With VAR, we would never have had the term “Hand of God”. – In many ways, millimeter goals and auditor attitude to football are destructive to some of the soul of the world’s most beautiful sport.
Diego Maradona’s famous “Hand of God” ball has been sold at auction.
Read: Arsenal shock with giant bid: Ready to sacrifice Viktor Gyökeres to hijack Arteta’s dream striker
The ball used when Diego Maradona scored the infamous “Hand of God” goal against England during the 1986 World Cup has been sold for £2.5 million at auction.
The Adidas Azteca ball was used throughout Argentina’s quarter-final win against England (2-1) in Mexico, including the moment Maradona hit the ball into the net with his hand past England goalkeeper Peter Shilton.
Maradona escaped punishment when the goal was approved, and later described the famous goal scoring “a little with Maradona’s head and a little with the hand of God.” The same match also produced one of the finest goals in World Cup history, as Maradona dribbled past five English players before rounding Shilton to make it 2-0 for Argentina.
Despite the ball’s historical significance, it was far from reaching the expected auction price.
Heritage Auctions had expected sales of around $10 million, but it ended up at $3.3 million (£2.5 million) in the US.
“This is a unique object,” said Heritage expert Mike Provenzale at the press conference before the auction.
“It’s probably the most important football item there is.
The ball had been kept by Tunisian referee Ali Bin Nasser, who refereed the quarter-final and took the ball home after the final whistle.
Bin Nasser has later presented documentation confirming that it is the ball that was used during the match, and further independent authentication also supports the origin.
The referee first sold the ball in 2022 for $2.37 million (£1.74 million). It returned to the auction market the following year, but then did not reach the seller’s price limit.
The latest sale still places it among the most valuable football memorabilia ever auctioned off, although it is still some way behind Maradona’s shirt from the same match.
After Saturday’s football party, there is no doubt: Jens Hjertø-Dahl has chosen the right Premier League club!
That shirt sold for £7.1 million in 2022.
