OHIO — Once again, “Wilson” has been named the official football of the NFL. The sporting goods company and the major professional sports league have had a partnership going strong for more than 80 years. 

What You Need To Know

  • Sports equipment company Wilson Sporting Goods and the NFL are renewing their decades-long partnership 

  • The footballs are handmade in Ada, Ohio

  • A team of about 150 employees put out 700,000 balls each year

  • A new 80,000 square foot facility unveiled Thursday will allow even more production 

The iconic “Wilson” football has been used to score every point in the NFL since 1941, making it one of the longest partnerships in sports history. The balls have all been handmade in Ada, Ohio since 1955. 

“It all starts here right from the first cut all the way through the sewing, stitching, lacing, turning,” said Derek Gibson, an employee at Wilson Sporting Goods. “It’s just awesome knowing it comes from a little town in Ohio.”

Derek Gibson is one of about 150 employees who work at the football factory. Through 20 production steps, they make about 700,000 footballs each year.

“It’s just a real fun job,” Gibson said. “And to actually see your footballs out there on the field, being used, played with, that just makes it even more awesome.”

Now a brand new 80,000 square foot facility located next to the former one will allow production of even more. It is more than double the size of the former one. The upgraded facility is also home to product testing, ball customization and Wilson’s game-ready product break-in process. The new space includes a football museum, celebrating iconic Wilson and NFL moments, as well as a pop-up shop and manufacturing tours.

“I am very excited,” said Kevin Murphy, the general manager for Wilson Team Sports. “It’s one of the proudest moments I’ve ever had in my career. Again, I’ve been coming here forever. I have that connection to the people, and I understand how committed they are. And to be able to give them the certainty that this investment in this building gives this community for the next 20, 30, 40 years feels really great.”

Athletes from the NFL, college and even little league use the footballs that are made in Ada to perfection. 

“I think from the texture, from the consistency of grip when it comes to different environments that you may play in, it’s nothing like it,” said Cardale Jones, former NFL and Ohio State quarterback. “Pretty cool that we had the opportunity to win a championship with one of those balls.”

 

There’s no automation at the facility. Everything is sewn, turned and laced by hand.

“I make it so it’s right the first time,” said Barbara Gray, an employee at Wilson Sporting Goods. “Everybody says which team are you rooting for? I’m not rooting for any team. I’m rooting for the ball.” 

Murphy said they could likely figure out how to automate the process, but they choose not to. 

“The reason we’re committed to making handmade is that’s the best result we’re getting,” Murphy said. “It’s a delicate product. The leather, working with leather is not easy, so it does take skill. So we’ll automate some parts of the process, but if you want to perfect football, you’re going to have to have a human helping you make sure that everything is just right.”

The Wilson Football Factory has put Ada on the map. The facility is located in a town with just more than 5,000 people, but is the origin of a sport watched and played by millions. 

“It makes me proud that this little town is so famous and nobody knows where it’s at,” Gray said. 

Every day, craftspeople literally put skin in the game. 

“Just watching a guy just flip this ball inside out from where it started. Did you see me? I struggled with it,” said Jerome Ford, a running back for the Cleveland Browns. “It took a lot of time. Fingers were a little sore after. So just imagine him going home, you know, after doing I think he said, I don’t know, 200 footballs a day. And, you know, his fingers are probably sore, so yeah, they definitely work hard in here.”

Love and passion are stitched into every single ball, just like the athletes put love and passion into every game. 

“It gives you a sense of, of honor, of knowing that the thing that you’re playing with was handmade to the tee and making sure that it’s pretty much as close to perfection as possible to help you do your job better,” Jones said. 

For years to come, Wilson hopes to better the world through sports, starting with balls that allow people to play them. 

“In today’s environment with so many things that pull us apart, I think sports is one of those things that is also bringing us together, one of the few things that’s bringing us together," Jones said. "And football happens to be one of them. You know, you can’t play football without a football.”

For more information on the new Wilson Football Factory, click here.