Football curves

Straight lines, zigzag, parabolas (possibly truncated), circles and spirals are the main curves which can be observed in football (in the European sense, soccer elsewhere). They are, respectively, associated to heavy kick, knuckleball, lob and banana kicks. We discuss their physical origin and determine their respective domain of existence.

Research highlights
► Classification of the different ball trajectories observed in football.
► Discussion of the importance of the aerodynamic spiral in free kicks.
► Classification of Ball games via the ratio gravity/aerodynamics.