It’s six years since Thomas Lyte were commissioned to handcraft the most prestigious prize in global basketball. Now, on the eve of the 2023 tournament in the Philippines, Japan, and Indonesia, it’s likely that this stunning piece of sporting silverware will be seen by billions of basketball lovers across the globe when it’s handed to the winners on September 10 in Manilla.
FIBA’s flagship competition was expanded in China in 2019, with 32 teams taking part rather than the traditional 24. The increase in national representation had a dramatic impact. By the time Spain had defeated Argentina in the final at the iconic Wukesong Arena – the home to the sport at the Beijing Olympics in 2008 – over 3bn people had watched the action unfold across the world.
Another 1.5bn had watched video footage of the event on social media. The event was carried by over 70 broadcasters in 190 territories, with viewing figures four years ago representing a remarkable 80% rise from those seen in 2014. The final alone had a global audience of over 160m. In Spain, meanwhile, coverage of their final win drew a 46% audience share, with as many as 10m watching the country lift the trophy for just the second time in their history.
Those astonishing figures illustrate the pull of the sport in North and South America, Africa, Europe, Asia and beyond.
The 2019 event also represented the first time that the Thomas Lyte trophy was awarded to the tournament’s winner. And it’s one befitting a truly global event.
Conceived in collaboration with the design team at Radiant Studios, the trophy reflects the past, present and future of this rapidly growing competition.
Named after the man who invented the sport, Canadian James Naismith – who is also credited in some circles have come up with the design of the first American Football helmet – the World Cup prize was unveiled in Guangzhou the year before the 2019 tournament. Inspired by the Egyptian lotus flower and standing at an impressive 60cm in height, the Naismith Trophy was an illustration of just how far the sport had come since the first event was played for in 1950.
Back then, the winners of the tournament received nothing but plaudits. With the sport on its uppers, there was no trophy for the winners, meaning that the inaugural champions, Argentina – who won the competition in front of their home crowds 73 years ago – enjoyed a somewhat hollow celebration.
South America was very much the World Cup’s spiritual home in those early years, with Argentina, Brazil (twice), Chile and Uruguay hosting the first five editions. Brazil would win two of the first five tournaments too – their dominance on the football pitch mirrored by the on-court heroics of the country’s basketball giants.
The original Naismith Trophy was first handed to the winners 17 years later and would be a recognisable symbol of the competition for the next 50 years. Now Thomas Lyte has played a key role in beckoning in a new era for the sport.
For so long basketball’s flagship event lived in the shadow of the FIFA World Cup – indeed between 1970 and 2014, the competition overlapped global football’s biggest and most popular tournament. After a planned five-year hiatus, before the 2019 competition, the event is now squarely on the global sporting map in its own right.
A trend which will be continued in four years’ time when Qatar will become the first Arab nation to host the quadrennial showpiece.
First up, though, the trophy will travel to Asia and to three countries that have long-established links with the sport. Japan, the Philippines and Indonesia will all come to a standstill when their heroes stride on court. Just as they did in China in 2019.
The Thomas Lyte trophy, expertly hand-crafted from a single sheet of hallmarked sterling silver in our East London workshop, will await the winners.
Read about our press mentions and awards for the project
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