The hard partying by Germans after their team’s victory in the World Cup in Brazil resulted in damage to the trophy, the most coveted prize in sport. German Football Association (DFB) president Wolfgang Niersbach has admitted that in the exuberant celebrations part of the golden trophy was broken off the night of the victory in Rio.
According to Die Welt, Niersbach said: “At one point, a small piece of our World Cup trophy was chipped off. But do not worry. We have specialists who can fix it.”
He said officials had investigated “persistently” to establish who it was who damaged the trophy, but “the investigation was concluded without a result.”
He said however that it was “a blessing in disguise” because the trophy is in fact a copy of the original. Representatives of Fifa, the World Cup organisation, kept the 18 karat gold, 6.1 kg (13lb) original after the presentation in the Maracana stadium.
The copy held by the winning team is gold-plated bronze.