FIFA World Cup Trophy Tour NYC Presentation and Interview
By Nir Regev
FIFA’s World Cup Trophy Tour by Coca-Cola made its way to New York City this week with Ambassador Supermodel Victoria Lopyreva.
FIFA’s beautiful, storied World Cup Trophy was unveiled over on fifth avenue on Monday courtesy of Coca-Cola. The last time the FIFA World Cup Original Trophy toured the U.S. was back in 2014, when it was presented in Washington D.C., Miami, Atlanta and Los Angeles. This time around, on the fourth ever global FIFA World Cup Trophy Tour, the legendary trophy will visit 91 cities in 51 countries. That’s an astonishing six continents on a nine-month journey, and more than 152,000 km over the duration of the tour. Though photos with the pristine 18 caret gold are a given, only heads of state and former winners can touch the coveted trophy. Well, there’s always a chance!
Laverne Harley, Liberty Coca Cola, Senior Marketing Manager and Victoria Lopyreva, Ambassador of FIFA World Cup 2018, gave a spirited presentation on what it meant to be part of the Trophy’s journey. Lopyreva, who was Miss Russia 2003, was thrilled to have her home country hosting the upcoming World Cup tournament this summer. The first time in Russia’s history. Lopyreva spoke about the uniting power of soccer/football (as it’s known outside of the U.S.) and how no matter who you are or what your nationality is, we all share the same passion for the sport.
FIFA World Cup Trophy Tour Presentation in NYC
We had an opportunity to speak to Jan Schetters, Global Partnership Manager, Coca-Cola about the FIFA World Cup Trophy Tour!
Interview with Jan Schetters, Global Partnership Manager, Coca-Cola
FanSided: What does it mean to you personally to be part of this trophy tour, especially over here in New York?
Jan Schetters: It’s amazing. I love it! It’s actually my third tour already and you get to see so much of the world. It doesn’t matter if you land in a smaller country or in a big country like the U.S. There’s so much passion and excitement for football/soccer, for the FIFA World Cup! While not everybody has the chance to get to a FIFA World Cup match in Russia, we are trying to get as many people as possible to stand next to the trophy and have their photo taken. Both as a memory and to get them ready for the 2018 FIFA World Cup!
FS: Were you a soccer fan growing up, did you play soccer?
Schetters: Yeah, I love it! I’m from the Netherlands and unfortunately my country is not in the FIFA World Cup this time … So, I wanted to cheer for the U.S., my new country, I’m living here now but unfortunately the U.S. is not in the FIFA World Cup this year either. So, I’m going to cheer for Colombia, my wife’s Colombian. A lot of us from the [Coca-Cola] team have a big passion for football and it’s even nicer when you tour around the world to see the passion of the people. You’re bringing something that means a lot to them. Whether it’s the smallest country or the biggest country, everybody loves the trophy, and that’s why we love what we’re doing!
FS: Do you ever get to touch the trophy?
Schetters: Unfortunately not. There’s this rule in place by FIFA, that only heads of states or former winners are allowed to hold and touch a trophy. So, you and I, we either have to join the winning team, which is probably not going to happen anymore, or we become the heads of state.
FS: So, you’re saying there’s a chance?
Schetters: As a head of state, we have a chance. *laughs*. This time on the Trophy Tour we already visited around 20 heads of states, and they love welcoming us on the tour … Because they’re the only ones in the country, unless they won the FIFA World Cup before, they’re the only ones in the country who are allowed to hold and touch the trophy! So, this also brings a little bit of magic around what we’re doing, and that makes it even more special for people to get up close to the trophy.
FS: What makes Coca-Cola the right official drink for FIFA’s World Cup Tour?
Schetters: We have so much passion for sports, and I think what are we doing with this trophy too is getting people ready for the FIFA World Cup. Have them have a memory of the FIFA World Cup trophy itself! I think that mix is just fantastic. The excitement mixed with the Coca-Cola beverages, I think that’s what we wanna achieve with this tour.
FS: What city are you heading to next?
Schetters: Today, we’re in New York City and tomorrow we go to Miami [April 17]. Then we go to L.A., we’re all super excited because in LA we have two days for the fans! So everybody who wants to come by L.A. Live, Thursday/Friday [April 19/20], you’re all welcome to come!
FS: Sounds awesome! Thank you!
Schetters: Thank you!
Follow along with FIFA’s World Cup Trophy Tour by Coca-Cola on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter! You can also follow Victoria Lopyreva, the Ambassador of FIFA World Cup 2018 on Instagram and Twitter.