Medal catalogs list a dozen series with names that mean nothing until you have held them. The differences are real: size, weight, finish, how the sport is depicted, and whether the back takes engraving well. This guide walks through each medal series in the Viking Awards catalog, explains what it is best suited for, and covers the ribbons, boxes, and engraving choices that go with it.
How medal series differ
Four things separate one medal series from another.
Size. Most award medals are about two inches across. Some series run larger for presence or smaller for economy.
Construction. Die cast medals have crisp, deep detail and real weight. Stamped medals are thinner. Some series have a sculpted, three dimensional front rather than a flat design.
Sport depiction. Many series use an interchangeable insert, a small disc with the sport or activity, set into a decorative frame. Others have the sport designed into the medal itself. Inserts make a series flexible across dozens of sports. Integrated designs look more finished.
Finish. Bright gold, silver, and bronze are standard. Antique finishes, mirror polish, and colored backgrounds set some series apart.
The series, from economy to premium
Star medals
The Star medal is the classic award medal: a two inch frame with a starburst design around a sport insert, in gold, silver, and bronze. It is stocked in volume, works for every sport and activity, and is the standard participation medal for leagues and schools.
Best for: participation awards in volume, youth leagues, school field days.
Starbrite medals
Starbrite medals use the same insert approach as the Star series with a brighter, polished frame that catches light. A step up in appearance at a similar price point.
Best for: participation and placing awards where the league wants a little more shine.
Shooting Star medals
Shooting Star medals feature a comet trail sweeping around the sport design, available in antique bronze, silver, and gold finishes. The antique finishes give it a distinct, slightly vintage look. Examples include the antique bronze soccer Shooting Star medal, the basketball version, the football version, and the baseball and softball version.
Best for: tournaments and placing medals that should look different from the standard star.
BriteLazer medals
BriteLazer medals have a laser engraved sport design on a mirror finish surface. The look is modern and clean, and the back engraves beautifully.
Best for: leagues that engrave every medal, corporate and academic events, modern branding.
MidNite Star medals
MidNite Star medals set the sport design against a dark background with bright accents, which makes the design pop. A strong choice for photographs.
Best for: podium medals, events with dark team colors, evening ceremonies.
Galaxy medals
Galaxy medals have a deep, dimensional frame around the sport design with a bold profile and good weight. They read as substantial without the cost of a fully sculpted medal.
Best for: championship and MVP medals, club awards, mid budget tournaments.
High Relief medals
High relief medals are sculpted, with the sport figure or equipment raised in three dimensions from the surface. They are the heaviest and most detailed series and are the medal to choose when the medal is the main award.
Best for: tournament champions, season MVPs, all conference recognition, any medal presented in a box.
Victory medals
Victory medals use a classic laurel and torch motif around the sport insert, which gives them a traditional, formal look suited to academic and ceremonial events as well as sports.
Best for: academic awards, honor societies, formal ceremonies, graduation.
Superstar band medals
A larger format with a raised band around the sport scene, such as the 2 inch gold Superstar band medal. The size gives it presence on a podium.
Best for: placing medals at tournaments, championship recognition.
Ribbons
Every medal hangs on a neck ribbon, and the ribbon collection includes solid colors, two and three color stripes, and patterns. A few rules of thumb:
- Match the ribbon to the league or school color for participation medals.
- Use red, white, and blue or a neutral stripe for events without a team identity.
- For gold, silver, and bronze placing medals, use the same ribbon for all three so the medal finish does the talking.
- Custom printed ribbons with the event name are available from some suppliers and suit annual tournaments.
Medal boxes
A medal box turns a medal into a presentation piece. Velvet lined boxes in black or blue are the standard. They are inexpensive and make sense for the medals that matter: champions, MVPs, and individual honors. Participation medals are handed over loose.
Engraving medals
Most medals have a smooth back that takes laser engraving. Engrave the event, the season, and the division on every medal, and add names only to the medals that carry individual recognition. Engraving every medal with a unique name is possible but adds cost and time, since each one is laid out separately. Send engraving text as a typed list.
Some series, especially BriteLazer, are designed with engraving in mind and look best with it. Others, like high relief, are the award on their own and need only a line on the back.
Choosing a series: a quick guide
- Volume participation for a league or school: Star or Starbrite.
- Tournament podium medals: Shooting Star, MidNite Star, or Superstar band.
- Champion or MVP medal in a box: High Relief or Galaxy.
- Academic, honor society, or ceremony: Victory.
- Modern look with full engraving: BriteLazer.
Mixing series within one event is fine when each tier has its own series: Star for participation, Galaxy for placing, High Relief for the champion. Mixing series within a tier looks accidental.
Related reading
For sport specific medal guides, see soccer medals, basketball medals, baseball medals, football medals, and 5K and running race medals. For school ceremonies, read best medals for high school awards ceremonies. The sports awards guide ties the whole program together.
Medals for events that are not sports
Award medals are used far beyond the field. Academic competitions, science fairs, spelling bees, music festivals, art shows, honor societies, scouting, employee safety programs, and corporate recognition all use medals, and the same series apply with different inserts. The Victory series with its laurel motif is the traditional academic choice. BriteLazer with full engraving suits corporate programs. Star and Starbrite with an activity insert cover school events of every kind.
For employee recognition, a medal in a box engraved with the program name and the year is an inexpensive, portable alternative to a plaque, and it is a good fit for safety milestones, attendance awards, and training completions where the recognition repeats.
Ordering in tiers
The most effective medal programs use two or three series intentionally. A soccer tournament might use Star medals for every participant, Shooting Star in gold, silver, and bronze for placing, and a High Relief medal in a box for the tournament MVP. The cost difference between tiers is modest, and the visual difference tells players which medal they earned without reading the engraving. Decide the tiers first, then the series for each tier, then the counts.
Sampling before a large order
For a first order of several hundred medals, ask to see a sample of the series under consideration. Medal series look alike in catalog photos and feel different in hand, and a league that will reorder the same medal for years should hold it once before committing. Viking Awards can show samples in person for Chicago area buyers and describe construction and weight for buyers ordering remotely.
A note on finishes and matching
Gold, silver, and bronze within one series are produced to match in size and design, which is what makes a podium set look right. Across series, the gold of one line may be brighter or warmer than another. If an event uses two series for different tiers, this is not a problem, since the tiers are meant to look different. If a league is replacing medals from a previous supplier and wants them to match, send a sample so the closest series and finish can be identified. Antique finishes in particular vary by maker, and the antique bronze of one catalog is rarely identical to another’s.
When in doubt, choose the series one step above what the budget first suggests. The cost per medal rises only slightly, and a medal that feels substantial is kept while a thin one is forgotten.
Where to order
Viking Awards in Westchester, Illinois stocks every series above with inserts for dozens of sports and activities, ribbons in a full range of colors, and medal boxes, all engraved in house since 1973. Leagues, schools, and tournaments across the Chicago area and nationwide can order a full tiered medal program from one supplier on one timeline. Call 630-833-1733 or use the contact page with your counts and your event date.