World Cup or Jules Rimet Trophy?

The Two World Cups

The French sculptor Abel Lafleur was invited to design the first World Cup trophy, which became known as the Jules Rimet Cup. It was not a cup, however, but a gold statuette weighing about 3.8 kg and was about 35 cm high, on an octagonal base. It represented an allegorical winged victory.

This famous trophy was first stolen at an exhibition in London prior to the 1966 World Cup, but it was allegedly found by a dog named Pickles under bushes outside London shortly after. There have been persistent rumours that this incident was staged, but by whom and for what purpose has never been adequately explained - but neither is there any evident reason why genuine thieves would not have melted it down!

In 1930, the trophy was established as a 'perpetual' one: the rules provided that the first nation to win the tournament three times would keep it forever. When Brazil won their third title in Mexico 1970, it was duly presented to them to keep. In 1983 it was stolen again, and has never been seen since.

The present trophy, the FIFA World Cup, weighs about 5 kg and is 36 cm high. It was first presented at the 1974 World Cup and is made of solid gold and malachite. It was made by the Italian sculptor Silvio Gazzaniga, who described it as follows: "The lines spring out from the base, rising in spirals, stretching out to receive the world. From the remarkable dynamic tensions of the compact body of the sculpture rise the figures of two athletes at the stirring moment of victory".

This trophy cannot be won outright as the regulations state that it shall remain the possession of FIFA. The World Cup winners retain it until the next tournament and are then given a permanent replica, gold-plated rather than solid gold.

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