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Featured Image Credit: PA Images
Topics: Diego Maradona, England, FIFA Club World Cup, Football, Argentina
Rory O'Callaghan
Topics: Diego Maradona, England, FIFA Club World Cup, Football, Argentina
The shirt worn by Diego Maradona when he scored both the infamous 'Hand of God' goal and his 'Goal of the Century' against England has sold at auction for a record £7.1m.
It is the highest price ever paid for a piece of sporting memorabilia.
Maradona, who died in 2020 at the age of 60, wore the shirt in Argentina's 2-1 win over England at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico.
England international Steve Hodge came into possession of the iconic piece of kit after swapping shirts with Maradona at the end of the quarter-final at the Estadio Azteca.
Hodge put it up for sale at Sotheby's Auction House in London on Wednesday, where it sold for significantly more than its estimated price of between £4m and £6m.
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It is not yet known who the winning bidder is.
"This is arguably the most coveted football shirt to ever come to auction, and so it is fitting that it now holds the auction record for any object of its kind," said Brahm Wachter, Sotheby's head of streetwear and modern collectables.
The previous highest fee paid for a shirt worn during a sports match was £4.4m, paid in 2019 for a baseball jersey worn by New York Yankees legend Babe Ruth.
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The decision to auction the shirt is not without controversy.
A delegation from Argentina made up of the Argentine FA, Maradona's family and a private memorabilia firm had urged Hodge to sell it to them instead of putting it up for auction.
"He is selling something that belongs to Maradona and the AFA without authorisation," said one member of the delegation.
"It should be in Argentina in order all Argentines can enjoy it — and not for a millionaire to display it in his closet."
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Maradona's family had previously claimed that Hodge was only in possession of the shirt that Maradona had used in the first half of the match and not the second.
His famous 'Hand of God' goal, which Maradona claimed was scored "a little with the head of Maradona, and a little with the hand of God", occurred in the 51st minute of the match, with his 'Goal of the Century' coming four minutes later.
Despite the claims by Maradona's family, Sotheby's insist they have verified beyond doubt that it is the authentic shirt worn by the Argentine legend.