May 8 – Diego Maradona’s Golden Ball trophy from the 1986 World Cup, which went missing for decades, will be auctioned in Paris next month and is expected to raise millions.
Maradona, who died in 2020 at the age of 60, was awarded the trophy for his scintillating play at the tournament, where he captained Argentina to a 3-2 win over West Germany in the final in Mexico City.
It was also the tournament where he scored the infamous ‘Hand of God’ goal, also dubbed the ‘Goal of the Century’, in a 2-1 win over England in the quarterfinals.
Maradona received the award – given to the tournament’s best player – at a ceremony at the Lido cabaret on the Champs-Élysées in 1986. It subsequently disappeared but recently resurfaced and Aguttes auction house said it expects the trophy “to fetch millions due to its uniqueness”.
Aguttes said the trophy reappeared in 2016 among other lots that were acquired from a private collection at auction in Paris.
“It was thoroughly investigated and authenticated as Diego Maradona’s Adidas Golden Ball trophy,” Aguttes added.
Bidders will be asked to make a deposit of €150,000 to participate in the June 6 auction.
Contact the writer of this story at moc.l1732318245labto1732318245ofdlr1732318245owedi1732318245sni@w1732318245ahsra1732318245w.wer1732318245dna1732318245