ADA, Ohio—Stitched with precision—and laced to perfection.
The Wilson Football Plant, in Ada, northwest Ohio, is where footballs used in NFL, college, and high school games are handcrafted by about 100 dedicated employees.
- The factory has been making footballs since 1955
- They make about 600,000 footballs a year
- Employees have dedicated their entire adult lives to working at the Wilson Factory
The factory put this village—population 5,500—on the map, attracting visitors from all over—and even Super Bowl champs like Peyton Manning and Russell Wilson.
The factory has been pumping out balls for the gridiron since 1955.
“So today, we’ll make 2,500 footballs…we make about 600,000 a year,” said Andy Wentling, plant manager. “In total, there are 20 steps to complete a ball, each one equally as important…but one job in particular is the thread that holds it all together…literally.”
Ashley has been sewing at Wilson for 8 years. She uses a technique called “lock stitch” that locks in each stitch individually so it can’t come apart.
She’s one of only two people that stitches every NFL game ball.
“Honestly, it’s an honor to make the balls that go on every game…they’ve been in every game since the beginning of the Super Bowls. My kids love that I do it…they wanna work here too,” said Sewer.
Sewer says that when she’s watching a football game, she looks at it very differently.
“Because you’re looking at the ball and your saying, I stitched that. Because there are only two of you here that do this,” said Sewer. “Yup. I think all of us have that sense of pride knowing that most of us have touched 90 percent of these balls going through the factory that are being played on the field for all the NFL games.”
And then there’s Jim, a 42-year Wilson employee, who’s turned over 3 million footballs. “When I get the football after she’s sewed it, it’s really stiff, and so she’s left an opening from this notch down here so that I can pull the material through. I put it in the box and I leave it in there for about 15 seconds,” said Jim.
Employees like Jim have dedicated their entire adult lives to working at the Wilson factory. Some have even found their spouses here.
There’s a sense of pride, and an understanding that this goes well beyond the making of a ball.
“So, we make a football, right? It’s a toy that we play a game with. These people are amazing…we’ve got some people that are 42, 43 years, 33 years…and I think that makes the rest of us think I can do that too,” said Wentling. “I’ve been here 4 years, but I wanna work here 20 years, so we just wanna continue that passion and those people help instill that in the rest of us.”