Brooklyn-born, London-based sculptor Lev Rosenbush worked with The Soccer Tournament (TST) in Cary, North Carolina to unveil its new celebratory trophy. The seven-a-side competition was born in 2020 out of co-founders Alecko Eskandarian and Dan Friel’s longing to create a series of games that actually had a real prize on the line. What kind, you might ask? Try (enter commercial pitch voice) $1m USD.
Organized to mirror a large-scale tournament atmosphere, TST regularly brings in world-class athletes to compete, including 46 mens and eight women’s sides. The most recent iteration of the contest kicked-off this weekend and included a number of celebrated footballers, including former Manchester United winger Luís Nani, as well as his Portuguese compatriot, futsal world champ, Ricardinho, along with a host of celebrities, from Pat McAfee to Chris Paul — the latter of which presented this year’s trophy to the winning sides, La Bombonera and US Women.
Rosenbush, whose studio practice Halftime explores the curious intersection between sports and art, sought to use pottery as a vessel to continue to tell the tale of community that is at the heart of football fandom. “Under the Halftime umbrella, my intention is to shift the perception of what a “typical” sports fan might look like,” Rosenbush tells Hypeart. Currently based in Camberwell, the artist was taken aback when TST came calling that they were in need of a new trophy. “I had five weeks to make and design these along with the winners pins — a modern twist on traditional Greek amphorae’s and chalices,” he recalled. On each, seven football moments are illustrated in collaboration with Demit Omphroy and Zach Kovan.
“Everything about TST is about high stakes, being calculated and taking risks…so I applied that mindset to the trophy creation,” Rosenbush added. As Ricky Bobby once said, “If you’re not first, you’re last.” And that same sentiment holds true for the high-stakes nature of TST, as the runners-up take nothing, with the winners going home a million dollars richer.
