Messi’s World Cup shirts will be auctioned off. Sotheby’s believes it can fetch a record high of more than $10 million
LONDON (AFP) – Sotheby’s auction house is selling six shirts worn by Lionel Messi during Argentina’s winning run in the FIFA World Cup. Last year’s FIFA World Cup in Qatar It is believed it could become the most valuable collection of sports memorabilia ever sold for more than $10 million.
The auction house said on Monday that it would put up for sale in New York six of the seven shirts worn by the Argentina captain in the first half in Qatar, including the shirt he won in the dramatic final victory over France.
Argentina won the final, and its third World Cup, on penalties after a 3-3 draw at Lusail Stadium, in which Messi scored two goals.
Sotheby’s, which was founded in London in 1744, will display Messi’s shirts in New York between November 30 and December 14. The shirts will be displayed at its headquarters in New York in a free public exhibition during the bidding dates.
It works with US-based tech startup AC Momento, which partners with high-profile athletes to help manage their match-worn memorabilia.
The current record for a piece of sports memorabilia is Michael Jordan’s 1998 NBA Finals jersey, which sold for $10.1 million at Sotheby’s in New York in September 2019. 2022.
The current record holder for a piece of football memorabilia is the shirt worn by Diego Maradona in the infamous 1986 quarter-final match in which Argentina beat England 2-1, in which he scored an infamous goal with his own hand, a goal that he said owed a lot to the Argentine national team. “Hand of God.” It sold for $9.3 million at Sotheby’s in London in May 2022.
Winning and lifting the World Cup last year means Messi emulates Maradona’s feat in 1986, the previous time Argentina won the cup.
A portion of the auction proceeds will be donated to the UNICAS project, led by the Sant Joan de Déu (SJD) Barcelona Children’s Hospital with support from the Leo Messi Foundation, to meet the needs of children with rare diseases.
36-year-old Messi, who currently plays for Inter Miami in the American League, spent 17 years in Barcelona, winning the Spanish League on numerous occasions and the Champions League on four occasions. he won The golden ballwhich is presented annually to the game’s best player, a record eight times.
But it was his late victory in Qatar that cemented his place among the all-time greats Pele and Maradona.
That’s why his shirts are likely to be so valuable.
