‘Thermally bonded’ footballs are different from their stitched counterparts in the way the panels are attached together. All of the panels are arranged inside a mould with adhesive applied to the edges of each panel. The mould is then heated and pressurised, gluing all the panels together into a sphere. This process is much less labour intensive than stitching the panels together. The first thermally bonded football was used in the 2004 European Championship.