Vince Lombardi Trophy

"Lombardi Trophy" redirects here. For the award awarded annually to the best college football lineman or linebacker, see Lombardi Award.
Not to be confused with Lombardia Trophy.
Vince Lombardi Trophy
Awarded for Winning the Super Bowl
Location Various cities by rotation
Country United States
Presented by National Football League
First awarded January 15, 1967 (1967-01-15)
Currently held by Denver Broncos
Official website SuperBowl.com

The Vince Lombardi Trophy is the trophy awarded each year to the winning team of the National Football League's championship game, the Super Bowl. The trophy is named in honor of NFL coach Vince Lombardi.

History

New York Giants placekicker Lawrence Tynes holding the Vince Lombardi Trophy after winning Super Bowl XLVI, February 2012

During lunch with NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle in 1966,[1] Tiffany & Co. vice president Oscar Riedner made a sketch on a cocktail napkin of what would become the Vince Lombardi Trophy. The original trophy was produced by Tiffany & Co. in Newark, New Jersey.[2] Others have since been handcrafted by the company in Parsippany, New Jersey.[3] The trophy was first awarded to the Green Bay Packers in January 15, 1967, following the 1966 regular season (when the Super Bowl's official designation was the AFL-NFL World Championship Game) after they defeated the Kansas City Chiefs, 35-10.

Even though it is a national tournament, the award was initially inscribed with the words "World Professional Football Championship". It was officially renamed in 1970 in memory of NFL head coach Vince Lombardi, after his death from cancer, to commemorate his leading the Green Bay Packers to victories in the first two Super Bowls.[4] It was thus presented for the first time as the Vince Lombardi Trophy in Super Bowl V when the Baltimore Colts defeated the Dallas Cowboys 16-13. It has also been referred to as the "Tiffany Trophy" after the Tiffany & Co.[5][6][7]

Since Super Bowl XXX, the award has been presented to the winning team's owner on the field following the game. Previously, it was presented inside the winning team's locker room. In the case of the community-owned Packers' two titles since Super Bowl XXX, the team's President & CEO has accepted the trophy.

Unlike trophies such as the Stanley Cup and the Grey Cup, a new Vince Lombardi Trophy is made every year and the winning team maintains permanent possession of that trophy, with one notable exception being Super Bowl V's, won by the then-Baltimore Colts. The city of Baltimore retained that trophy as part of the legal settlement between the team and the city after the Colts' infamous "Midnight Mayflower" move to Indianapolis, Indiana on March 29, 1984. Since then, both the relocated Colts and their replacement in Baltimore, the Ravens, have won the Super Bowl and earned trophies in their own right.

Since Super Bowl XLV, the Vince Lombardi Trophy is also prominently featured in the standardized logo design now used for all future Super Bowl games.[8]

Appearance

The Vince Lombardi Trophy stands 22 inches (56 cm) tall, weighs 7 pounds (3.2 kg) and depicts a football in a kicking position on a three concave sided stand, and is entirely made of sterling silver.[9]

The words "Vince Lombardi Trophy" along with the Roman numerals of that year's Super Bowl are engraved on and the NFL shield is affixed onto the base. After the trophy is awarded, it is sent back to Tiffany's to be engraved with the names of the participating teams, the date, location, and the game's final score.[10] It is then sent back to the winning team for them to keep. Smaller replicas are made for each person on the winning team.

For the first four championship games, both the NFL and the AFL logos were in the center of the trophy. Starting from Super Bowl V through XLII, the old NFL shield has been on the forefront. As of Super Bowl XLIII, a newer, modernized NFL shield (with eight stars and a rotated football designed akin to that atop the trophy) replaced the older logo. Otherwise, the trophy has had no significant changes made since the first Super Bowl. The Green Bay Packers are the only team with all 3 versions having won Super Bowls I, II, XXXI, and XLV.

Teams with the most Vince Lombardi Trophies

The Super Bowl is currently played in early February (the game originally took place in early to mid-January), culminating a season that generally begins in September of the previous calendar year. For example, Super Bowl 50, which was played on February 7, 2016, determined the league champion for the 2015 NFL season. The years shown below refer to the season, not the date that the Super Bowl was actually played.

The Pittsburgh Steelers hold the most Vince Lombardi Trophies, with six (1974 season, 1975, 1978, 1979, 2005, 2008). The Dallas Cowboys (1971, 1977, 1992, 1993, 1995) and San Francisco 49ers (1981, 1984, 1988, 1989, 1994) are tied for second with five each. The Green Bay Packers (1966, 1967, 1996, 2010), New England Patriots (2001, 2003, 2004, 2014), and New York Giants (1986, 1990, 2007, 2011) are tied for fourth with four each. The Oakland Raiders (1976, 1980, 1983), Washington Redskins (1982, 1987, 1991) and the Denver Broncos (1997, 1998, 2015) are tied for seventh with three each.

Although none of these teams have ever won three straight Super Bowls, two of them have won three Lombardi trophies in four years: the Dallas Cowboys (1992, 1993, 1995) and the New England Patriots (2001, 2003, 2004). The Pittsburgh Steelers won four Super Bowls in six years (1974, 1975, 1978, 1979).

Presentation ceremony

Beginning Super Bowl XL, a special Lombardi Trophy ceremony takes place. A former NFL player brings the Lombardi Trophy to the center of the stadium, as he walks past members of the winning team.

The players, along with the Super Bowls in which they participated in the Lombardi Trophy presentation ceremony, are listed below.

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Vince Lombardi Trophy.

Ed Thorp Memorial Trophy – NFL Championship trophy (1934–1969)

References

  1. ↑ Let's Learn About the Vince Lombardi Trophy, Pittsburgh Post Gazette
  2. ↑ NIx, Naomi (January 7, 2014). "Original Vince Lombardi trophy comes home to Newark". The Star-Ledger. Retrieved 2014-01-07.
  3. ↑ Horovitz, Bruce (January 30, 2002). "Football's super prize reaches icon status". USA Today. Retrieved February 19, 2012.
  4. ↑ Tanier, Mike (January 31, 2010). "Excess Reigns at Super Bowl and That's No Ballyhoo". The New York Times.
  5. ↑ "Super Bowl Trophy". IX Games.
  6. ↑ Weiner, Evan (February 3, 2011). "Super Bowl XLV: Vince Lombardi wanted no part of the Super Bowl". United States Sports Academy. Retrieved February 19, 2012. The Jets apparently didn’t think too highly of the Tiffany Trophy the organization received for winning [Super Bowl III]
  7. ↑ Christl, Cliff (February 7, 2011). "Packers GM Thompson made all right moves". Rockford Register Star. Retrieved February 19, 2012. [Packers General Manager Ted] Thompson actually clapped his hands in celebration a few times, spoke a few words and helped hoist the Tiffany trophy with [President Mark] Murphy and coach Mike McCarthy
  8. ↑ "2011 logo is first of NFL's standard look". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2 February 2013.
  9. ↑ Official Site of the National Football League. NFL.com (2007-09-18). Retrieved on 2013-07-29.
  10. ↑ George, Shannon (September 10, 2009). "Let's Learn About: The Vince Lombardi Trophy". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
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