LEGO has built an enormous World Cup trophy in the middle of New York
The 8.4-metre replica is one of the biggest LEGO builds ever
If there's one thing LEGO loves almost as much as launching another Star Wars set, it's building something absolutely enormous.
Its latest creation might just be one of its most ambitious yet. Standing 8.4 metres tall in the heart of New York City's Rockefeller Plaza, the toy giant has unveiled a towering replica of the FIFA World Cup Trophy that's been built from an astonishing 1.36 million LEGO bricks.
The gigantic installation arrives as the 2026 World Cup enters its final stages, with Rockefeller Plaza serving as one of FIFA's biggest fan zones during the tournament. While the USA's hopes of lifting the trophy may already be over, supporters still have the chance to get up close to a version that's arguably even more impressive than the real thing.
At 25 times the size of the actual trophy, the brick-built monument is one of the largest LEGO models ever created. It stretches 8.47 metres into the Manhattan skyline, weighs around 4.2 tonnes and is based on the same trophy that has been presented to every World Cup winner since 1974.
It's also far more than a giant stack of plastic bricks. Hidden beneath the familiar gold exterior is a 3.5-tonne steel framework that supports the entire structure, allowing it to withstand both its own weight and the thousands of football fans expected to flock to Rockefeller Plaza over the coming weeks.
Creating it was no small task either. Over a period of eight months, a team of 59 designers, engineers and model builders worked at LEGO's production facility in Kladno, Czech Republic, spending more than 7,000 hours bringing the project to life.
Transporting it across the Atlantic proved almost as complicated. The finished model had to be dismantled into 16 individual sections before being shipped to New York and painstakingly reconstructed on-site, with some sections weighing as much as two tonnes.
"The numbers on this installation are mind-blowing," said LEGO Senior Designer Christophe Vietti. "It's the biggest mobile build ever made."
"The goal of the LEGO World Cup Trophy is to unite people through the love of football and play. This build brings that celebration to a whole new level and creates a landmark for fans visiting the FIFA Fan Festival during the closing stages of the tournament."
The final brick was ceremonially placed by Brazilian football legend Cafu, who officially opened the attraction alongside fans representing nations still competing in the tournament.
The trophy also marks the centrepiece of a new LEGO Fan Zone at Rockefeller Plaza, where visitors can take part in football-themed building challenges, help create a collaborative brick mural and even design their own custom minifigures at the nearby LEGO Store on Fifth Avenue.
The mega-build continues LEGO's recent run of increasingly ambitious real-world creations. Following last year's fully drivable Formula 1 cars and a growing collection of record-breaking installations around the world, the company seems intent on proving that almost anything can be recreated in brick form if you have enough patience... and, in this case, around 1.36 million LEGO pieces.
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