

In Northern America, a football (also called a pigskin) is a ball, roughly in the form of a lemon, used in the context of playing gridiron football. Footballs are often made of cowhide leather, as such a material is required in professional and collegiate football, although footballs used in recreation and organized youth leagues may be made of rubber, plastic or composite leather (high school football rule books still allow inexpensive all-rubber footballs, though they are less common than leather).

History

Early balls

In the 1860s, manufactured inflatable balls were introduced through the innovations of English shoemaker Richard Lindon. These were much more regular in shape than the handmade balls of earlier times, making kicking and carrying easier. These early footballs were plum-shaped.

Some teams used to have white footballs for purposes of night practice.

The football changed in 1934, with a rule change that tapered the ball at the ends more and reduced the size around the middle. This new, sleeker ball made it much easier to handle, particularly for passers, while at the same time making the drop kick unreliable and obsolete. Hugh "Shorty" Ray, at the time a college football official and later the NFL's head of officiating, is generally credited with conceiving the pointed football.

"The Duke"

From 1941 through 1969 and since 2006, the official game ball of the National Football League (NFL) has been stamped with the nickname "The Duke" in honor of Wellington Mara, the longtime owner of the New York Giants, who was named after the Duke of Wellington by his father, Tim Mara, founder and first owner of the Giants.