There are many trophies in the world of team sports. Some cups already have a rich long history and are known all over the world due to the interests of fans in certain sports. However, there is a trophy that has been awarded to the winning team for only a few years, but at the same time it is already considered one of the most honorable in the history of world sports. This is the Gagarin Cup.
The Gagarin Cup is the most prestigious hockey trophy not only in Russia, but also in Europe. This cup began to be played in Russia in the 2008-2009 season. The trophy is awarded to the winner of the KHL (Continental Hockey League) league. The cup is named in honor of the first cosmonaut of the country and the entire planet - Yuri Gagarin. 8 teams from the western and eastern conferences of the KHL will take part in the drawing of the trophy. The cup is a challenge, so any player of the winning team can bring it to their city.
The cup itself is engraved with an image of Gagarin in a spacesuit. It is made of silver, weighs 19 kg with a volume of 12 liters. Each winning hockey player, including the coaching staff, masseurs, doctors, gets the opportunity to touch this trophy and raise it above his head.
The names of the teams that won the playoffs are engraved around the circle of the cup. The KHL emblem is depicted on the bottom of the stand.
The first cup was won by the club from Kazan "Ak Bars", which beat the Yaroslavl "Lokomotiv" in the final series. In 2014, Czech Lev made it to the final of the Gagarin Cup, but lost to Metallurg from Magnitogorsk.
The popularity of the Gagarin Cup is growing every year. This is confirmed by the annual releases of the KHL over the past several seasons. Many European hockey teams are willing to join the KHL in order to try to win the most prestigious trophy - the Gagarin Cup.
