From trunks to trophies: Why Louis Vuitton keeps showing up at sport’s biggest moments
From Melbourne’s tennis courts to Monaco’s street circuit and the waters off Naples, Louis Vuitton has quietly embedded itself in sport’s most ceremonial moments.
Carlos Alcaraz, winner of Australian Open 2026. (Photo: Louis Vuitton)
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In January at the Australian Open, the ritual played out much as it has in recent years. At the women’s final on Jan 31, 2026, Thai singer and Louis Vuitton House ambassador BamBam appeared alongside American tennis legend Jennifer Capriati to unveil the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup from a Louis Vuitton Trophy Trunk. Later that evening, Elena Rybakina carried it away after defeating Aryna Sabalenka.
The following day, at the men’s final, actress and house ambassador Chloe Grace Moretz joined former world No 1 Marat Safin on court to unveil the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup before Carlos Alcaraz lifted it as champion.
Crafted by the house’s artisans and clad in the Monogram, the trunk travels with the trophy, framing the instant victory changes hands.
WHERE VUITTON SHOWS UP
Luxury brands have long had a presence in sport, and Louis Vuitton is no exception. The house has worked with athletes in its campaigns, including tennis players such as Carlos Alcaraz and Naomi Osaka, and featured Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in its Core Values advertising series in 2024. What stands out is where Vuitton chooses to be most visible. Beyond endorsement, the brand has increasingly placed itself at sport’s most symbolic point – the moment victory is declared.
Handcrafted at Louis Vuitton’s historic Asnieres workshops, the Trophy Trunks draw directly from the house’s 19th-century origins as a maker of travel cases. The Monogram that covers them was created in 1896 to distinguish Louis Vuitton trunks and guard against imitation, then applied to a coated canvas developed to withstand travel, handling and the elements.
In sport, those practical qualities matter. Trophies move constantly – between venues, countries and competitions – and are handled, lifted and photographed under intense scrutiny. A Monogrammed Trophy Trunk is built for that journey: recognisable and resilient.
This year also marks 130 years of the Louis Vuitton Monogram – a reminder that what began as a practical solution for travel has become a defining visual language, one that continues to surface wherever trophies are on the move.
A RELATIONSHIP THAT GOES BACK DECADES
This approach isn’t new. Louis Vuitton entered the America’s Cup story in 1983 as title sponsor of the Louis Vuitton Cup, the challenger-selection series that determines who advances to the final match. Five years later, in 1988, the house created its first bespoke Trophy Trunk for the America’s Cup itself, turning sponsorship into something tangible – and portable.
That relationship continues today. Louis Vuitton has renewed its role as title partner of the 38th America’s Cup, set to take place in Naples in 2027. Travel, innovation and performance – values embedded in both the competition and the house’s history – remain central to the partnership.
WHY SPORT MAKES SENSE
As the Financial Times has noted, luxury houses have increasingly turned to global sport as audiences fragment and traditional advertising loses impact. Live sport still delivers scale – and attention – at a time when much else is easy to ignore.
For Louis Vuitton, sport offers reach without sacrificing ceremony. The biggest competitions already have their own rituals: opening ceremonies, podiums, trophy lifts. By stepping into those moments rather than inventing new ones, the house appears on the world’s largest stages while staying closely associated with craft, tradition and continuity.
Tennis offers one expression of that idea. Formula 1 takes it further.
FORMULA 1 AT SCALE
Louis Vuitton’s official partnership with Formula 1 began in 2025 and reached a striking visual crescendo at the season-ending Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. For the first time, all 24 Formula 1 Trophy Trunks – one for each race – were assembled on the starting grid in a V-shaped formation, referencing both victory and the house’s name. The winning trophy, presented in its trunk, was awarded to Max Verstappen.
MONACO STEPS UP
In 2026, Louis Vuitton becomes title partner of the Formula 1 Louis Vuitton Grand Prix de Monaco. Its presence in Monaco predates that step, with earlier work alongside the Automobile Club de Monaco.
Monaco has long been Formula 1’s most glamour-laden race, where place matters as much as performance. Vuitton’s bespoke Monaco Trophy Trunk – crafted in red Monogram canvas and marked with the house’s “V” – distils more than a century of craftsmanship into a single, highly visible moment.
SHOWING UP YEAR AFTER YEAR
It doesn't seem that Louis Vuitton is chasing one-off appearances. It keeps showing up in the same crucial moment, year after year – when trophies are revealed, lifted and photographed.
Tennis brings ceremony. Formula 1 brings scale. The America’s Cup brings history. Across all three, the Trophy Trunk provides a consistent thread. Beyond tennis, motorsport and sailing, Louis Vuitton’s Trophy Trunks have also appeared in football (the FIFA World Cup and the Ballon d’Or), rugby (the Rugby World Cup), basketball (the NBA Championship) and esports (the League of Legends World Championship).
What began in the 19th century as luggage designed for travel has found a modern role in sport. In today’s biggest competitions, victory still needs to be protected, transported and presented – or, as the house puts it: Victory travels in Louis Vuitton.
