Argentina have won their third World Cup trophy, defeating France in the finals to lift the trophy. However, they will be unable to take the trophy home – and in this article, we will see why that is the case.
The Albiceleste are now the reigning champions of South America, having won the Copa America 2021 as well as the reigning World Cup winners. They also won the Finalissima against Italy earlier this year, making it three trophies in two years.
Argentina can’t take home the real World Cup trophy – here’s why
The original World Cup trophy weighed 3.8kg, and was made of gold plated sterling silver. It was called the Jules Rimet Trophy, named after the former president of FIFA. It was in use from the very first edition of the World Cup from 1930 until 1970.
At the time, FIFA had a rule which allowed the teams that had won the competition three times to keep the trophy. And in 1970, when Brazil won the tournament for the third time – they were allowed to take the original trophy home.
But, it was stolen from a display case at the Brazilian Football Confederation headquarters in Rio de Janeiro in 1983. And since then, it has not been recovered. As a result, teams now get to take home a gold plated bronze replica trophy for security concerns.
