UK-based teams have been involved with the Esports World Cup, including a firm responsible for designing the 2024 Esports World Cup trophy.
Thomas Lyte on how it designed the 2024 Esports World Cup trophy
Royal Warrant holding silversmiths and trophy designers, Thomas Lyte, and the Esports World Cup Federation, recently unveiled the first Esports World Cup trophy in Riyadh at Boulevard City.
Designed and made by Thomas Lyte in London, the trophy stands at 60cm tall, and was handcrafted from 9kg in sterling silver bullion and 24-carat gold plate.
Thomas Lyte has designed other esports trophies including Riot Games’ LEC trophy, the FIFAe World Cup trophy, the original League of Legends Summoner’s Cup and the eChampions League trophy, as well as other traditional sporting ones like the Emirates FA Cup, the Rugby World Cup, as well as the ICC Cricket World Cup, Saudi Arabia’s King’s Cup and more. The company has royal patronage to the British Royal Family.
Also known as the ‘Club Championship’ trophy, the 2024 Esports World Cup trophy will be won by the esports club that collects the most points across all gaming titles throughout the tournament.
At the time of writing, Saudi Arabian esports organisation Team Falcons are currently miles ahead in the Club Championship standings, with 2,950 points, ahead of Team Liquid with 1,150 and Navi with 1,110. You can see the full list of orgs in the Esports World Cup Club Support Program here.
Thomas Lyte said ‘the modern design draws from Saudi Arabia’s landscapes, esports culture, and the spirit of competition, featuring elements like palm trees and symbols of gaming’, with a crown sitting atop the trophy.
The stem of the trophy was constructed through interweaving triangles inspired by the directional buttons of a game controller, forming the trunk of a palm tree, inspired by the host country. The handles of the trophy are twisted with metal resembling compacted computer wiring, and the tournament logo is displayed on the base, with the trophy rising behind it.
The firm used traditional silversmithing techniques to make it, such as silver casting, polishing and metal filing, combined with technology like 3D modelling and 3D printing, especially during the early stages of development.
“At Thomas Lyte, we are honoured to have crafted the first ever Esports World Cup trophy. This masterpiece not only symbolises the ultimate achievement in esports, but also reflects our commitment to combining traditional craftsmanship with innovative design.”
Kevin Baker, Thomas Lyte
The body of the Esports World Cup trophy was cast in sterling silver in multiple sections, each filed and polished for hundreds of hours before being plated in 24-carat gold. The team at Thomas Lyte’s silver workshops in London then assembled the trophy upon its hand-spun base.
The final design emerged from over ten original concepts, refined through hand-drawn sketches and 2D and 3D graphical illustrations, with prototyping used to perfect the trophy’s shape.
Kevin Baker, CEO and founder of Thomas Lyte, said: “At Thomas Lyte, we are honoured to have crafted the first ever Esports World Cup trophy. This masterpiece not only symbolises the ultimate achievement in esports, but also reflects our commitment to combining traditional craftsmanship with innovative design.
“We are proud to contribute to the legacy of the Esports World Cup and celebrate the incredible talent of esports athletes worldwide.”
The Esports World Cup also has a unique trophy system, where each player has a personalised triangular key. These keys can be inserted into a trophy, and a totem on display in Riyadh. Those eliminated must give up their keys and see them crushed, with the broken keys tossed into the totem and encased in resin. Each game’s champion can choose three opponents keys to be encased in the base of their trophy. Losers then receive a token to take home.
The news comes as the Esports World Cup is ongoing, with the community and industry split over the amount of money coming into esports from Saudi Arabia, while also taking into consideration Saudi’s human rights record and the idea of sportswashing.
Unusual community reaction to Esports World Cup trophy shape
Since the Esports World Cup trophy was unveiled, several esports communities online have commented on the trophy’s… girth.
Reddit posts like this (on the LoL subreddit), this (on the competitive Overwatch subreddit) and this (on Caedrel’s community subreddit) did not hold back on what they think the trophy reminds them of.
We’ve reached out to Thomas Lyte, the trophy’s designers, for comment, and will update this piece if we hear back.
Law firm CMS advises on inaugural Esports World Cup
In a separate announcement, a multijurisdictional team from international law firm CMS has advised the Esports World Cup Foundation on the organisation of the first Esports World Cup.
CMS Partner Sam Oustayiannis led the UK team working on the media rights and partnerships.
He said: “The Esports World Cup is an unparalleled event, which attracts interest from a wide range of parties, from competitors to sponsors and the media. We were able to coordinate a close working team across our various practices and offices to ensure that all legal aspects were covered to make it a successful event to be enjoyed by all. We can’t wait to see what the future brings for the Esports World Cup.”
Dr Pietro Graf Fringuelli and Samuel Oustayiannis are leading a global CMS-team of over 30 lawyers. The firm is providing full legal support for all aspects of the EWC, including all agreements with the teams, the rulebook for the EWC and all associated regulations for the participation at the EWC, all sponsorship agreements, media rights and partnership agreements as well agreements with publishers.
CMS Germany Partner and Co-Head of the CMS Technology, Media & Communications Group, Dr. Pietro Graf Fringuelli, commented: “The esports industry continues to grow at a staggering rate and attracts records numbers of viewers around the world. The EWC will change the entire esport and will help to develop a sustainable ecosystem.”
Founded in 1999, CMS is an organisation of law firms that offer legal and tax advice. With 84 offices in 47 countries across the world and more than 5,800 lawyers, CMS has expertise both in advising in its local jurisdictions and across borders.
Related article: Esports World Cup games list, schedule and $60m+ prize pool breakdown for 2024
Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He graduated from Bournemouth University with a 2:1 degree in Multi-Media Journalism in 2007.
As a long-time gamer having first picked up the NES controller in the late ’80s, he has written for a range of publications including GamesTM, Nintendo Official Magazine, industry publication MCV and others. He worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation up until February 2021, when he stepped back to work full-time on Esports News UK and offer esports consultancy and freelance services. Note: Dom still produces the British Esports newsletter on a freelance basis, so our coverage of British Esports is always kept simple – usually just covering the occasional press release – because of this conflict of interest.
