Euro 2024 Kicks Off Friday: The Henri Delaunay Trophy Up Close ⚽

When the winner lifts the Henri Delaunay Trophy on July 14 in Berlin, look closely. It is 8kg of solid sterling silver, redesigned for 2008, and quietly one of the cleanest trophy designs in modern sport.

The 2008 Redesign Made It Better

The original 1960 Delaunay trophy looked like an antique amphora. The 2008 redesign by Asprey London kept the silhouette but raised the cup, lengthened the handles, and removed a cluttered base — the trophy became 18% taller and visually 50% cleaner. Lesson: even iconic designs benefit from honest updates every generation or two.

Solid Silver vs Silver-Plate at Your Scale

UEFA can afford 8kg of solid silver. Most clubs cannot. For a local league perpetual trophy that should still look noble in 20 years, ask for thick silver plating (minimum 25 microns) over a bronze or pewter core. Standard 5-micron plating wears through to the base metal within a decade of handling.