Today the FIFA World Cup kicks off in Russia as 32 nations battle it out to be crowned the football champions of the world. In this episode of Physics World Weekly, James Dacey and Matin Durrani consider some of the ways physics interacts with the beautiful game.

Dacey and Durrani discuss how footballs curve in the air, the secret to the perfect throw in, and how physics principles can help in designing safe stadiums. They also take a look at a couple of recent studies that attempt to predict the results of the tournament.

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Football image courtesy: Selma Bears (CC BY 2.0)