The ball is expensive to play football. But it is not just any ball, perhaps one of those that has most marked the history of football. The ball of Diego Maradona’s “hand of God” during the 1986 World Cup was auctioned for 2 million pounds, or 2.3 million euros this Wednesday in London. It was therefore used on June 22, 1986 during the memorable quarter-final between Argentina and England (2-1) at the FIFA World Cup in Mexico.
It was, at the time, the incredible double of Maradona, in the 51st and 55th minutes, which tipped the meeting in the history of football. The Argentine captain had scored his first goal, validated by the referee, with his left fist. He will later admit to having scored “a little with the head and a little with the hand of God”, hence the famous nickname attributed to his goal. During his second achievement, Maradona left his camp, dropped five opponents and finished in a tight angle, to score what was consecrated “goal of the century” by a Fifa poll in 2002. Argentina had d he also won the 1986 World Cup under the impetus of one who is considered one of the best players of all time.
The ball and the jersey?
“This ball is part of the history of international football. It is undoubtedly the right time to share it with the world, ”said the owner of the ball, who was none other than the referee of this famous match Ali Bennaceur, quoted by the auction house Graham Budd Auctions in October .
The auction house announced in October that it expected a sale of between £2.5m and £3m – well above its previous record sale of £420,000 for the Olympic flame from the Winter Games in Helsinki in 1952. In May, the jersey that Maradona wore during this same match had already been sold at auction for 9.3 million dollars, more than double the price expected by Sotheby’s.