The history of Louis Vuitton trophy cases

The relationship between sport and luxury brands can have very different shades. One of these concerns the most important trophies and their packaging, which is increasingly important on a visual level and increasingly decisive on a business level. Transporting valuables and doing it with style is an almost impossible undertaking: only those who specialize in the sector can create something truly special. And if it's true that Louis Vuitton's first job back in 1837 was as an apprentice to suitcase maker Monsieur Marechal, then you can see who can handle all of this.

Louis Vuitton has always looked at sport with admiration and the know-how of the Asnières maison has served in the last 10 years to create incredible trophy cases, cases created ad hoc to accompany the most important trophies in sport: the Larry O'Brien Trophy, the World Cup, the Musketeer Cup and even the most coveted prize for those who love League of Legends.

FIFA World Cup 2010, 2014, 2018

We can only start with the most dreamed of football trophy: the World Cup in 18-karat gold. Made strictly by hand by the best craftsmen of the Asnières workshops, the travel case with the most famous monogram has been commissioned by FIFA for the last 3 World Cups. Brought to Johannesburg on 11 July 2010 by Fabio Cannavaro - a thankless task given the result of the Azzurri - he makes his debut in the most classic version. After 4 years, a very similar version passes from the hands of Gisele Bündchen to those of Lahm after the 1-0 against Argentina.  The "Russian" version shows substantial differences: it is no longer in leather but in titanium, with the laser-engraved monogram. The main stage is the Luzhniki stadium in Moscow, where Philipp Lahm and Natalia Vodianova brought the latest version of the trophy case to the pitch. In 2018 Louis Vuitton also produced a trunk that contains 13 re-editions of the official adidas soccer balls, used in competitions from 1970 to 2018.

French Open - Roland Garros 2017

From grass to clay, the trophy case doubles. The French maison, on the occasion of Roland Garros in 2017, in fact created two special baggage: the Musketeers' Cup for the male category and the Suzanne Lenglen Cup for the female category. The touch of class signed by Louis Vuitton is the choice of the interior, clearly inspired by the playing surface of the tournament, Rafa Nadal's favorite who dominates from the top of his 13 trophies raised at Court Philippe Chatrier. For the occasion, Louis Vuitton chose Nicole Kidman as the main guest of the tournament.

NBA Larry O'Brien Trophy 2020

Although it is one of the most advanced leagues in the world, the NBA is only the latest to come into contact with Louis Vuitton. 2020 gave away one of the most beautiful sports capsules of the LVMH group brand and as the spearhead of this collection - also presented with a digital experience at Madison Square Garden in NYC - there is the trophy case of Larry O'Brien Trophy. From the creative ideas of Virgil Abloh was also born LV x NBA Trunk, a double-door wardrobe trunk with interior in blue and red that can hold up to 14 pairs of shoes. The Lakers had the honor of bringing home the first LV travel case in NBA history.

League of Legends 2019

Finding eSports on this list is incredible and obvious at the same time. The pioneering drive that characterizes Louis Vuitton productions naturally pushed the brand to enter a rapidly growing world. In 2019 the trophy case for the Worlds - the League of Legends world championship - came from Asnières. The processing took 900 hours and involved 25 people with different skills, divided into traditional manufacturing and technicians able to install high-tech components. On the sides of the case, in fact, there are 5 ultra-powerful LED screens that act as panel cladding. To close the circle, the technicians have inserted a tailor-made mechanism to allow automatic opening and closing of the panels. The future is here and Louis Vuitton wants to be there, as always.

America's Cup 2015, 2017

Louis Vuitton has been collaborating with the America's Cup for over a hundred years, but it was only in 2015 that the brand decided to create a suitable and tailor-made case for the Auld Mug, the oldest trophies in the world. Made in the iconic style of the brand, the trophy case is made in the usual brown and gold color, with details finished in brass. In 2017 LV doubled its commitment, becoming more and more an integral part of the tournament thanks to the Challenger Playoffs, for which an ad hoc case was created.

Davis Cup 2019

The Davis Cup - the men's tennis world championship - 2019 was exciting until the final stages, when Spain, the host of Rafa Nadal, managed to prevail over Félix Auger-Aliassime's Canada. The trophy was delivered for the first time inside a very particular trunk: with a circular shape, the trophy case has a gigantic base whose top opens to show one of the oldest cups in the world of tennis. Covered in the iconic Monogram Mocassar canvas, it features rich leather details, palladium and brass locks, as well as the Davis Cup logo printed inside the lining.

Rugby World Cup - Webb Ellis Cup 2015

After football, basketball, tennis, and sailing, it's time for rugby, the noble sport par excellence. In 2015 Louis Vuitton was commissioned to build a special trophy case for the Webb Ellis Cup, the trophy that is awarded to the team that wins the rugby world cup. Held on October 31, 2015 in Twickenham, in front of more than 80.000 people, New Zealand and Australia fought to take home the most important prize. The case opens to the front and upwards, so that the trophy can be easily removed.

In addition to these seven amazing works, the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) which organizes the 24 Heures du Mans every year commissioned in 2013 - the year of the 90th anniversary of the race - a special case for the gigantic trophy. The French maison accepted the assignment and, under the usual supervision for special orders from Patrick-Louis Vuitton, made the huge case for one of the largest sports cups.