The dog who saved the World Cup: The incredible story of Pickles and the 1966 tournament

The original World Cup, AKA the Jules Rimet Trophy has always carried an air of bad luck — some are even convinced it was cursed. The 14 inch high, gold-plated sterling silver trophy has had a star-crossed history - it was stolen twice, eventually vanishing without a trace over 40 years ago, never to be seen again.

The most infamous incident of its short existence was in 1966. After being put on display with round-the-clock security, it was somehow stolen, from the country that invented football, just four months before it was due to host the World Cup.

England was selected ahead of Spain and West Germany to host the 1966 World Cup finals, the eight edition. The trophy arrived in London in January 1966 and went on display at Westminster Central Hall in London as part of Stanley Gibbons’ Stampex exhibition.

The World Cup goes missing

Two uniformed security officers were in charge of guarding the display case during opening hours. But on Sunday March 20, they were distracted by another public event elsewhere in the building. Shortly after midday, one of the guards returning from his lunch break found the wooden display case had been smashed open and the Jules Rimet was gone.

Losing the World Cup was a huge embarrassment for the host nation. Scotland Yard were tasked with tackling the crime and with any luck, getting the trophy back. A week went by with investigations at a dead end and public panic rising.

Pickles, the king sniffer, comes to the rescue

On Sunday March 27, the nation could finally breath a sign a of relief. A local man David Corbett was out taking his dog Pickles out for a nighttime walk in Beulah Hill, South London. Pickles, a four-year-old collie, starting sniffing a package wrapped in newspaper which had been tossed under a neighbor’s garden hedge.

Initially, Corbett feared it might be an IRA bomb, but on inspection, he could make out a metal plaque inscribed: “Brazil – Uruguay – Germany.” It was the World Cup trophy, abandoned by thieves as police pressure mounted.

Pickles had saved the day and became a national hero. As a reward, he was gifted a year’s supply of dog food, awarded the National Canine Defence League silver medal and named “Dog of the Year”.

His owner was also handsomely rewarded, receiving about £5,000 ($6,700), around roughly equivalent to over $150,000 today — which he used to buy a house.

Sadly Pickles died, aged five just a few months after his World Cup heroics. Nor was there a happy ending for the Jules Rimet Trophy. It was stolen again in December 1983, this time from the Brazilian Football Confederation in Rio de Janeiro. It has not been seen since. Authorities believe that whoever stole it, most likely melted it down for its gold to be sold off.

The last team to lift the Jules Rimet Trophy was Brazil at Mexico and were allowed to keep it permanently as three-time winners.

A new World Cup trophy introduced in 1974

A new trophy was commissioned for the 1974 World Cup in West Germany. Designed by Silvio Gazzaniga, it depicts two human figures holding the Earth aloft. The new trophy goes on display ahead of every edition of the World Cup, since FIFA started the Trophy Tour in 2006. But after going AWOL twice, security has been doubled down so it’s unlikely that the new trophy will suffer the same fate as the one Pickles stumbled upon 60 years ago.

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