Mellerio’s History Of Creating The Ballon D’Or Trophy For The World’s Best Soccer Players

As France prepares for the World Cup Championship against Argentina, it is fitting that the Ballon d’Or (The Golden Ball), the trophy given each year to the best male and female soccer player in the world, is on display at the Mellerio boutique in Paris at 9 rue de la Paix until Sunday, when the World Cup final will be held in Qatar.

Considered to be the world’s oldest family-owned jewelry firm with a history spanning more than 400 years, Mellerio has been crafting the trophy since 1956 at its atelier above its historic retail store. This year it was awarded to Karim Benzema, a French citizen who is a striker for Real Madrid, and Alexia Putellas, the Spanish midfielder and captain of Barcelona.

Mellerio over the years has retained a know-how of artisanship that allows the firm to create high gold pieces (Haute Orfèvrerie) and precious objects such as rock crystal and hard stone objects, table ornaments, academic swords and sports trophies, including those awarded at French Open tennis tournament, as well as trophies for sailing, equestrianism and golf.

Creating the Ballon d’Or requires all of the expertise of its workshop and, according to Mellerio, the manufacturing process to produce the trophy has not changed since the beginning. It requires almost a hundred hours of work and begins six months prior to delivery. It starts out as a sheet of metal before ending as a spherical 33-pound trophy in the shape of a soccer ball.

The main work begins by welding two half spheres of brass. The goldsmith then creates an opening which will allow the ball to be embedded onto a block of pyrite. It then passes into the hands of the carver who fills it with a cement-like substance in order to push the metal into a pattern crafted beforehand, revealing the seams of the ball. This step requires precision and rigor to reproduce identically the thirty-two panels that make up a soccer ball, the luxury jeweler said. This process takes about 15 hours.

Then a specialized craftsman polishes the “ball” before giving it to the engraver, who will handcraft the logo of “France Football” and the year of the edition. It is then immersed in a gold bath and returns to the goldsmith who secures it onto the pyrite base. A gem sculptor levels the pyrite stone so it fits the golden brass plate on which the trophy rests.

There is some controversy surrounding Benzema and whether he will be playing in the World Cup final. The striker was one of several players for France injured prior to the World Cup tournament. He hasn’t played a game while recovering. However, he remains on the roster. His injury appears to have healed but the coach of France’s World Cup team, Didier Deschamps, has been non-committal on whether he will return to the team for the final, according to news reports. Benzema, reportedly hurt by Deschamps public stance does not want to be part of the final match, according to these same reports. French president Emmanuel Macron has even put himself into the controversy, saying he wants to take all of the injured players to Qatar with him to watch the final.

We’ll find out on Sunday if the Ballon d’Or winner will be joining his team.