Diego Maradona’s ‘Hand of God’ Argentine jersey sells for £7.1m
The shirt Diego Maradona wore in the 1986 World Cup quarter-final match has sold for a record £7.1million.
In the 51st minute, the Argentine gave his side the lead against England with a blatant handball, a goal he would dub ‘The Hand of God’. Four minutes later, he scored the ‘Goal of the Century’ as he picked up the ball in his own half, slamed past multiple England players before converting into the net.
Steve Hodge turned out for England that day and he swapped shirts with Maradona after the game.
The shirt has grown in value over the years but, speaking in 2020, Hodge revealed he had no intention to let it go.
He told the BBC, per ESPN: “I have had it for 34 years and have never once tried to sell it. I like having it. It has incredible sentimental value. I’ve had people knocking on my door non-stop and the phone’s constantly ringing from every TV and radio station, and even foreign stations.
Hodge had a change of heart in April, though, and it was announced the shirt was going to auction. It went up for auction on April 20th and was estimated to sell for between £4m-£6m.
However, it has smashed that figure, with the winning bid coming in at a whopping £7,142,500. It has now officially become the most expensive football shirt of all time.
