The 1970 FIFA World Cup held in Mexico was the first hosted in North America and the last appearance on the world stage for Pelé. The Brazilian legend went out in style, leading Seleção to its third World Cup title – all during his great reign. Presented here is a FIFA World Cup Jules Rimet player trophy presented to Brazil National Team defender Zé Maria. Widely regarded as one of the greatest World Cup teams ever assembled, Brazil finished with a perfect record. They won all six matches in the final tournament and were victorious in every qualifer match leading up to it as well, a streak that lasted over two years. In the Final, Brazil defeated Italy 4-1 with goals from Pelé, Gérson, Jairzinho and captain Carlos Alberto.
From 1930 to 1970, the Jules Rimet Trophy stood as the official World Cup trophy, honoring the former FIFA president from France who served the longest term (1921-54) to date. French sculptor Abel Lafleur's original double-sided 1930 model featured a gold-plated Sterling silver statuette of Nike, Greek goddess of victory, holding a decagonal cup overhead and standing atop a Lapis Lazuli gemstone base. A taller base was installed for the 1958 World Cup to allow more winning nations to be engraved on metal plaques. Like the Stanley Cup, there was traditionally one official team trophy. After players on the champion side celebrated with it following their Finals victory, it would be returned to FIFA's headquarters and held there until the next World Cup.
According to our consignor from Brazil who acquired this directly from Zé Maria, individual presentation versions of the 1970 Jules Rimet were sanctioned by FIFA to be made for Brazil National Team players and a select few CFB executives. Starting in 1974, FIFA switched to its current trophy design by Italian artist Silvio Gazzaniga (produced by Bertoni), making 1970 the last year of the revered Jules Rimet.
Brass plaques engraved with each of the eight previous World Cup winning nations and years are applied to every side of the rectangular base, with the central side bearing the titular plaque, “COUPE DU MONDE – DE FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION – COUPE JULES RIMET.” The trophy stands 10.5” (27 cm) tall including its two marble bases and 3.5" (9 cm) at its widest. It weighs 3.4 lbs. (1.55 kg) with green felt backing to the underside of the base. We are unsure of the Nike statuette's internal composition, but it appears to be a high-quality material with gold plating based on the weight and girth. The trophy remains in great overall condition with some handling wear but no chipping, cracking, or illl-effects from storage and age. The two marble base sections provide a sturdy support for ideal display.
It should be noted that we sold a non-player version of this 1970 Jules Rimet trophy for $27,971 in 2019. This one made for Zé Maria comes with a letter from the longtime Brazilian left-back himself.