The FIFA Women's World Cup trophy was designed by William Sawaya of the Milan firm Sawaya & Moroni and made its debut appearance at the 1999 World Cup. The base is made of marble, with the spiral and the ball consisting of pure silver with 23 carat gold and white gold plating. The original value is put at 30,000 US dollars. A separate trophy, which the winners get to keep and can be seen here, is made for each tournament.
The number of nations to have won a World Cup is modest. With four titles to date, the USA hold the record for the most wins since the tournament was launched in 1991, followed by two-time winners Germany. Norway and Japan have each lifted the trophy once. Germany's 2003 World Cup triumph is associated with the last golden goal in football history. Nia Künzer's 98th-minute header in extra-time of the final against Sweden proved decisive. Under the golden goal rule, which was launched by FIFA in the mid-1990s and ceased to apply in 2004, the game ended when a goal was scored in extra-time.
Another special feat was achieved by goalkeeper Nadine Angerer when Germany won the World Cup a second time in China in 2007. She went the entire tournament without conceding a goal and even saved a penalty by Brazil's star player, Martha, in the final. Simone Laudehr and captain Birgit Prinz got the German goals in the Shanghai final. With a total of 14 goals, the latter is the all-time leading World Cup scorer. The Frankfurt native started all three World Cup finals contested by Germany, featuring in the 1995 defeat against Norway in addition to the triumphs of 2003 and 2007.
"The future of football is feminine" as former FIFA president Joseph Blatter was wont to say, and the German FA is striving to make another legacy contribution by bidding to host the 2027 World Cup along with Belgium and the Netherlands. After 2011, it would be the second time that Women's World Cup matches have taken place in Germany.
Deutsches Fußballmuseum