I had no idea the soccer/football ball had changed so much, and so recently.

The first world-cup ball (1930; laced, with T-shaped panels; shown deflated):

1970 model (mixed pentagonal/hexagonal panels):

2014 model (six freeform panels):

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/06/13/sports/worldcup/world-cup-balls.html