Cartoon soccer player stick figure singing a melody while standing next to a chalk board reading “World Cup” and two trophies — representing a blog post about World Cup trademark registrations.

Trademark: World Cup

First Used: 1928

Registered: 2002

Current Owner: FEDERATION INTERNATIONAL DE FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION (FIFA) [1]

Trademark Type: traditional trademark; word mark; non-traditional trademark; trade dress; configuration mark; sound mark

Primarily Associated With: television broadcasting; cable television transmission; said services being offered in conjunction with soccer competitions [2]

Brief (and likely incomplete) History [3]:

The WORLD CUP® [4] is back in the USA for the first time since 1994. FIFA has put together a fun trademark portfolio full of traditional and unique non-traditional trademark registrations. Let’s take a look at World Cup history and trademarks!

The FIFA WORLD CUP® [5] was created in 1928, when FIFA approved plans for its own international soccer championship at the FIFA Congress in Amsterdam. Two years later, Uruguay hosted the first tournament, in part because the country was celebrating the 100th anniversary of its first constitution and had won gold medals in soccer at the 1924 and 1928 Olympics. Only 13 teams participated in that first World Cup, and Uruguay won the inaugural title by defeating Argentina 4–2. After the 1938 tournament in France, the World Cup was paused because of World War II and did not resume competition until in 1950.

Brazil is the most successful country in World Cup history, with five titles, and is the only nation to appear in every men’s World Cup. Only eight countries have ever won the tournament: Brazil, Germany, Italy, Argentina, France, Uruguay, England, and Spain. On the individual side, Pelé has won the most men’s World Cups as a player, with three titles for Brazil (1958, 1962, 1970), and Lionel Messi is now the tournament’s all-time leading scorer after passing Miroslav Klose’s long-standing record of 16 World Cup goals during the 2026 tournament. As of 2026, no player has won the World Cup Golden Boot more than once!

WORLD CUP word mark trademark registration

FIFA WORLD CUP word mark trademark registration

World Cup Trophies

The World Cup has had two official trophies since the tournament began. The first, introduced at the inaugural 1930 World Cup, was originally called Victory and later renamed the Jules Rimet Trophy in honor of the FIFA president whose vision helped create the tournament. Designed by French sculptor Abel Lafleur, the trophy depicted Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, holding a chalice, and was made of gold-plated sterling silver on a lapis lazuli base (now protected by the Jules Rimet Cup configuration mark [6]). Its history became almost as dramatic as the tournament itself: during World War II, Italian football official Ottorino Barassi reportedly hid it in a shoebox under his bed to keep it safe, and in 1966 it was stolen in England before being found by a dog named Pickles. Brazil took permanent ownership of the Jules Rimet Trophy after winning its third World Cup in 1970, but the trophy was stolen again in Brazil in 1983 and has never been recovered.

FIFA introduced the current FIFA World Cup Trophy in 1974. Designed by Italian sculptor Silvio Gazzaniga, the 18-carat gold trophy shows two human figures lifting the Earth (now protected by the FIFA World Cup Trophy configuration mark [7]). The trophy was first awarded to West Germany. Unlike the Jules Rimet Trophy, the modern trophy is not permanently awarded to any country. Winners lift the original after the final, but receive a gold-plated replica, known as the FIFA World Cup Winners’ Trophy, to keep.

Jules Rimet Cup configuration mark trademark registration

FIFA World Cup Trophy configuration mark trademark registration

World Cup Melody

Finally, FIFA owns the FIFA World Cup Melody sound mark [8]. The sound mark forms part of the Official FIFA World Cup 26 Theme song released in 2023, and contains a short audio brand built around a five-note melody, crowd vocals, cheering, synth bass, percussion, and reverb.