A former NFL quarterback got tired of mudding down a new football before it was actually playable, so he built one that skips the step. Kurt Benkert, who threw passes for the Packers, Falcons, and 49ers, designed the Phantom around what Dime Lab calls DimeTack, a composite leather coating that’s tacky right out of the box instead of needing a rub-down session first.
The ball is all-black with raised, textured laces and double-stitched stripes, made from an engineered polyurethane composite built to hold its grip when wet and stay easier on the hands than traditional leather over a long practice. It comes in three sizes tied to age and level of play: Junior for 9 to 12, Intermediate for 12 and up, and Official for high school and college.
