Lionel Messi's World Cup shirts to be sold for over £8m in biggest-ever sports memorabilia auction

Portion of profit to go to charity as SIX game-worn kits for up for sale
Marc Mayo20 November 2023

Fans are being given the chance to bid for a bundle of shirts worn by Lionel Messi as he won the World Cup for Argentina - but they'll need deep pockets.

Sotheby's have announced an auction for six of the seven strips donned by the 36-year-old in Qatar last winter.

It is anticipated to become the biggest-ever auction of sporting memorabilia with the successful bidder likely to pay over £8million for the kits.

All six were worn in the first half of Messi's games at the World Cup, including as he scored from the spot in the final before Argentina dramatically beat France on penalties.

The kits will be displayed in a free exhibition at Sotheby's New York headquarters during the bidding bates, between November 30 and December 14.

A portion of the profits will go to the UNICAS Project led by Barcelona children's hospital Sant Joan de Jeu, in the fight against rare diseases affecting children.

The current record for a game-worn item of sporting memorabilia being sold at auction was set in September 2022 when Michael Jordan's jersey from the 1998 NBA Finals went under the hammer for £8.1m.

Diego Maradona's 'Hand of God' shirt from Argentina's 1986 World Cup quarter-final win over England fetched £7.45m last year.

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