From its composition to the thefts that shaped its history, discover the fascinating facts behind one of football’s greatest symbols
27.07.26 - 17h00Scientific Curiosity of the Month: The FIFA World Cup Trophy
What if I told you the FIFA World Cup Trophy is made of gold... but the winning team doesn’t get to take it home?
The current FIFA World Cup Trophy, introduced in 1974, is made of 18-carat gold and stands on a base of malachite, a green semi-precious stone. It weighs 6.142 kg and was designed by Italian sculptor Silvio Gazzaniga in 1971. The design depicts two human figures lifting the Earth, symbolising the global nature of football.
Interestingly, the winning national team receives only a gold-plated replica, while the original trophy always returns to FIFA. In addition, after each FIFA World Cup, a new ring is added to the base of the original trophy, engraved with the name of the winning nation, while each champion also receives its own FIFA World Cup Winners' Trophy.
There is more to the story. Its predecessor, the Jules Rimet Trophy, was stolen twice. In 1966, it was famously recovered by a dog named Pickles. However, following another theft in 1983, it disappeared forever and is widely believed to have been melted down.
Since then, the original FIFA World Cup Trophy has become one of the most protected and exclusive objects in world sport. Only heads of state, former FIFA World Cup winners and senior FIFA officials are authorised to touch it.
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