FIFA has sheepishly admitted that something may be amiss with the Jabulani soccer ball that’s being used in the World Cup and in typical fashion won’t be doing anything about it until the tournament is over. Many of the players have said the ball is quite unpredictable as it sails far too easily through the air. Jerome Valcke, the FIFA secretary general stated on June 26 that they may actually be right.

Valcke added that FIFA aims to talk to managers and players after the tournament is over and then discuss its findings with German company Adidas, which makes the controversial ball. It’s not unusual for goalkeepers to complain about the ball every time a World Cup starts, but this time mangers and players are getting into the act.

Brazilian manger Dunga even got into an argument with Valcke about the ball prior to the tournament as he suggested Valcke go out onto the field and try it out for himself. There are also worries that the ball will have a greater affect on the games if they happen to go to penalty kicks in the knockout stages.

Former German goalkeeper Oliver Kahn stated that the balls definitely have undergone changes over the past few years as they are now faster, and that playing in the high altitude of South Africa they are even more unpredictable.

Adidas has been manufacturing World Cup balls for the last 40 years and is under contract to do so until 2014. The company said it’s not sure what the problem is as all of the teams that qualified for the tournament were supplied with the balls to test out before it began.

Italian goaltender Gianluigi Buffon, who was injured in Italy’s first game and will be out of action for four months while needing back surgery, said he doesn’t know why the players can’t just play with a basic black and white ball as they did when they were kids.

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