Trophy Store Blog

Just like the FA Cup the Carling Cup has now become a very important annual event in the English Football season.  As with the FA Cup the Carling Cup History is varied.  Below we take a look at some of the facts relating to this important event that takes place annually.

Fact 1 – Only the clubs who are in the British Football League tables are able to compete in this event.  So there are only 96 teams involved rather than the 762 who participate in the FA Cup.  The teams that play in this are the ones who play in the Premiership, Championship and the Football Leagues 1 and 2 along with the Conference League.

Fact 2 – The name of the Cup has changed over the years dependent on who the sponsors were.  Originally it was known as the Milk Cup as the Milk Marketing Board were the sponsors and it retained this name from 1981 to 1986.  Then the name changed in 1986 to the Littlewoods Challenge Cup.  This name only remained for four years and then in 1990 it changed again this time to the Rumbelows Cup.  However, its name then changed once again in 1992 to the Coca Cola Cup before it again changing in 1998 to The Worthington Cup.  It retained this name until 2003 when finally it changed to the Carling Cup and remains at this now. 

Fact 3 – Should a minor club win this football trophy they are then provided with the opportunity to participate in events against European teams from Italy, Spain, France and Germany.  This is because the winner of the Carling Cup is automatically given a place to compete in the UEFA Cup.    This is a competition that is crucial to many teams at it offers them a chance to bring more money into their club.

Fact 4 – The first club to win this title when it was inaugurated back in 1960 and known then as the League Cup was Aston Villa.  But since it’s renaming in the early 1980’s there is one team that has won it more than any other and that is Liverpool.  This football team has won it a total of 7 times with them winning the trophy during the early 1980’s four times in succession. 

Fact 5 – When it comes to the Carling Cup History not only has Liverpool one this trophy the most times they are also the team that have competed in the final the most.  They have appeared a total of ten times.

Fact 6 – As a result after extra time of the final last year (2009) being goalless it was decided on penalties.  As mentioned Manchester United won it by putting 4 penalties past the Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper. 

Fact 7 – During its history there have been occasions where some of the minor teams have been able to beat the more well know bigger teams.  For example during the 1974-75 season Leeds United (League Champions) were knocked out in the quarter finals by Fourth Division side Chester.  Then in the second round of the 1995-96 season Manchester United were beaten by York City who scored three goals whilst Manchester United scored none.  Plus Manchester United has been beaten and knocked out of the competition by other much smaller teams such as Southend United (2006-07) and Coventry City (2007-08). 

Above we have looked at a brief Carling Cup History.  An event that is very important to all those who follow teams that participate in this very important sport in the UK.  Certainly for the minor league teams this event can prove very important to their finances especially if they are the team that play at home against any teams that are involved in the Premier League.

If you manage or coach a local football team why not consider rewarding individual players with football trophies and awards that could include 'Man of the Match' or maybe even a 'Top Goal Scorer' football award.

 Photo Source Caughtoffside.com

One of the most famous football trophies to be presented today is the FIFA world cup.  However, it is hard to believe that the FIFA World Cup Trophy has only been in existence since 1974.  Before this the winners of the Football world cup would be presented with the Jules Rimet Trophy.

The reason that the new trophy was created was that Brazil won the Jules Rimet Trophy outright in 1970 because they had won this competition for the third time.  So then a new trophy had to be commissioned and made. 

This new trophy was used for the first time in 1974 and was presented to Franz Beckenbauer who was captain of the West German team.  This new trophy was designed by Silvio Gazzaniga and manufactured by Bertoni Milano. 

The design of this particular trophy is quite elaborate.  On it you can see two human figures holding up the Earth whilst on the base is engraved in out pouring letters “FIFA World Cup”.  It is made from 11lb of 18 Carat solid gold and the height of the actual trophy itself is 14.4 inches.  To help the cup stand properly the base measures 5.1 inches wide and contains two layers of malachite (a carbonate mineral).

The names of those countries whose teams win this particular football trophy cannot be seen as they are engraved in the bottom of the trophy.  The information that is engraved on the base in English shows the year of the competition along with the name of the nation that won it at that time.

At present there are still enough plaques on the base to allow a further 9 nations to have their details engraved on to.  After the FIFA World Cup competition in 2038 a decision will need to be made as to whether this trophy should be retired and a new one takes it place.

The one major difference with the FIFA World Cup Trophy is that unlike the Jules Rimet Trophy which was presented to Brazil in 1970 cannot be won outright.  Also today although the original trophy will be presented to the winners of the competition on the day afterwards they receive a replica instead.

The reason for this being is that after Italy won the competition in 2006 following the FIFA World Cup undergoing restoration it became damaged.  A few days after the trophy was presented to the winning side pictures appeared showing a small part of the green malachite had broken off from its base.  Although this damage has been repaired the FIFA decided that they wanted to prevent any such occurrences in the future. 

The replica of the FIFA World Cup Trophy that the winning nation are presented with today is the same size.  However, it weighs considerably less as it isn’t made from solid gold but rather the metal used to create this beautiful trophy is gold plated instead.

There are many trophies that clubs who compete in the English football leagues would like to win.  Of all of these the one most wanted is the FA Cup also known as the Football Association Challenge Cup.  The reason for this being is that teams from every English Football league is eligible to compete for it.  But so that they can they must first have competed in the previous football seasons over competitions including the FA Cup, The FA Trophy or the FA Vase. 

Yet along with these clubs showing that they have competed in the tournaments we mention above their ground must be a suitable one where matches can be played.  It is important to remember that many of the smaller clubs may have to compete at teams in the English Premier League such as Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester United.

Yet along with English clubs being entitled to compete for the FA Cup there are a few clubs that make up the League of Wales are able to enter as well.  The reason for this is that this Football League only comprises six teams, namely Merthyr Tydfil, Newport Country, Wrexham, Colwyn Bay, Cardiff City and Swansea City.

The number of clubs that now are eligible to enter this competition has increased dramatically in recent years.  When the FA Cup knock out stages took place during the 2004-2005 season a total of 660 clubs were able to enter it.  However, when the 2008-2009 season begun the numbers of teams eligible to compete in this particular football tournament had gone up to 762.  This is the only tournament that offers all clubs in English and Welsh Football to compete.  Whereas with the League Cup only a total of 92 clubs from the Premier League and other English Leagues are able to compete for this particular trophy.

Each year at the end of the season the FA Cup final is played and the winner of the game will be awarded the trophy and it is now in its fourth incarnation.  The first trophy known as the “little tin idol” was stolen from the window of a Shoe Store in Birmingham, where Aston Villas the holders of it had allowed it be displayed.  As a result the club was fined £25 for failing to take care of the trophy and the money was used to have a replacement made.  Eventually 60 years after it disappeared the person who stole it admitted to the theft and said that it was melted down so that they could make counterfeit half crowns with it.

The trophy that was made to replace the original one was used up until 1910 when it was presented to Lord Kinnaird as a gift for his role as being the FA’s president.  The family of Lord Kinnaird retained it until May 2005 when it went up for auction at Christies and David Gold of Birmingham City Football Club purchased it for £420,000.  Today this particular trophy can be viewed at the National Football Museum which is located at Preston North End’s Deepdale Stadium.

After the second FA Cup was presented to Lord Kinnaird the Football Association a new one needed to be designed and manufactured.  This task was given to Fattorini’s of Bradford in 1911 and the first club to receive it was Bradford City.  So in fact the distance it had to travel was relatively short.  This trophy is still in existence but over the years has become more fragile and is not the one that is now presented to winners of this competition.

The trophy which is now presented to the football club that wins this particular competition is an exact replica of the one made by Fattorini’s in 1911.  This one along with a back up has been made by Toye, Kenning and Spencer and has been in use and presented to the winners of the FA Cup competition since 1992.  The backup version is purely there to be used should the fourth one be stolen, destroyed, lost or damaged.