CAIRO, March 15 (Xinhua) -- The FIFA World Cup trophy arrived in Cairo on Thursday amid its international tour around 51 countries and regions across the world.
The trophy arrived at Cairo International Airport on a private plane carrying a delegation of FIFA officials for a two-day visit in Egypt.
It came after concluding a tour in Cote d'Ivoire and is expected to head to Italy's Naples in a European tour before it changes direction to Argentina in South America.
The trophy is scheduled to stop in 91 cities in 51 countries and regions including the 32 countries who qualified for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. Egypt, Nigeria, Tunisia, Morocco and Senegal will represent Africa in this year's tournament.
After a 28-year of absence, Egypt made its way to the 2018 FIFA World Cup through a narrow win over Congo last October.
The trophy is made of solid gold and weighs 6.142 kg.
The original trophy is awarded to the winners of the FIFA World Cup but remains in FIFA's possession.
The trophy's Cairo tour is held under the auspices of Egypt's Ministry of Youth and Sports to provide Egyptian soccer fans a chance to see the most valuable prize in the history of the game.
According to FIFA guidelines, only a sitting head of state and World Cup winners are allowed to touch the trophy.
