NASA Will Send a Soccer Ball to the Moon — if the US Wins the World Cup
NASA officials said a lunar lander could carry the ball as part of payloads for future Moon base missions.
- On Tuesday, Administrator Jared Isaacman and Moon Base Program Executive Carlos García-Galán pledged NASA will transport a World Cup soccer ball to the Moon if Team USA wins the 2026 championship.
- Aiming to "one-up" the 1971 Apollo 14 mission, Isaacman noted Cmdr. Alan Shepard famously hit golf balls on the lunar surface, providing motivation for Team USA.
- NASA has already stationed a FIFA ball at the International Space Station; the agency is developing unmanned landers from Blue Origin and Astrobotic for future lunar exploration.
- García-Galán confirmed that if the United States secures victory, the agency will "absolutely find space" on a payload for the ball, as it is light enough to transport.
- Transporting the ball would align with broader Moon base plans in the coming years, while Team USA faces Bosnia and Herzegovina on July 1 in San Francisco for the World Cup.
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WASHINGTON.- NASA director promised Tuesday to send a ball to the Moon if the U.S. football team wins the 2026 World Cup, which is being held in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. By the start of the tournament, NASA had already sent an official FIFA ball to the International Space Station (ISS).But if the U.S. team were to become champion, the agency would celebrate sending another ball much further away: to the Moon, said Jared Isaacman, NASA admini…
NASA will send a soccer ball to the moon — if the US wins the World Cup
Jared Isaacman is doing his best to spur his country on to sporting glory.The NASA chief announced on Tuesday (June 30) that the agency will send a FIFA World Cup 2026 soccer ball to the moon if the U.S. men's national team manages to win the tournament, which is going on right now."So, a little bit of motivation for the United States here on this one," Isaacman said during a livestreamed press event on Tuesday. "We're going to one-up Alan Shepa…
In the case of a U.S. World Cup victory, the Space Agency wants to send a football to the moon.
NASA to Send World Cup Ball to the Moon If USA Wins
NASA will put a World Cup soccer ball on the moon if Team USA wins the championship, officials announced on June 30. Administrator Jared Isaacman and Moon Base Program Executive Carlos García-Galán made the pledge during the first of what Isaacman said would be monthly updates on the space agency’s lunar ambitions. The event featured the unveiling of four new lunar landers that will carry payloads of emerging technologies that will be crucial fo…
(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Hyun Young-bok = "If the U.S. wins the World Cup, I will send a soccer ball to the moon. Good luck."
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