June 1, 2026

Pickles, the Dog Who Found the World Cup Trophy

Just four months before the 1966 FIFA World Cup, a collie named Pickles helped solve the case of the stolen Jules Rimet Trophy.

In 1966, four months before the FIFA World Cup kicked off in England, the tournament's trophy disappeared from a public exhibition in London. Police searched everywhere, and the story became national news. The breakthrough came from a four-year-old collie named Pickles.

The missing object was the Jules Rimet Trophy, the original World Cup trophy awarded to the winners of football's biggest tournament. Its disappearance caused immediate embarrassment as England prepared to host the World Cup for the first time.

After a week of police searches, the breakthrough came from Pickles, a four-year-old collie. He was out for his evening walk with his owner, David Corbett, in South London. It was a usual walk on the usual street until Pickles became interested in something beside a parked car. Tucked near the wheel was a package wrapped in a newspaper and tied with string. So Pickles stopped to investigate. Curious about what had caught his dog's attention, Corbett picked it up, took a closer look, and realized they were staring at the missing World Cup trophy.

The discovery instantly turned Pickles into a celebrity. Newspapers that had spent days covering the mystery now had a much better story: a dog had solved the case before the police did.

Pickles posed for photographs and became one of the most recognizable dogs in Britain. The National Canine Defence League awarded him a silver medal, and he reportedly received a year's supply of dog food for his efforts.

A few months later, England won the World Cup for the first and still only time in the men's tournament. Pickles was invited to attend the celebratory banquet with the players and officials. Not many dogs can say they helped recover the World Cup trophy and then attended the victory party.

His fame continued for a while. He appeared in advertisements, made television appearances, and even starred as himself in the 1966 film The Spy with a Cold Nose.

As for the theft itself, the full story remained complicated. A man named Edward Betchley was later convicted in connection with an attempt to collect a reward, though the identity of the original thief was never conclusively established.

Meanwhile, Pickles remained blissfully uninvolved in that part of the mystery. He had already done his job.

Animals with jobs

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