Sporting trophies are far more than just pieces of silverware presented to the winners at the conclusion of an event. They’re often, simultaneously, a symbol of a brighter future and the struggles of the past. On International Women’s Day, they’re also a powerful reminder of a global sporting revolution and those who have played a fundamental role in its transformation.
Billie Jean King is perhaps the most widely-lauded pioneer in the history of women’s sport. Back in 1970, King and eight other top players broke away from the men’s tour and signed contracts to form what would become known as the ‘Virginia Slims Circuit’, the forerunner to the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA).
Her unrivalled influence continues to be felt today – with the Billie Jean King Cup (formerly the Fed Cup) bringing together the best female players in the world and attracting huge audiences, both in venues around the world, and also on television. As the restorers of the trophy, Thomas Lyte take immense pride in our association with a sporting giant.
Looking across the Pond, from her home in the US, King would doubtless have had a broad smile on her face last weekend.
On the first Sunday in March, the Emirates Stadium in North London welcomed a crowd in excess of 60,000 to watch a Women’s Super League (WSL) derby between Arsenal and Tottenham. It was the second highest attendance of any match in the UK during the latest round of matches.
Just hours later, a film detailing the first unofficial women’s World Cup in 1971 was released. With Serena and Venus Williams executive producers for the film, it tells the story of a tournament which saw crowds of over 100,000 pour into stadiums in Mexico to watch footballers who were, at the time, used to playing matches on public parks in front of the proverbial one man and his dog.
Far from marking a brave new era, though, that World Cup remained an anomaly. A footnote in a revolution that would take another 30 years to gather pace. Now, on International Women’s Day, it’s not just record crowd in women’s football that are being celebrated. It’s the complete transformation of women’s sport for which Thomas Lyte’s trophies play a starring role.
The Women’s FA Cup, the final of which has played at Wembley since 2015, is now one of the standout dates in the English sporting calendar. Last year’s showdown between Chelsea and Manchester United was watched by a record crowd of over 77,000. The Thomas Lyte design offers a reminder of how far the sport has come with the Three Lions adorning the trophy symbolising both the struggle and triumph of the pioneers who have lifted the trophy for decades.
There has been a similar explosion of interest in Scotland too in recent years, with a new trophy for the Women’s Scottish Cup, as well as the trophies for the SWPL and SWPL 1&2 and the SWPL Sky Sports Cup. Thomas Lyte trophies marking the start of a new era in Scottish Women’s football. The SWPL trophies all carry similar characteristics, and are part of one family – the design providing an indication of the unity between players and leagues. The push for gender equality is further underscored by the deliberate design choice to make the Women’s Scottish Cup stand at the same height as its male counterpart, symbolising the equal importance and recognition of both women’s and men’s achievements in Scottish football.
Thomas Lyte’s increasingly global stable of women’s sporting trophies reflects the growth of the sport in all four corners of the world. When discussing the growth of women’s sport, though, it’s tennis that set the initial pace – and served the example that the rest of the sporting world has followed since.
Tennis and the legendary female figures it has produced over the years has proved a magnet for sponsors and commercial partners for years. Now other sports are catching up. Not least, cricket and rugby union – two sports which have taken enormous strides forward over the past decade and are now busy inspiring a new generation of players and supporters.
Again, the creation of iconic elite sporting trophies played a central role in the growth of both. Take cricket’s new Hundred competition here in the UK, as an example. Thomas Lyte designed and made one of the most recognisable trophies in domestic cricket anywhere in the world. The tournament is ground-breaking in every sense, with the women’s competition very much the equal of the men’s. The prize money is the same, and the trophies and medals awarded to the winners are also identical.
Our work has recognised the achievements of women in rugby too – mirroring the increasingly lofty position the sport now holds, both in our own backyard and around the world. The trophy for the Women’s Six Nations tournament, which begins at the end of March, will be handed to the winners for a second time in 2024, having been unveiled at a packed Twickenham last spring. It’s a trophy that has already assumed a place in the heart of rugby lovers in England, Scotland, France, Wales, Ireland and Italy. We love it too, having taken over 250-hour to hand-craft this modern classic.
As International Women’s Day demonstrates annually, sport has the power to unite and promote equality. That is without question.
It’s a day to celebrate, not just those who are inspiring new generations now, but those who paved the way for them to enjoy the success and exposure the best female athletes on the planet now enjoy and receive. The future looks bright – the sold out stadiums and iconic silverware will keep coming.
At Thomas Lyte, we’re committed to ensuring that the astonishing growth envisioned by the likes of King and her contemporaries continues.
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