A tiny sensor inside an Adidas match ball just knocked Croatia out of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Portugal advanced past Croatia 2-1 in the Round of 32 after Connected Ball Technology confirmed that Croatian forward Igor Matanovic made the slightest of head contacts with the ball deep in stoppage time, reinstating teammate Mario Pasalic’s offside position and wiping a would-be equalizer by Josko Gvardiol off the board.
The technology sampled ball movement data at up to 500 Hz, essentially capturing motion 500 times per second, to detect a touch so subtle that no camera angle could conclusively prove it happened.
What actually happened in Toronto
Portugal’s Goncalo Ramos had scored what appeared to be the winner in the 94th minute, giving his side a 2-1 lead. Croatia, refusing to go quietly, pushed forward and found the net in around the 102nd minute through Gvardiol. The stadium erupted. Then VAR intervened.
The review hinged on whether Matanovic had touched the ball before it reached Pasalic, who was standing in an offside position. If Matanovic deliberately played the ball, Pasalic’s involvement would make him actively offside. Traditional camera angles were inconclusive. So the officials turned to the Adidas Trionda ball’s built-in sensor data.
