FIFA World Cup Trophy
In June 1930, the Conte Verde ship set sail from Villefranche-sur-Mer carrying a golden trophy toward Uruguay. Jules Rimet had passed a vote in 1929 to initiate the competition that would become the FIFA World Cup. The first team to receive this award was Uruguay after winning the inaugural tournament. Originally named Victory, the cup was designed by French sculptor Abel Lafleur and crafted from gold-plated sterling silver on a lapis lazuli base. It depicted Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, supporting a decagonal cup. During World War II, Ottorino Barassi hid the trophy under his bed inside a shoe-box to protect it from Nazi forces. He served as the Italian vice-president of FIFA and president of FIGC at the time. In 1954, the original base was replaced with a taller version to accommodate more winners' details. The trophy stood 35 centimetres high and weighed 3.8 kilograms. On the 20th of March 1966, four months before the England tournament, the trophy vanished during an exhibition at Westminster Central Hall. A black and white collie dog named Pickles found it seven days later wrapped in newspaper beneath a suburban garden hedge in Beulah Hill, Upper Norwood.
Brazil won their third title in 1970 and were awarded the Jules Rimet Trophy in perpetuity according to Jules Rimets stipulation. The cup was displayed at the Brazilian Football Confederation headquarters in Rio de Janeiro behind bullet-proof glass. On the 19th of December 1983, thieves forced open the wooden rear of the display cabinet using a crowbar. They stole the trophy and it has never been recovered since that night. Four men were tried and convicted in absentia for the crime but no one knows where the gold went. It is widely believed the trophy was melted down into bars and sold on the market. Some theories suggest it was sold onto the black market and may still exist somewhere today. Only one piece of the original trophy remains: the base kept by FIFA in a basement until 2015. The Confederation commissioned a replica made by Eastman Kodak using 4 kilograms of gold. This replica was presented to Brazilian military president João Figueiredo in 1984. A separate replica created by the English FA was sold at auction in 1997 for £254,500.
FIFA commissioned a replacement trophy for the 1974 World Cup after Brazil won their third title. Fifty-three submissions arrived from sculptors across seven countries before Italian artist Silvio Gazzaniga won the commission. The new trophy stands 36 centimetres tall and weighs 6.1 kilograms. It contains 6.1 kilograms of 18 karat gold worth approximately US$407,725 as of August 2025. Chemist Sir Martyn Poliakoff confirmed the trophy is hollow because solid gold would make it too heavy to lift. Its base measures 13 centimetres in diameter and includes two layers of malachite adding another 1.5 kilograms to the total weight. Produced by GDE Bertoni company in Paderno Dugnano, Italy, the design shows two human figures holding up the Earth. Gazzaniga described the work as lines springing out from the base rising in spirals to receive the world. The sculpture captures the dynamic tensions of compact bodies with athletes at the stirring moment of victory. The production cost of the current trophy is estimated at $242,700 according to initial estimates.
The original Jules Rimet Trophy now resides permanently at the FIFA World Football Museum in Zürich, Switzerland. It leaves that location only during the FIFA World Cup Trophy Tour which began for the 2006 competition. The trophy appears at the Final draw for the next tournament and on the pitch during the opening game and final match. Only selected individuals may touch the trophy with bare hands including players and managers who have won the competition. Heads of state and FIFA officials are also permitted to handle the cup directly. Winners of the tournament no longer keep the original trophy until the next final draw. Instead they receive a bronze replica plated with gold rather than solid gold. Three-time winners like Germany and Argentina keep the replica instead of the original cup. Germany became the first nation to win the new trophy three times when they claimed the 2014 title. Argentina followed suit after winning their third championship in Qatar during the 2022 tournament.
The base of the trophy bears the engraving FIFA World Cup while names appear on a plate added below after 1994. This plate sits on the bottom side where names remain invisible when the trophy stands upright. Inscriptions show the year in figures and the winning nation in its national language such as 1974 or 1994. In 2010 Spain was engraved as 2010 Spain in English before being corrected to Spanish in the 2018 cycle. As of 2022 twelve winners have been inscribed on the base plate. The plate gets replaced each World Cup cycle and names rearrange into a spiral pattern for future champions. Brazil won the Jules Rimet Trophy three times between 1958 and 1970. Italy won twice in 1934 and 1938 while Germany claimed four titles including 1974, 1990, 2014. Argentina secured victories in 1978, 1986, and 2022 with their third win making them current holders alongside Germany.
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Common questions
Who designed the original Jules Rimet Trophy and what materials were used?
French sculptor Abel Lafleur designed the trophy which was crafted from gold-plated sterling silver on a lapis lazuli base. The design depicted Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, supporting a decagonal cup.
When did the Jules Rimet Trophy disappear and how was it recovered?
The trophy vanished on the 20th of March 1966 during an exhibition at Westminster Central Hall. A black and white collie dog named Pickles found it seven days later wrapped in newspaper beneath a suburban garden hedge in Beulah Hill, Upper Norwood.
Why was the current FIFA World Cup Trophy commissioned for the 1974 competition?
FIFA commissioned a replacement trophy after Brazil won their third title in 1970 and received the Jules Rimet Trophy in perpetuity according to Jules Rimets stipulation. Italian artist Silvio Gazzaniga won the commission with fifty-three submissions arriving from sculptors across seven countries.
What are the physical specifications of the current FIFA World Cup Trophy?
The new trophy stands 36 centimetres tall and weighs 6.1 kilograms including two layers of malachite adding another 1.5 kilograms to the total weight. It contains 6.1 kilograms of 18 karat gold worth approximately US$407,725 as of August 2025.
Where is the original Jules Rimet Trophy located today and when did it move there?
The original Jules Rimet Trophy now resides permanently at the FIFA World Football Museum in Zürich, Switzerland. Only selected individuals may touch the trophy with bare hands including players and managers who have won the competition.