Fifa World Cup Trophy To Visit Australia

Coca-Cola Australia today announced that the one-and-only, authentic FIFA World Cup Trophy – the symbol of world football supremacy – will visit Australia next month.

Coca-Cola Australia today announced that the one-and-only, authentic FIFA World Cup Trophy - the symbol of world football supremacy - will visit Australia next month.

As part of the first global “FIFA World Cup™ Trophy Tour by Coca-Cola,” the real Trophy will come to Sydney on Friday 17th March, at the Overseas Passenger Terminal, Sydney.

FIFA and The Coca-Cola Company are bringing the coveted FIFA World Cup Trophy to Sydney as part of a precedent-setting, 31-city, traveling exhibition that circles the globe, lasting from January until early April. The itinerary takes the trophy to a total of 29 countries - for the first time - with stops planned in Africa, the Americas, Asia and Europe.

The global journey is the first extensive tour of the one-of-a-kind, solid-gold FIFA World Cup Trophy, which is rarely seen in public outside the nation winning The FIFA World Cup™. The viewing experience in Sydney also provides the public the first close-up look at the newly renovated FIFA World Cup Trophy, which was physically updated in the second half of 2005. This will mark the first time the authentic FIFA World Cup Trophy has ever been brought to Australia by FIFA and its Official Partner Coca-Cola.

Fans will be able to view the Trophy at a public unveiling set to take place in the forecourt of the Overseas Passenger terminal on March 17, 2006.

For fans eager to get even closer to the Trophy, a ticketed event will be held from 1.30pm allowing fans to have their photo taken with the coveted Trophy. Tickets for this event will be distributed through a major consumer promotion - the details of which will be announced at a future date.

The public Trophy Tour experience scheduled here includes a specially created, short feature film that builds to the unveiling of the actual FIFA World Cup Trophy. The entire presentation lasts approximately 15 minutes.

To accommodate fans coming to see the FIFA World Cup Trophy, local Coca-Cola organisers have created additional entertainment at the Overseas Passenger Terminal and both entertainment and guest appearances will be announced closer to the event.

“This will be a memorable day for Sydney and its residents,” said Gareth Edgecombe, Managing Director, Coca-Cola Australia. “The FIFA World Cup™ Trophy is one of the most-recognisable sports icons in the world and the dream of every person who ever kicked a football, regardless of their age. This is an extraordinary opportunity for people here to actually view first-hand the priceless trophy that perhaps they have only heard about or seen on television. This special visit enables the entire nation to share our passion for football, and Coca-Cola is delighted to be a part of it.”

"We are pleased that we are joining forces with Coca-Cola to stage the FIFA World Cup Trophy Tour. This tour takes the rarely seen trophy - the jewel in the crown of world football - to fans around the world, with the aim of spreading happiness and hope to make the world a better place. We want people to be able share their passion for the beautiful game of football with their fellow countrymen, an experience they would otherwise never have," commented FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter.

The global FIFA World Cup™ Trophy Tour by Coca-Cola is the first major activity under the new “We All Speak Football” marketing platform for Coca-Cola. The campaign, initially focused on the buildup to the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany™, brings to life the optimistic vision of brand Coca-Cola to draw people together and set aside their differences, as a way of making the world a little bit better.

The Coca-Cola Company is one of the longest-standing corporate partners of Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), with a formal relationship since 1974 and an official sponsorship of FIFA World Cup™ that began in 1978. Coca-Cola has had stadium advertising at every FIFA World Cup™ since 1950.

Last Nov. 22, FIFA and The Coca-Cola Company extended their long-time partnership for another 16 years (eight years with an automatic eight-year renewal, subject to certain conditions), from 2007 until 2022.

The Coca-Cola Company is the world's largest beverage company.  Along with Coca-Cola, recognised as the world's most-valuable brand, the Company markets four of the world's top five soft drink brands, including Diet Coke, Fanta and Sprite, and a wide range of other beverages, including diet and light soft drinks, waters, juices and juice drinks, teas, coffees and sports drinks.  Through the world's largest beverage distribution system, consumers in more than 200 countries enjoy the Company's beverages at a rate exceeding 1 billion servings each day.  For more information about The Coca-Cola Company, please visit the Web site www.coca-cola.com.