Cups and Trophies not only help in bringing joy to the deserving one but also help them aim higher and work even harder for the days to come. Some of the most prestigious Sports cups and trophies at the national level are mentioned below.
Various Sports Cups And Trophies
Ranji Trophy
It is a first-class domestic cricket championship that is played in India between teams from different regions and states. This trophy is named after the Indian Cricketer, Ranjitsinhji who also played international cricket. He was also known as Ranji.
There are a total of 38 teams that play Ranji. The first match took place between Madras and Mysore on 4th November 1934.
Aga Khan Trophy
The first Agha Khan Trophy was donated by Aga Khan III in 1926. It is a trophy presented to the Showjumping Competition of Ireland. Switzerland won this trophy thrice in the years, 1926, 1927, and 1930. Ireland won the trophy outrightly by winning it in 1977, 1978, 1979.
IFA Shield
The Indian football association organizes IFA Shield, annually. It was founded back in 1893. The IFA Shield is the oldest football tournament in India and the second oldest in the world. From 2015, it has been designed as an under nineteen/under eighteen youth tournament in the country.
Though the tournament was initially dominated by the British soon India got a hold to it and marked its presence.
Maharaja Ranjit Singh Award
The Government of Punjab introduced the Maharaja Ranjit Singh Award for excellence and contribution to the Government of Punjab in the field of Sports. It began in 1978. The award consists of a trophy and 1 Lakh rupees. Olympian Pargat Singh was the first one to win the award.
From 1996 to 2005, the award was dismissed.
Beighton Cup
One of the oldest cups in the History of Hockey is the Beighton Cup. In the beginning, it was organized by the Indian Football but the Calcutta Hockey League took it over in 1905.
Customs and port commissioners were the strongest teams in Bengal and also won the National Hockey Championship after beating Punjab.
Ezra Cup
It is a well-known Polo Tournament conducted annually in India. It is also the first-ever polo trophy and the Calcutta Polo Club runs it. This cup was initiated in 1880.
The cup was inactive for a while but Mr. Keshav Bangur, who is also the President of the Polo Club, revived it. The cup was revived in 2006 after almost ten years of inactivity.
Davis Cup
The cup is named after American collegian Dwight Filley Davis. He came up with an idea of a tennis match between the USA and Great Britain. The first match was played in 1990.
The cup was initially known as the International Lawn Tennis Trophy. One of the strongest teams to participate in the cup was India.
Dhyan Chand Award
This award is officially called the Dhyan Chand Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sports and Games. It is named after the Indian hockey player, Dhyan Chand, who holds a record of more than a thousand goals in his career.
The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports grants the award on an annual basis. Shahuraj Birajdar (Boxing), Ashok Diwan (Hockey), and Aparna Ghosh (Basketball) were the first recipients of the award in 2002.
Durand Cup
The Durand Cup is a football tournament that is held in India and founded in 1888. The cup is named after Sir Mortimer Durand. Durand Cup is the oldest existing football tournament in Asia.
Initially being an Army cup, the cup was passed to the civilian administration in the year 2006. Royal Scots Fusiliers were the winners of this cup in 1888.
Ryder Cup
It is a men’s golf match between different teams from Europe and the United States. The matches take place every two years. Ryder Cup Europe and PGA of America administer it. The first Ryder Cup took place at the Worcester Country Club in 1927.
Lord Derby Cup
It is for the sport of rugby league football in France. Edward Stanley donated the trophy in May 1935. The cup is open to all the French Rugby League Clubs. From 2017 to 2019, the cup was also open to the Italian Clubs. US Lyon-Villeurbanne was the first winner of the Lord Derby Cup.
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World cup came into being in 1930. Since then, two trophies have been used. The first from 1930 to 1970, called the Jules Rimet Trophy and the second from 1970 to Present, called the FIFA World Cup Trophy. The trophy was initially called, ‘Victory’.
Jules Rimet Trophy was stolen and it hasn’t been found to date. In 1974, the FIFA world cup trophy was introduced.
Colombo Cup
It was an annual football tournament. It took place in Colombo, Ceylon for the first time. The Ceylon Football Association introduced the cup in 1952. In 1955, the tournament was played for the last time.
Uber Cup
The Uber Cup is one of the major international badminton tournaments. The women’s national teams play the cup. It was first played in 1956-1957. The cup was played at an interval of three years till 1984. 1984 onwards, the tournament is conducted every two years. The format of this cup is similar to the format of the Thomas Cup.
Thomas Cup
The Thomas Cup is also known as the World Men’s Team Championships. The global governing body of the sport is Badminton World Federation (BWF). Initially being played every three years, from 1982 onwards, the cup is played every two years.
George Alan Thomas founded the cup in 1949. Indonesia has proved itself to be the most successful team, by bagging the cup thirteen times.
Sudirman Cup
It is a world mixed team Badminton Championship. The cup is organized every two years. It consists of men and women singles and doubles. The cup is 80cm high and is gold plated made of solid silver.
No prize money is included in the Sudirman Cup, the players play the cup to get themselves listed in the BWF World Ranking.
Prince William Cup
Welsh Rugby Union founded the cup back in 2007 in order to celebrate a hundred years of union history between Wales and South Africa. Prince William, Duke of Cambridge presented the cup at the inaugural match which was held at the Millenium Stadium in Cardiff on November 24th in 2007.
South Africa has won the most number of titles in the Cup.
Fed Cup
It is an international team tennis competition for women. The cup was launched in 1963. Until 1955, the cup was called the Federation Cup. Katrina Adams is the chairperson of the current Fed Cup. It is the world’s largest annual women’s tennis championship. The United States has won the most number of titles in this cup.
America’s Cup
America’s Cup is also known as the Auld Mug. The cup was founded in 1851. It is the oldest international sports cup. The New York Yacht Club has managed to win it the most number of times, which is 25 times. Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron is the recent winner.
The Ashes
The Ashes is a Test Cricket Series. It is a five-match series played between England and Australia. In case the match is drawn the trophy is awarded to the one who already has it or the one who one it during the last series.
The Ashes came into being in 1882. Australia holds a record of winning the series a total of thirty-three times. Shane Warne has taken the most number of wickets and Sir Donald Bradman has the most number of runs.
National Cups and trophies in Various Sports
| Cups/ Trophies | Sport |
| All India Maharaja Ranjit Singh Gold Cup | Hockey |
| Mumbai Gold Cup | Hockey |
| Aga Khan Cup | Hockey |
| Beighton Cup | Hockey |
| Dhyan Chand Trophy | Hockey |
| Gurmit Trophy | Hockey |
| Jawaharlal Nehru Cup | Hockey |
| Murugappa Gold Cup | Hockey |
| MCC Trophy | Hockey |
| Lady Ratan Tata Trophy | Hockey (W) |
| Obaidullah Gold Cup | Hockey |
| Rangaswami Cup | Hockey |
| Settu Cup | Hockey |
| Shani Trophy | Hockey |
| Scindia Gold Cup | Hockey |
| Ashutosh Trophy | Football |
| Begum Hazrat Mahal Trophy | Football |
| DCM Trophy | Football |
| Dr. B.C Roy Trophy | Football |
| Nagjee Trophy | Football |
| Mis Iqbal Hussain Trophy | Football |
| I.F.A Shield | Football |
| G.V Raja Memorial Trophy | Football |
| Durand Cup | Football |
| F.A Cup | Football |
| Vinoo Mankad Trophy | Cricket |
| Vijay Merchant Trophy | Cricket |
| Sheesh Mahal Trophy | Cricket |
| Ranji Trophy | Cricket |
| Rani Jhansi Trophy | Cricket |
| Moin-ud-Dowlah Gold Cup | Cricket |
| Irani Cup | Cricket |
| Duleep Trophy | Cricket |
| Amrit Diwan Cup | Badminton |
| Chadda Cup | Badminton |
| Hiralal Cup | Badminton |
| Olympian Challenger Cup | Badminton (W) |
| Vikas Topiwala Challenge Cup | Badminton (W) |
| Yonex Cup | Badminton |
| Bangalore Blues Challenge Cup | Basketball |
| EZAR Cup | Polo |
| Prithi Singh Cup | Polo |
| Radha Mohan Cup | Polo |
| Winchester Cup | Polo |
| Burdwan Trophy | Weightlifting |
| Ramanujan Trophy | Table Tennis |
| Rajkumari Challenge Cup | Table Tennis |
| Jayalakshmi Cup | Table Tennis |
| Barna-Bellack Cup | Table Tennis |
International Cups/Trophies
| CUP/TROPHY | SPORT |
| Prudential World Cup | Cricket |
| Reliance Cup | Cricket |
| Ashes | Cricket |
| American Cup | Yacht Racing |
| Wightman Cup | Tennis (W) |
| Fed Cup | Tennis (W) |
| Davis Cup | Tennis |
| Corbillon Cup | Table Tennis |
| William Cup | Basketball |
| Sudirman Cup | Badminton |
| Thomas Cup | Badminton |
| Uber Cup | Badminton (W) |
| Tunku Abdul Rahman Cup | Badminton |
| Colombo Cup | Football |
| Jules Rimet Trophy | Football |
| Merdeka Cup | Football |
| Derby Cup | Horse Racing |
| Holkar Trophy | Bridge |
| Ryder Cup | Golf |
Some interesting facts relating to sports cups and trophies:
- Indian Cricket team has won the Cricket World Cup twice. The years are 1983 and 2011.
- In 1955, the Columbo Cup was played for the last time.
- Gokulam Kerala is the winner of the 2019 Davis Cup.
- The Jules Rimet Trophy was in 1930. It was awarded to Uruguay in that year.
- In 1989, the Wightman Cup was played for the last time.
- India holds three titles of the Columbo Cup.
- Shahuraj Birajdar (Boxing), Aparna Ghosh (Basketball), and Ashok Diwan (Hockey) were the first recipients of the Dhyan Chand Award.
- Durand Cup was first held in 1888.
- The Maharaja of Patiala, Bhupinder Singh donated the Ranji Trophy.
- The first match of the Ranji Trophy was held between Madras and Mysore.
- Sultan Azlan Shah Cup was founded in 1983.
- MCC Murugappa was originally known as the Madaras Challenge Cup.
Conclusion
It cannot ignore that it is the initiative of bringing up trophies and cups like these that a sports person gets a reason to work harder. They act as medals on the collars of an athlete. Before learning to play a particular game, one needs to be well aware of the history and the special elements of the Game.