The Melt Value of the World's Most Popular Sporting Trophies

But how much are the actual trophies worth? To find out, here at The Metal Store, we looked at the World’s most popular sporting competitions and calculated the melt value of the trophies based on the material and weight.

The results were surprising, with football dominating the list having several domestic and international cups made from 18-carat gold.

Without further ado, here are the top 20 most valuable sporting trophies in the world when melted down…

The historic annual knockout competition was first played way back in the 1871-72 season, making it the oldest competition in world football. While the winning team will make around £2m in prize money, the trophy itself is made from sterling silver and weighs 6.3kg giving it a value of only £3,414.

The ICC trophy is the biggest prize in cricket with 10 teams competing to be world champions, which will be extended to 14 in 2027. The trophy itself is made of silver gilt which has the appearance of gold, but its melt value is much less at just £3,701.

The NFL’s grand prize ranks a lowly eighteenth on this list with its 7kg sterling silver melt value being just £3,793. First awarded in 1967, no franchise has particularly dominated the competition with the most wins tied at six between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the New England Patriots.

Germany’s top division prize ranks next with the solid sterling silver trophy weighing 8.5kg equating to a melt value of £4,626. It’s safe to say the competition is dominated by the country's biggest club Bayern Munich, with the Bavarians winning 31 titles in the Bundesliga’s 59-year history.

Europe's biggest footballing prize places in sixteenth with a melt value of just £5,602 from its 11kg sterling silver material. Since the competition's inception back in 1955, it has largely been dominated by Spanish clubs, particularly Real Madrid who have won a record 14 titles to date.

Awarded to the winner of the PGA Championship each year, the trophy was named after avid golfer and businessman Rodman Wanamaker back in 1916. Weighing 12.2kg and made entirely of sterling silver, the prestigious trophy has a melt value of £6,640.

First awarded in 1861, the trophy is presented to the owner of the winning horse at the annual Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Racecourse in Baltimore. The current appraised value is now in excess of $4 million but its melt value is much less at just £7,402.

Informally known as Auld Mug, the trophy is the oldest international competition still operating in any sport. Weighting the same as the Commissioner's Trophy, its melt value is exactly the same as MLB’s top prize.

Baseball's grand prize for MLB franchises weighs a massive 14kg and is made of sterling silver, which when melted down is worth £7,586. The trophy was first awarded back in 1967, with the New York Yankees holding the most titles with seven.

Awarded annually to the winner of the NHL playoffs, the trophy is the oldest in existence to be given to a North American sports franchise having first been awarded in 1893. Made from silver and nickel alloy and weighing 15.5kg its total value comes to £8,399.

Back to football and the prize for winning the most competitive division in world football ranks next with a value of £14,140. The main body of the trophy is comprised of sterling silver while also having silver gilt elements which give the appearance of gold.

Presented to the winner of the famed motorsport race, the Indianapolis 500, the Borg-Warner trophy is the first all-silver entry. Weighing a massive 49.8kg, it is also the heaviest prize on the list but despite this, it only has a melt value of £27,100.

The Olympic Gold Medal takes eighth spot having a value of £41,470, weighing 0.8kg and being made from 18-carat gold.

For comparison, although neither the bronze or silver Olympic medals made the list, there was a huge difference in value. A silver medal is worth £305 when melted down and a bronze was just £2.27!

Arguably the most popular tournament in golf, the Ryder Cup is the highest-ranked non-footballing trophy to make the list with its 1.8kg, 18-carat gold materials having a melt value of £92,850. Occurring every two years, the competition sees a team of the world's top golfers from Europe take on their American counterparts and is a compelling watch for any fan of the sport.

The DFB Pokal is the German equivalent of the FA Cup and places sixth on the list despite the majority of its 6.14kg materials being silver. However, its 2.1kg of gold means its value works out at £109,857.

The African Cup of Nations trophy rounds off the top five having a value extremely close to the FIFA World Cup and Club World Cup at £237,900.

Taking place every two years, the tournament has grown in stature considerably since its first iteration back in 1957 when just four teams competed. Now it comprises of 24 teams playing 52 matches over a four-week period with some of the best players in the world taking part.

Equaling the iconic World Cup’s value is another FIFA trophy and the newest competition on the list in the form of the FIFA Club World Cup™. Its weight and materials are exactly the same, meaning it has the same melt value. The tournament was conceived back in 2000 and is an intercontinental affair contested by the winners of every continent's Champions League tournament each year.

Perhaps the biggest prize in world sport, the World Cup Trophy is only the third most valuable sporting trophy weighing 6.175kg of 18-carat gold giving a melt value of £239,300.

For the first 40 years of the tournament (1930-70), the iconic Jules Rimet trophy was the prize but after the 1970 tournament, it was replaced by the modern incarnation, which is still awarded today, simply known as the World Cup Trophy.

Italy’s Serie A had the next highest melt value with the 18-carat gold, 9kg trophy being worth £311,500. The prestigious league is now in its 125th year, with Juventus having by far the most titles in that time, notching an unprecedented 34 in the competition's history.

The COPA America is by some distance the most valuable sporting trophy in the world, due to the fact it's made from 24-carat gold and weighs a hefty 9kg, giving it a melt value of £464,500.

The tournament is contested by 12 qualifying South American countries every four years with the most recent being in 2021 when Argentina claimed the title for the 15th time in their history, tying them with Uruguay as the most successful nation since the competition's inception.