The merging of the professional football leagues under the umbrella of the National Football League (NFL) in the United States led to the renaming of the leagues themselves as well as the annual championship game. The leagues became known as "conferences," the winners of which then faced one another in a final NFL game each season for top ranking in the professional arena.
The Green Bay Packers, winners of the NFL championships in 1961, 1962, and 1965 and winners of the first two AFL-NFL World Championship Games in 1967 and 1968, were led on this impressive winning streak by Coach Vince Lombardi. When Lombardi died suddenly in 1970 from cancer, the World Professional Football Championship trophy was renamed in honor of this legendary figure.
The trophy itself is valued at around $50,000 and was created by Tiffany & Co., one of the world's leading producers of fine quality silver and jewelry items. Featuring a football positioned for kicking, the trophy is constructed entirely of pure sterling silver. It stands 56 centimeters in height and weighs seven pounds.
Since 1970, the trophy has been inscribed with the words "Vince Lombardi Trophy" on its base. Resting just below the inscription is the image of the NFL shield, the official symbol of the National Football League.
Each year, Tiffany & Co. invests a reported 72 working hours over the course of a four-month period to create a new Lombardi Trophy. After the Super Bowl is played and the trophy is awarded to the victorious team, the trophy is returned to Tiffany & Co. for final engravings to be added. The date of the Super Bowl, the final score of the game, and the name of the winning team are engraved on the base of the trophy before it is once again returned to the championship team.
During the 1967 through 1970 seasons, the trophy contained both the NFL and AFL logos at the center of its base. However, beginning with Super Bowl V, the AFL logo was removed and replaced by an updated NFL logo containing 25 stars which had no special or symbolic significance.
In 2008, for Super Bowel XLIII, a new NFL logo made its appearance, with only eight stars appearing on the shield, and with the addition of a modern-looking, rotating football, similar in appearance to that which appears on the top of the trophy itself. The eight stars contained in the updated logo represent the eight divisions of the NFL.
The shape, size and general appearance of the trophy has experienced little to no adjustment over the years. Only the changes made to the inscription renaming the trophy, the omission of the AFL logo, and the alterations resulting from the redesigning of the NFL logo have occurred.
Prior to Super Bowl XXX, the Lombardi Trophy was awarded to the winning team inside their locker room. However, since 1996 the trophy has been presented to the owner of the winning team on the field following the close of the game.
Each year, two Lombardi Trophies are on hand at the Super Bowl, in case one is somehow damaged during transport or during the winning team's celebration. The unused trophy is returned to Tiffany & Co. for safe-keeping, and the other is inscribed with pertinent details of the victory before being shipped back to the owner.
The trophy remains the possession of the team regardless of where that team may eventually move. Professional football teams do occasionally change cities but generally the trophy moves with them to their new home. The one exception to this is the trophy from Super Bowl V, won by the Baltimore Colts, which remained in Baltimore, Maryland after the Colts moved to Indianapolis, Indiana in 1984. A legal settlement between the city of Baltimore and the Colts team resulted in a forfeiting of the trophy by the team.
Of the 43 Super Bowls that have been played since 1967, five teams have racked up three or more Lombardi Trophies. The Pittsburgh Steelers retain the top ranking, with six trophies to their name. Second place is held by the Dallas Cowboys and the San Francisco 49ers, each with possession of five trophies. The third position belongs to both the Green Bay Packers and the New York Giants, with three trophies having been secured by each.
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By : Bruce Munro
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