{"id":7629,"date":"2026-07-16T08:04:25","date_gmt":"2026-07-16T08:04:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7629"},"modified":"2026-07-16T08:04:25","modified_gmt":"2026-07-16T08:04:25","slug":"how-an-italian-sculptor-created-the-world-cup-trophy-that-became-an-icon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7629","title":{"rendered":"How an Italian sculptor created the World Cup trophy that became an icon"},"content":{"rendered":"

MILAN \u2014 The Italian sculptor who designed the FIFA World Cup<\/a> trophy wanted to capture three sporting emotions in a single spiraling form: the athlete\u2019s struggle, the fan\u2019s jubilation and the moment of victory.<\/p>\n

Read more International Cricket Council revamps formats for men\u2019s World Cups<\/a><\/p>\n

On Sunday, either Spain<\/a> or Argentina <\/a> will lift the trophy after the 2026 World Cup final<\/a> .<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what to know about the most coveted prize in soccer.<\/p>\n

Silvio Gazzaniga designed the trophy in his studio in Milan\u2019s Brera neighborhood after FIFA issued an open competition for a new design when Brazil took permanent possession of the original trophy by winning its third World Cup in 1970.<\/p>\n

The design, now familiar to generations of World Cup fans, features two figures swirling up toward an orb representing the Earth.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen he started to design the cup, he was sketching a huge number of drawings and finally started to develop the idea to have the world and this symbol that it is like a two DNA spirals, that are moving up,\u201d said Giorgio Gazzaniga, the designer\u2019s son who was a teenager at the time.<\/p>\n

The elder Gazzaniga, a sculptor and trophy designer who died in 2016, worked for G.D.E. Bertoni Srl and created some of the most prestigious trophies in the world, including the UEFA Cup and European Super-Cup.<\/p>\n

The first World Cup Trophy, introduced for the inaugural tournament in in 1930, depicted the Greek goddess Nike, and was known as the Jules Rimet Trophy for the tournament\u2019s founder. FIFA commissioned a replacement after Brazil earned permanent possession of the original after becoming the first nation to win three World Cups.<\/p>\n

The Jules Rimet Trophy was stolen twice \u2014 first in 1966 while on public display in England, before being recovered by a dog named Pickles beneath a hedge in south London, according to FIFA. It was stolen again from the Brazilian Football Confederation headquarters in 1983 after Brazil had taken permanent possession. It has never been recovered and is widely believed to have been melted down.<\/p>\n

More than 50 proposals were submitted but only Gazzaniga presented a full model \u2014 which permitted the jury to appreciate both the form and the story it conveyed, his son said.<\/p>\n

Read more British Open returns to a new Royal Birkdale and an old chase for the claret jug<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThere is the world, which stands above all else, there is the athlete\u2019s exertion, there is the athlete\u2019s movement within the metal, and the athlete\u2019s body is rough, rugged, for it has suffered, had to fight, and struggled for victory,\u2019\u2019 the younger Gazzaniga said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat victory is expressed through arms that resemble the wings of Victory, capturing not only the athlete\u2019s triumph but also the jubilation of the fan,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Gazzaniga\u2019s family has preserved his office at a new location on the outskirts of Milan, including drawings, the original prototype submitted to FIFA and a wax cast.<\/p>\n

The official World Cup trophy hoisted by the winning captain at the end of the final is 36 centimeters (14 inches) tall cast in 18-carat gold, sitting on a base featuring two rings of green malachite, symbolizing the playing fields.<\/p>\n

After the tournament, the original trophy goes back to FIFA, which keeps it at its Swiss headquarters between World Cups. The winning team brings home a gold-plated replica.<\/p>\n

FIFA no longer lets three-time winners keep the original.<\/p>\n

This is the 14th World Cup to use Gazzaniga\u2019s design, and FIFA has decided to keep the trophy in use at least through the 2038 tournament, according to Gazzaniga\u2019s website.<\/p>\n

The younger Gazzaniga still vividly remembers watching the 1974 World Cup final at home with his family as West Germany faced the Netherlands. It was the first time his father\u2019s trophy was presented at the World Cup.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe real explosion of joy came when the German team raised the cup in Munich and the whole stadium erupted,\u201d he said. \u201cThat was the moment an object became an icon.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Fiji scrumhalf Kuruvoli banned 4 weeks for physical abuse in rugby Nations Championship match<\/a><\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

See more of AP\u2019s World Cup coverage here<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The World Cup trophy familiar to generations of soccer fans was designed by Italian sculptor Silvio Gazzaniga<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":97,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7629","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"\nHow an Italian sculptor created the World Cup trophy that became an icon - Moving Insider USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7629\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How an Italian sculptor created the World Cup trophy that became an icon - Moving Insider USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The World Cup trophy familiar to generations of soccer fans was designed by Italian sculptor Silvio Gazzaniga\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7629\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Moving Insider USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-16T08:04:25+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=7629#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=7629\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/22d40ab81790f6a361021763bb56ef03\"},\"headline\":\"How an Italian sculptor created the World Cup trophy that became an icon\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-16T08:04:25+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=7629\"},\"wordCount\":701,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=7629#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/0e4bc55596fd7fd0d0a967e391a73c0a.jpeg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Interesting\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=7629#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=7629\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=7629\",\"name\":\"How an Italian sculptor created the World Cup trophy that became an icon - 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