1966 FIFA World Cup later discovered wrapped in newspaper as the dog sniffed under some bushes in London. The FA commissioned a replica cup in case the original cup was not found in time. This replica is held at the English National Football Museum in Manchester, where it is on display. "World Cup Willie", the mascot for the 1966 competition, was the first World Cup mascot, and one of the first mascots to be associated with a major sporting competition. "World Cup Willie" is a lion, a typical symbol of the United Kingdom, wearing a Union Flag jersey emblazoned with the words "WORLD CUP".
History of the Rugby World Cup Cup. Only Romania Japan and Italy have played in all 8 world cups without getting past the group stages. For the all-time table of national teams that have featured in the Rugby World Cup by a number of criteria including matches, wins, losses, draws, total points for, total points against, etc., see Rugby World Cup Overall Record. Only New Zealand, in 2015, has successfully defended their title in the World Cup. The stage at which the defending champions were knocked out has been: 1991 – SF – New Zealand knocked out by Australia; 1995 – QF – Australia knocked out