Visa kicks off 2010 marketing campaign with winner's trophy showcase

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Inevitably, the star of the show was the most recognised sports prize in the world - the gold-plated replica 2010 FIFA World Cup Winner's Trophy which will be retained by the winning team on 11 July 11 2010 after the 18-carat gold original is returned to the home of FIFA in Zurich, Switzerland.

Depicting two human figures holding up the earth, the current trophy was designed by Silvio Gazzaniga and was first presented to West Germany captain Franz Beckenbauer in 1974.

Speaking at the event, James Clarke, head of regional marketing, Visa Sub-Saharan Africa said, “Visa's relationship with the world's most-passionately followed and celebrated sporting event - the FIFA World Cup - provides us with a global platform on which to build our brand and showcase the value of our products and services. But more exciting than that, as host country for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, South Africa and Visa will be welcoming the world's most passionate supporters here and it is our job to ensure that everybody - from home and abroad - experiences the time of their lives.

“Our association with FIFA is by far Visa's largest sponsorship property and we want to ensure that everyone following the world's greatest sporting event does so with the world's leading payment brand. The Visa FIFA World Cup South African television advertisement which we aired for the first time last night is just one part of an integrated marketing campaign which will encourage people to enjoy the 2010 FIFA World Cup with Visa.”

Trophy facts

• The FIFA World Cup Winner's Trophy is reportedly the most recognised sports prize in the world
  
• The current trophy is actually the second generation of the coveted prize
  
• The first trophy, named the Jules Rimet Cup, had an eventful history including being hidden in a box under a bed during World War II
  
• It was stolen in 1966 while on display in England but later found in a suburban garden by Scotland Yard detectives
  
• At the time, FIFA regulations stated that any nation winning the FIFA World Cup three times would become owners of the trophy
  
• Brazil did just that but saw the trophy stolen in 1983, never to be seen again
  
• In the early 1970s, FIFA commissioned a new trophy
  
• 53 designs were submitted, with Italian artist Silvio Gazzaniga's design being chosen
  
• The original 18-carat gold FIFA World Cup Winner's Trophy cannot be won outright anymore
  
• Instead, the FIFA World Cup winning team is awarded a gold-plated replica Trophy as a permanent reminder of its outstanding achievement.