Italian pen maker Montegrappa has signed a partnership with the European football club ‘UEFA Champions League’ to celebrate 60 years of the foundation of their Champions Cup.
Among the collectibles that Montegrappa is specifically designing for the club is the ‘Montegrappa UEFA’ series of pen.
Now you can find Montegrappa’s exclusive sterling silver pens at Giardino Italiano’s.
“Everything I know about morality and the obligations of men,
I owe it to soccer.”
― Albert Camus
At the origins of soccer
Soccer, which in Europe is known as ‘association football’ or simply ‘football,’ is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball. Today, this is the world’s most popular sport, being played by 250 million people in over 150 countries.
Typically, soccer is associated with Europe – where the most prestigious tournaments take place. Yet, few are aware of the fact that this simple game has Eastern origins: according to FIFA – the International Federation of Association Football – a competitive game by name of cuju (the Chinese for “kick ball”) is the earliest form of football for which there is scientific evidence. Cuju players could use any part of the body but their hands, and the goal of the game was that of kicking a ball through an opening into a net. During the Han Dynasty (206 BC–220 AD), cuju games were standardized and rules were established. In Europe, that would only happen in 1863, when the Laws of the Games were codified by The Football Association in England.
UEFA: how football became tied to Europe
Football in Europe soon attracted the crowds and the favor of the public. But it is only with the UEFA European Championship – also known as ‘The Euros’ – that the sport was brought to a top level.
The UEFA Champions League was founded in 1965. Only the senior men from the national teams competing in the primary association football of each European country were selected to play in the tournament. The winning team would be awarded with the Champions Cup, determining the continental champion of Europe. The Champions League tournament has been held every four years since 1960, in the even-numbered years between World Cup tournaments. Originally, it was called the UEFA European Nations Cup, but the name was changed in 1968.
The 14 European Championship tournaments held so far have been won by nine different national teams: Germany and Spain have each won three titles, France two titles, the Soviet Union, Italy, Czechoslovakia, Netherlands, Denmark and Greece have won one title each. To date, Spain is the only side in history to have won consecutive titles, doing so in the 2008 and 2012 editions. UEFA European Championship is today the second most watched football tournament in the world after the World Cup.
UEFA by Montegrappa, the Champions pen
“When well played, soccer is a dance with a ball,” Eduardo Galeano said.
He’s not the only one connecting top level soccer with art: for instance, the UEFA Championship anthem – simply called “Champions League” – is a solemn classical piece written by English composer Tony Britten in 1992. The anthem features a choir in three languages – English, French and German -, and has been performed by the royal Philarmonic Orchestra and sung by top opera singers such as Andrea Bocelli and Juan Diego Flores.
The solemnity of the fair competition among top-level players has also inspired the concept and design of Montegrappa UEFAChampions League, a limited series of 600 Sterling Silver pens and 60 solid 18k Gold pens.
Put in Giuseppe Aquila’s words – Montegrappa’s CEO – “It is truly a honor and a source of personal excitement to summon the milestones of football history with our pens”.
The design of the pen is fully shaped, has fluid lines, and is embellished by the logo of the UEFA Champions League and details made of blue resin.
Obvious parts of the Champions Cup feature in the clip of the pen, reproducing the shape of the handle.
The case back is in the shape of the well-known starry ball associated with the UEFA logo.
Finally, the barrel of the pen displays two blue lines, to remind us of the socks worn by soccer players.
The entire pen stands out for its bas-relief spiraled pattern. Each band bears an engraving of the winning team for each championship starting from 1955 up to date.
You can now find Montegrappa UEFA sterling silver pens on Giardino Italiano’s website. Score your personal goal by grabbing yours!