The Greatest Trophies in Sports

The Stanley Cup

Having been donated in 1892 by Sir Frederick Arthur Stanley, or Lord Stanley of Preston, the Stanley Cup is the oldest sports trophy still being competed for among professional athletes. Since 1926, it has been awarded to the champion of the National Hockey League. It's also the only sports trophy with the name of every player who's ever won it inscribed on it. It stands 35 inches tall and weighs about 34 pounds. Cup winners customarily skate a lap around the arena with it over their heads in celebration. One Stanley Cup is annually awarded to the winning NHL team and an exact replica resides permanently at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.

The Heisman Trophy is an individual award annually given to college football's most outstanding player. Since its inception in 1935, the Heisman has become a national symbol for individual football excellence. The trophy is a bronze statue, 13.5 inches tall and weighs 45 pounds. It depicts a college football player with his arm out, side-stepping a tackler. Heisman Trophy nominees are flown annually to New York City every December for the award ceremony. Recipients take home a trophy for themselves, and a separate trophy goes to the college they represent.

The Lombardi Trophy is awarded annually to the National Football League's Super Bowl champion. The trophy is named after legendary Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi, who died in 1970. The trophy is made entirely of sterling silver and depicts a game-sized football in an angled position. It weighs 7 pounds and is 22 inches high. A new Lombardi Trophy is cast each year, as the winning team maintains permanent possession of it.

The FIFA World Cup Trophy has been awarded to soccer's World Cup Champion since 1930. It's made of solid 18-karat gold, and although its design has changed over time, it is especially treasured for two reasons: It's a trophy four which all the world's soccer players compete, and and the World Cup takes place once every four years. Winners of it receive a replica to permanently keep, but must give back the original trophy in four years when the next World Cup begins so it can be awarded to the subsequent champion.

Although Olympic medals and the green jacket golfers get for winning the PGA Masters tournament aren't really trophies in the sense of many others, they're still iconic awards that recognize the world's best amateur athletes and golfer, respectively. Think of them as wearable trophies. Olympic medals are special because, as of 1896 when they were first awarded, the whole world competes for them. Plus, they're only awarded once every four years. The green jacket, on the other hand, is awarded to the golfer who win's professional golf's most recognizable major tournament. It's a tradition that dates back to 1937. It's also a tradition for the year's previous Masters champion to present the new champion with the green jacket.