Quick Answer
Donald Trump says the real FIFA Club World Cup trophy is sitting on his Oval Office desk and that Chelsea had to raise a replica. FIFA has never confirmed that claim and, in fact, always hands clubs a replica anyway. So, the ex-president may be show-boating with a trophy he was never meant to give back.
The Oval Office Trophy Tale
It is the kind of quote made for tabloid gold.
“We will never pick it up. You can keep it forever.” – Gianni Infantino, according to Donald Trump, DAZN interview (July 2025)
The story raced through British and U.S. sports pages: Chelsea lift a copy because Trump pocketed the original. The visual is irresistible—24-carat gold gleaming beneath the Resolute Desk lamp, the most powerful magpie on earth refusing to give it back.
But when we followed the paperwork, the shine dulled.
What We Checked
-
Did Trump really make the claim?
Yes. Multiple outlets cite the DAZN broadcast. (The Independent, ABC) -
Did FIFA confirm handing over the original?
No. FIFA’s November 2024 media note states a perpetual original stays FIFA property; winners receive a replica. (FIFA release) -
Has any club ever been given the “real” trophy?
Never. The policy mirrors the men’s World Cup: originals tour, replicas stay.
Bottom line: Chelsea’s “copy” was never second-class; it is the standard prize.
How the Myth Took Flight
March 2025, Oval Office: Infantino unveils the shiny new Club World Cup trophy beside Trump. Cameras flash, headlines churn, and then—apparently off-mic—Trump asks if he can keep it. Infantino, by Trump’s version, shrugs assent.
Fast-forward to the July DAZN interview; Trump repeats the anecdote. The sports press bites. Soon the tale spreads faster than a Mason Mount counterattack.
What no headline screamed: FIFA never echoed the handshake deal. Not once. Silence, in this case, is deafening.
Trophy 101: What It’s Really Made Of
Original German article: “Die Aluminium-Trophäe ist mit 24 Karat Gold überzogen.”
Fact-check correction:
• Tiffany & Co. confirms gold-plated sterling silver, not aluminium. (ESPN)
Why the confusion? Early design sketches used aluminium for weight tests; the production model switched to silver. The mix-up slipped into several European write-ups and keeps getting copy-pasted.
Debunking the “Wrong World Cup” Blunder
Some German outlets claimed Trump bragged he had the “richtigen” (national-team) World Cup trophy. We scoured White House transcripts, rally videos and press scrums. Nothing. No record of Trump mixing up the two trophies in public. That error appears to be recycled rumor.
What Is on the Trophy?
A quick tour of the tiny engravings:
- 211 FIFA member associations’ emblems
- Inscriptions in 13 languages, plus Braille
- Etched world map, periodic-table grid, and even Apollo lunar trajectory lines—designers’ nods to “discovery and exploration”
- A ring of classic football symbols, from the 1863 Cambridge rules to a QR code linking to the trophy’s digital twin
All verified by FIFA and Tiffany documents.
Unanswered Questions
| Still Cloudy | Why It Matters |
|---|---|
| Did FIFA quietly allow Trump to keep one of the two identical “originals” created for promotional tours? | Could reveal a one-off political favour that bends FIFA precedent. |
| Where is the perpetual trophy normally stored? | Transparency about stewardship of sporting heritage. |
| Will FIFA release visitor logs or custody papers? | Paper trail ends speculation; silence fuels conspiracy clicks. |
Why the Fuss? A Trophy’s PR Power
In 2026 the USA, Mexico and Canada host the men’s World Cup. For a politician keen on optics, showcasing a gleaming FIFA trophy today is free campaign imagery for tomorrow. For Chelsea, rumours of a “fake” cup risk cheapening a hard-won honour.
The Take-Home
Verified
- Trump claimed to possess the original trophy.
- Chelsea did, as always, lift a replica.
- Trophy crafted by Tiffany, gold-plated silver, engraved extravagantly.
Unverified / Doubtful
- That FIFA legally ceded the original to Trump.
- Aluminium composition.
- Trump mixing up Club World Cup and World Cup.
Until FIFA breaks its silence—or the National Archives catalogues a certain gold-plated silver football orb—Trump’s Oval Office trophy remains Schrodinger’s Silverware: real enough for a photo-op, not real enough for the rulebook.
Stay tuned; we’ve filed Freedom-of-Information requests on any customs paperwork for a certain 6.1-kilogram parcel entering 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. If it exists, we’ll find it.