According to the verdict of Guinness World Record officials, Emperors Palace Hotel Casino Convention and Entertainment Resort and Kia Motors have the biggest soccer ball of them all. Standing at 15-metres high, the ball was presented to the public amidst entertainment and exciting acts.

Robert Molloy, adjudicator and Director of Television Guinness World Records, confirmed the ball as the world’s biggest soccer ball.

Emperors Palace, together with the rest of South Africa has been celebrating the soccer throughout June, and in the build up to the culmination of the event, the resort wanted to do something that had a ‘wow’ factor – that would put South Africa and Kia Motors on the world map – so why not the worlds biggest soccer ball? In comparison to the official Adidas Jabulani ball being used in the 2010 tournament, the Emperors Palace and Kia ball is no small matter. Based on the Telstar ball of the 1970 FIFA World Cup, it is almost 70 times the size and 1 500 times heavier than the Jabulani ball.

To enter the Guinness World Records the ball needed to conform to certain specifications: it must be inflatable and deflatable; be able to roll and be kicked; and must be an exact replica of an official FIFA match ball. In other words, it has to do all the things that a regular soccer ball can do.

“Fortunately Guinness gave some leniency when it came to the materials – we did not have to manufacture the ball out of shoe laces and leather panels but were allowed to use PVC instead,” says Stefan Vermaak of Innermation SA, the marketing company commissioned to run the Emperors Palace and Kia big ball project. “This ball is a real replica that, despite its size, moves and looks like an Adidas Telstar ball,” he says.

The colossal ball that rests on the enormous Chariots Fountain next to the D’oreale Grande hotel has already become a draw card for Emperors Palace, where the display forms part of the entertainment complex FIFA World Cup viewing zone. While at Emperors Palace you can also experience the Family Fun Park at Centre Court, where live screenings of the semi-finals and finals of the World Cup will be screened on 6; 7; and 11 July. Emperors Palace also has fantastic specially dedicated kiddies’ areas with professional minders at the Family Fun Park where children can have as much fun as they want in complete safety. Massive screens in the Centre Court will put guests right in the heart of the action and tickets are R40 per person and include a boerewors roll and a beverage. Children under 12 years enter free. Tickets are available at the Emperors Palace Box Office on 011 928 1297.

The future of the Kia and Emperors Palace ball, beyond the World Cup event, is still to be decided. In the meantime, everyone’s invited to visit Emperors Palace to celebrate the first soccer World Cup on African soil and possibly the biggest ball of them all.

This story first appeared on publicityupdate.co.za

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