Brazuca to replace Jabulani?

Sao Paulo - Adidas has announced the shortlist of potential names for the 2014 Soccer World Cup ball and are asking fans to vote for their preferred candidate of quintessential Brazilian choices.

The three names are Portuguese words and all are feminine, conforming to the Brazilian stereotype of the ball as a woman, to be caressed and cared for.

One of the finalists is Carnavalesca, a word describing someone who plans or participates in the country's raucous carnival celebrations.

Another is Bossa Nova, a reference to the famous samba-jazz music genre popularised in Rio de Janeiro in the late 1950s and 1960s.

Finally Brazuca, which is a playful slang word for native Brazilians that Adidas said summed up the country's irreverence.

The sporting goods firm, a World Cup sponsor, is giving fans the chance to vote for one of the options on its Brazilian Web page.

The concept of naming the World Cup ball began in Mexico in 1970 with the Telstar. Among the more memorable balls in the years since were the Tango in Argentina in 1978, the Azteca in Mexico in 1986 and the Jabulani in South Africa in 2010.

Romario, the 1994 World Cup winner turned Congressman who has previously criticised Brazil's preparations, expressed surprise at the absence of Gorduchinha, a word that means little chubby.

Adidas said voting closes on September 2.