Fans of the most popular sport know that the winning team of the World Cup receives a trophy weighing over six kilograms. The golden figurine, with a base trimmed with malachite stripes, depicts human figures propping up the globe. The names of the winning countries are engraved at the bottom of the trophy. On December 18, 2022, Argentina won the World Cup for the third time in history. If you lack the adrenaline, then check the Habanero games.
Football and war are practically incompatible things. During the Second World War, Nika could well have disappeared forever, if not for the efforts of the Secretary General of the Italian Football Union, Ottorino Barassi. The Italian national team won the 1938 championship, and Barassi hid the football relic in his worn-out old boot, which he put under his bed.
Even then, there were various rumors that the Abwehr, the military intelligence of Nazi Germany, was hunting for a precious cup and wanted to seize it. When the trophy was again revealed to the world in 1958, British journalist Joe Coyle claimed that the award had changed somewhat in appearance they say, the pedestal was not the same, and the height was different. Maybe the Nazis still managed to complete the operation or Senor Barassi cheated? None of the versions have been either confirmed or refuted.
Where It Was Stolen?
On the eve of the 1966 World Cup, the cup was exhibited in London for public viewing in Westminster Abbey. Of course, he was carefully guarded. But here’s the bad luck: on Sunday, the exhibition not only did not work but, apparently, was not really guarded. The thieves did not take a day off, entered the abbey through the back door, made their way into the hall, and dragged off the trophy.
A week of chaos and panic followed: the World Championship is on the nose, but there is no reward! The English Football Association, which everyone began to disgrace and suspect, secretly ordered a copy of the figurine, and in the meantime, a letter from a certain Jackson came to the unfortunate organizers of the competition. He demanded £15,000 for the trophy, threatening to melt the figurine otherwise.
While walking in a park in Upper Norwood, in south London, the dog was just about to mark another bush, when he suddenly got excited and began to dig the ground. The owner arrived in time to find a paper bundle, and in it was wrapped in a newspaper in the park, the same “Golden Goddess” was dug up, about which the headlines of all the newspapers of the country, and even the world, screamed!
When England won the trophy, Pickles and his host David Corbett were invited to a celebratory banquet in Downing Street. In addition, Corbett received a £5,000 award as award, and the dog was later given a medal.
Subsequently, they were invited to TV shows more than once and even starred in the film “The Spy with a Cold Nose.” In addition, Pickles became “Dog of the Year” in England. Unfortunately, a year later, he died due to a tragic accident.
Why the criminals so mediocrely hid the artifact, the abduction of which had previously been pulled off so masterfully is a mystery. But the reputation of England was saved. But the real “theft of the century” was yet to come.