The FIFA World Cup Trophy arrived in Istanbul where it will stay for two days just 58 days before the Worlds greatest tournament gets under-way.
It is reported that the FIFA World Cup Trophy will stay in Turkey for two days and be displayed in Cevahir Shopping Mall on Thursday before leaving to go to Kazakhstan.
The 36.5 centimetre 18 carat solid gold trophy weighing 6kg (14lb) came to Istanbul, Turkey as part of the FIFA World Cup Trophy Tour by Coca-Cola. Turkish football fans, though disappointed that Turkey will not be participating in the 2010 FIFA World Cup held in South Africa, will be able to see the trophy from close range along with Cameroon legend Roger Milla.
Milla who is one of the few African players who made an impact in the international scene has played in three world cup competitions for the Cameroon National Side and is currently the oldest player ever to score in the world cup finals.
Milla appeared in the 1982, 1990 and 1994 world cup finals in which he scored a goal at the age of 42 being the oldest player to do so in the world cup as-well as being the oldest player ever to have appeared in the competition.
The trophy will travel to 83 countries in total as part of the FIFA World Cup Trophy Tour by Coca-Cola, spanning a total of 225 days covering 138,902 km in the process before arriving in South Africa on the 4th of May.
Interesting facts about the FIFA World Cup Trophy
– The FIFA world cup Trophy is 36.5 CM (14.4 inches) in height, 6 KG in weight and is made of 18 carat solid gold.
– Brazil is the only National side to have won the World Cup Trophy out right after winning the competition three times.
– The first World Cup tournament was organised in 1930 and was won by Uruguay.
– The World Cup trophy was called the Jules Rimet Trophy from 1930 to 1970 in honour of former FIFA president Jules Rimet.
– The Jules Rimet Trophy was stolen in the FIFA World Cup 1966 held in England but recovered. The trophy was handed over to Brazil who had won the competition but the trophy was stolen again on 20 December 1983 from a display box in the headquarters of the Brazilian Football Association in Rio and has never been recovered. officials believe the trophy was melted for the gold.
– A replacement trophy was commissioned for the 1974 World Cup in which 53 applications were made but was awarded to Italian artist Silvio Gazzaniga.
– The first team to have won the newly designed FIFA World Cup Trophy was West Germany in 1974.
– All the Nations since 1974 that have wone the FIFA World Cup has been engraved at the base of the FIFA World Cup Trophy.
– FIFA has new regulations that disallows any national side to win the World Cup outright.
– Brazil has won the FIFA World Cup competition most with the Latin American side picking the trophy up five times with Italy 2nd with four wins and German 3rd with three wins.
– The FIFA World Cup trophy will meet it’s new owners in South Africa on the 11th of July after 64 matches played including the match that will give us the 3rd and 4th place teams of the competition.
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