Step 1
Create a new document in Adobe Illustrator and draw a hexagon like in the next picture using Polygon Tool in the Tools Tab:
Step 2
Duplicate the polygon (CTRL+ENTER) and repeat the step until you obtain the below result. (Colorized the polygons like this):
Step 3
Select all the polygons, right click and choose Group:
Step 4
Now draw a circle (using Ellipse Tool in the Tools Tab) and duplicate it:
Step 5
Select the polygons and apply the next effect: Effects > Distort & Transform > Pucker & Bloat with the next settings:
Step 6
Select the polygons and the red circle, right click and choose Make Clipping Mask:
Step 7
Move the green circle over the mask area and set the border color to black:
Step 8
Repeat the steps 1 to 7 but, this time, invert the colors of the polygons and create a single circle (the green circle):
Step 9
Move the new polygons over the polygons that were first created:
Step 10
Select the new polygons (the newly created polygons) and apply the next effect: Effects > SVG Filter > AI_Static:
Step 11
Set the opacity in the Transparency Tab to 45%:
Step 12
Draw a new polygon and set the color to gradient (black/white) and the opacity to 30%:
Step 13
Repeat previous step for all the black polygons:
Step 14
Draw a new circle and select the polygons with the blend color right click and choose Make Clipping Mask:
Step 15
Now make a new polygon with a gradient color like this and opacity to 20%:
Step 16
Duplicate the polygon for all the white polygons, draw a circle, select all the polygons and the new circle and select Make Clipping Mask:
Step 17
Apply feather effect for the black and white polygons (Effects > Stylize > Feather) with the "Feather Radius" set to 5:
Step 18
Resize the ball and add some kind of shadow and you have a soccer ball:
