Winning trophies is supposed to be the hardest thing to do in sport. Only the very best get their hands on the biggest prizes.
Yet some sports stars make winning look remarkably easy. They become masters at it.
Wayne Rooney won five league titles and the Champions League at Manchester United, along with a host of individual honours. And what did he do with all the trophies?
Well, he put them in an underground trophy room in his £20m Cheshire mansion, of course, as revealed by his son Kai in an Instagram video this week.
Which got us thinking… who has the best trophy room across all sports?
Mail Sport has taken a look at 10 candidates for that honour, with some of the biggest names in sport making the cut.
Wayne Rooney’s son Kai showed off his dad’s amazing trophy room at their Cheshire mansion
Rooney won five league titles and the Champions League during his time at Man United
Cristiano Ronaldo
Ronaldo is one of the most successful footballers of all time, having won the Champions League on no fewer than five occasions.
He has also collected just as many Ballon d’Or awards and plenty of domestic silverware, but where does he keep everything?
Well, back in December 2013, the Portuguese superstar opened his own museum named Museu CR7 on the island of Madeira where he was born.
The museum contains every trophy he has ever won, and also contains medals plus signed matchballs and shirts.
Ronaldo’s older brother, Hugo, came up with the idea of opening the museum, and it attracts thousands of fans each month.
It contains all of the trophies and individual awards he has won throughout his career
Lautaro Martinez
Martinez is still only 27, but has already won some of the biggest trophies in football, including the World Cup with Argentina two years ago.
The Inter Milan striker was dropped during the tournament after struggling for form, but is unlikely to care one jot after his country went all the way in Qatar.
He has also won two Copa America titles with Argentina and several domestic trophies at Inter, and he showed off his glittering collection on social media recently.
Martinez finished as the top scorer in Serie A last season, and made the final Ballon d’Or shortlist back in October.
It would be a surprise if he doesn’t add more trophies to his cabinet this season.
Lautaro Martinez already has a glittering collection of trophies and is still only 27
Tom Brady
Brady is widely recognised as the greatest NFL player ever, and his trophy room is something to behold.
The legendary quarterback gave fans a glimpse behind the curtain earlier this year when he showed off some of his best trophies and memorabilia at his home.
Brady has signed memorabilia from the likes of David Beckham, Cristiano Ronaldo and Floyd Mayweather.
He has also kept hold of matchballs from his Super Bowl appearances, and his MVP trophies.
Tom Brady showed off his outrageous trophy cabinet in a video posted to YouTube
Brady gleefully held up a white and gold boot from football legend David Beckham
Muhammad Ali
From one GOAT to another. Ali wasn’t shy in telling people that he was the greatest, and his array of trophies and medals certainly backs up that claim.
Back in 1985, four years after he retired from boxing, Ali was pictured at his home in Los Angeles with all of his championship belts, as well as the medals he won as an amateur.
Ali famously won gold at the 1960 Olympics in Rome, but he did not have the medal for long. There are conflicting reports as to what happened to it, with stories ranging from Ali throwing it into an Ohio river after being refused entry to a restaurant due to the colour of his skin, to him simply losing it during a house move.
However, he did keep most of his trophies and belts during his illustrious career that saw him crowned world heavyweight champion three times.
Ali sadly passed away in June 2016 at the age of 74 after a lengthy battle with Parkinson’s disease, but his legacy lives on.
Muhammad Ali poses with his amazing collection of silverware at his LA home in 1985
David Villa
Villa was one of the most lethal strikers in Europe at his peak, and won the biggest trophies in club and international football.
He was part of the Spanish side that won the Euros in 2008 and the World Cup two years later, while he also led the line for Pep Guardiola’s all-conquering Barcelona.
Villa scored in the 2011 Champions League final as Barcelona dismantled Manchester United at Wembley to cement their place as one of the best club sides ever.
He remains proud of his achievements, and posted a picture on his Instagram back in 2020 of himself stood arm in arm with his dad and all of the trophies that he lifted throughout his career.
David Villa posed with his impressive collection of trophies on Instagram in 2020
Jesse Owens
Owens is in the conversation for being the greatest athlete ever after winning four gold medals at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin.
The previous year, he had broken three world records and tied another in less than an hour at a track meet in Michigan, proving how exceptionally special he was.
Owens died at the age of 66 in 1980, but just before his passing he was pictured at his home in Arizona sitting in a chair surrounded by all of his trophies and plaques.
They were plastered all over the walls with hardly any spare room in sight, highlighting how Owens was a born winner.
Jesse Owens pictured with his trophies and plaques shortly before his death in 1980
Michael Owen
We move from Owens to Owen. The former Liverpool striker’s career rather petered out after a string of injuries, and he was even mocked by some fans as he prepared to hang his boots up.
But he had the perfect riposte to his critics back in 2013 as he posted a photo of his trophy cabinet.
It is easy to forget that Owen was the last Englishman to win the Ballon d’Or in 2001. Unless you see his trophy room and spot the award right in the middle of it.
His trophy room also contains his Golden Boot awards and his Sports Personality of the Year gong.
Michael Owen hit back at trolls by posting his trophy cabinet, which included his Ballon d’Or
Floyd Mayweather
Mayweather is one of the only boxers to go out at the very top without ever losing a fight.
The American great had his final professional fight in 2017 where he beat Conor McGregor to move to 50-0.
In his 20-year professional career, Mayweather won more than 20 world titles across five weight divisions, and he has kept every single one of his belts.
Back in 2017, he laid every single belt out on the table and posed with them as if he didn’t have a care in the world.
Mayweather is still lacing up the gloves at the age of 47 for exhibition bouts, with his most notable one coming against Logan Paul in 2021.
Floyd Mayweather posed with over 20 of his world title belts at his home in 2017
John Terry
The former Chelsea captain led the club through the most successful period in their history, and has made no secret of the fact he is very proud of every piece of silverware.
During his time at Stamford Bridge, Terry won five league titles and five FA Cups, while he also lifted the Champions League in 2012 despite missing the final through suspension.
In 2015, Terry shared a stunning snap on social media of some of the biggest trophies from his career after leading his side to Premier League and League Cup success in the previous season.
Terry won the last of his five Premier League titles in 2017, and the Blues have not added to their tally since.
Former Chelsea captain John Terry shared a snap of his trophy cabinet back in 2015
Serena Williams
Let’s finish with another iconic name.
Tennis icon Serena Williams showed off all the trophies at her home back in 2021
The younger Williams sister won 23 grand slam singles titles, plus the small matter of 14 doubles titles with Venus.
Add in four Olympic gold medals, and that is quite the collection.
Williams welcomed Architectural Digest into her home in 2021, when she showed off her remarkable trophy cabinet.
She finally walked away from tennis after the 2022 US Open, with many viewing her as the greatest female player ever.
