How much did Diego Maradona’s ‘Hand of God’ shirt sell for?
It is one of the most famous football shirts ever to have been worn, and was bought for a price worthy of the mercurial Argentine.
Two unforgettable goals. One deemed the most blatant act of cheating by most, a miracle by few. The other generally accepted as one of the greatest goals of all time. What is not in doubt is the quality of the player who scored them both: a genius! And the shirt worn by the genius in question, a certain Diego Maradona, when he scored them was sold for 7.14 million pounds ($8.93 million) on Wednesday, marking a new auction record for an item of sports memorabilia.
Maradona wore Argentina’s No. 10 shirt in the 1986 World Cup quarter-final against England in Mexico. Six minutes into the second half he put his team ahead by punching the ball into the net for what became known as the “Hand of God” goal.
“To what he did was truly extraordinary.”
— talkSPORT (@talkSPORT) November 26, 2020
“It was the only time in my career I felt like I had to applaud.”
“It’s the best thing I’ve ever seen on a football pitch.”@GaryLineker on Diego Maradona’s 2nd goal vs England 👏 pic.twitter.com/b4gPyyxSGZ
Four minutes later Maradona dribbled from his own half to score a goal widely considered one of the greatest in World Cup history.
A historic piece of memorabilia
England midfielder Steve Hodge got Maradona's jersey after the game and announced last month he was putting it up for auction after 19 years on display at England's National Football Museum.
"This historic shirt is a tangible reminder of an important moment not only in the history of sports, but in the history of the 20th century," said Brahm Wachter, Sotheby's Head of Streetwear and Modern Collectables.
BREAKING: The shirt worn by Diego Maradona in the 'Hand of God' game against England at the 1986 World Cup has sold at auction for £7,142,500 👇 pic.twitter.com/hUONX1yZVn
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) May 4, 2022
Sotheby’s said the buyer was anonymous, while some people joked that it must have been a Scotsman, a historical rival of the English.
The sale broke the previous record for sports memorabilia set by the original autograph manuscript of the Olympic Manifesto from 1892, which went for $8.8 million in 2019. Maradona’s jersey auction was complicated, however, by claims that the wrong shirt was going under the hammer, with his daughter and ex-wife saying Hodge received the shirt Maradona wore in the first half of the match.
Sotheby's said they used photomatching technology to "conclusively" match the shirt to both goals by "examining unique details on various elements of the item, including the patch, stripes, and numbering".
Maradona, regarded as one of the world’s best ever footballers, died in November, 2020 aged 60.