WE leaned over and admired the Adidas Trionda’s remarkably consistent rotation and its almost philosophical refusal to deviate from its flight path as it gracefully exited the swimming pool and continued its journey into the garden below.
From seven floors up, my son and I had ample time to appreciate its majestic aerodynamics, thanks to the ball’s thermally bonded panels.
At no point did we consider the minor detail that a synthetic leather projectile, now accelerating at roughly 100 km/h, could cause inconvenience, emotional distress, or structural damage to an unsuspecting resident, a parked vehicle, or a particularly unlucky aunt returning home with her family’s breakfast of telur setengah masak and toast bread.
No, our primary concern was much simpler: whether we would ever see the ball again. This was no ordinary football; it was the official FIFA World Cup 2026 match ball, a sacred object in my household.
While I own a 1986 World Cup Mexican hat, player cards from the 1990 tournament, and a Fuleco plushie from 2014, this ball was the first World Cup memento shared by my son and me.
At that exact moment, its importance comfortably outweighed the theoretical risk of concussing a curious neighbour or leaving a tasteful dent in someone’s suspiciously new electric car, which definitely cost more than our football.
Each time the World Cup rolls around, Malaysian football fans (please don’t start the “soccer” debate unless you are prepared to be gently corrected by three football-purist pakciks simultaneously) enter a familiar seasonal ritual: the great e-commerce pilgrimage.
Shopee, Lazada, Nike, Adidas, we browse them all with the focus of a striker in the penalty box and the financial discipline of a child in a candy store.
Trading cards? Add to cart. National jerseys? Add to cart. The official match ball? Obviously, add to cart, even though we already have five at home. At this point, “financial planning” has become a French phrase we confidently mispronounce while checking out with Buy Now Pay Later.
In the case of Yap Kean Leong, his World Cup memorabilia collection includes key chains, team jerseys, and official World Cup footballs.
“The France team jersey that won the finals in 2018 is my most treasured item because it is my favourite team,” said the 46-year-old lifelong Arsenal supporter.
Yap explained, “When we won the World Cup again, I was decked out in my jersey while sharing that unforgettable moment with my family, which makes the jersey especially meaningful.”
Similarly, for pickleball enthusiast K.P. Ong, the tournament brings back countless memories, having travelled to two previous World Cup events.
“I used to collect football cards when I was a kid. I remember buying more bread than I could eat when local bakeries produced football player cards shaped like the bread they sold,” said the 56-year-old social footballer turned pickleball coach.
While Ong treasures every item in his collection, the infamously noisy vuvuzela remains his favourite, as it was purchased while attending the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
Speaking of noise, FC Ampang founder Mark Hughes, who bears no relation to the slightly more famous namesake, the Manchester United legend, considers the latest England national team jersey his most prized football possession.
“The 2026 England jersey was a gift from my family. While I can only hope that it will surely ‘come home’ this year, I will wear the jersey with pride at every England match,” said the Englishman, who has been residing in Malaysia for nearly a decade.
Not everyone collects World Cup memorabilia for sentimental reasons. For 38-year-old digital solutions entrepreneur Ganesan Raj, every purchase is judged by its investment potential.
“I started collecting World Cup player cards when I was in primary school,” said the father of three, who is also keen to follow in their father’s footsteps.
The Brazil supporter revealed, “Today, I have hundreds of highly prized cards and signed football jerseys that I hope to one day sell to the right buyers who will pay the best price for my World Cup collection.”
Which reminds me, I should probably run down those seven floors and search for my Trionda ball in the garden. After all, it might just end up funding my kid’s education.
Coach Chris Arief is an Asian-level certified football coach, youth development junkie, and collector of colourful training markers and cones. He can be reached at coachchrisarief@gmail.com
