Cream the butter and sugar: Beat the softened butter and granulated sugar until light and creamy. This gives the cookies a tender texture without making the dough overly dense.

Add the wet ingredients: Beat in the egg and vanilla until the mixture is smooth and evenly combined.

Mix the dry ingredients: Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a separate bowl.

Make the dough: Gradually add the dry mixture to the butter mixture, mixing just until a soft dough forms. Avoid overmixing once the flour disappears.

Chill the dough: Divide the dough into two portions, flatten each into a disk, wrap, and refrigerate for about 30 to 45 minutes. Chilling makes the dough easier to roll and helps the cookies hold their shape.

Roll and cut: Lightly flour the work surface and roll the chilled dough to about ¼-inch thickness. Cut round cookies with a 3-inch cookie cutter and transfer them to parchment-lined baking sheets.

Chill the shaped cookies: Refrigerate the cut cookies for about 10 to 15 minutes if the dough has become soft while cutting.

Bake the cookies: Bake at 350°F for about 9 to 11 minutes, or until the edges are set and the centers still look lightly colored. Do not wait for the cookies to become deeply brown.

Cool completely: Leave the cookies on the baking sheet for a few minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack. Make sure they are completely cool before decorating.

Add the white icing: Pipe or spread a thin layer of white royal icing over each cookie. Let the surface become firm enough to support the black details.

Create the soccer pattern: Use black royal icing to add a small central geometric shape with connected sections around it. Keep the lines relatively thin so the white background remains visible.

Clean the details: Use a toothpick or cookie scribe to gently correct small icing gaps and pop any visible air bubbles.