Messi has broken countless records in football and now seeks a new milestone in the world of auctions, where a collection of six of his Qatar 2022 shirtsavailable for bidding at Sotheby’s New York, could break the mark of the most expensive sports collection ever put up for auction.
Sotheby’s New York headquarters, located in a luxurious building on York Avenue on the Upper East Side, is totally used to receiving works by the most sought-after artists, very rare and almost impossible to find pieces, and personal memorabilia from stars of all kinds. But for two weeks, the big attraction at Sotheby’s are six albiceleste shirtsframed and carefully placed on a wall in the ‘lobby’ and all of them with an unmistakable number 10.
These are six shirts that Leo Messi wore in Qatar 2022 on the way to his long-awaited – and finally achieved – world crown, a very special lot with an estimate above the $10 million dollars.
If that Sotheby’s estimate price were reached or exceeded, Messi could be the protagonist of the most valuable sports collection ever auctionedsince the current record is held a Michael Jordan jersey from the 1998 NBA Finals that reached $10.1 million in 2022 also at Sotheby’s New York.
Messi himself echoed this auction last week on his Instagram profile (with 493 million followers) emphasizing that “A part of the proceeds will be donated to the UNICAS Project, led by the Sant Joan de Déu Children’s Hospital (SJD) in Barcelona to cover the needs of children suffering from rare diseases.”
Organized by Sotheby’s with Messi’s shirts provided by the technological start-up AC Momento, The auction began this November 30 and will remain open until December 14two weeks in which fans and collectors of Rosario’s genius will also be able to see the shirts in a free exhibition at Sotheby’s headquarters in Manhattan.
An unforgettable World Cup
“I think Messi is the best who has ever played this sport. And, in particular, there was one thing that had escaped him: win a world cup“Brahm Wachter, vice president at Sotheby’s and head of modern collection pieces, said in an interview with EFE.
“When 1.5 billion people tuned in to watch the final, everyone was hoping deep inside that they would be able to see him win. And of course, What happened was one of the best matches in the history of football and they finally beat France to win the World Cup. “It was an exciting moment and that’s what we have here,” he added.
The six shirts include two that Messi wore in the group stage: one from the worrying defeat against Saudi Arabia (1-2) and another from the long-suffering victory against Mexico (2-0).
The other four are from Argentina’s vibrant journey in the qualifiers. Appears one of the round of 16 against Australia (2-1)another of quarterfinals against the Netherlands (2-2 and 4-3 on penalties)a third of the semi-final against Croatia (3-0) and, of course, the jewel in the crown: the shirt he wore in the first part of the final against France (3-3, 4-2 from eleven meters).
It is understood that the shirt with which he lifted the cup is not part of the lot, but the one available at Sotheby’s for the final has details of astonishing authenticity such as a small stain under the AFA shield as proof of the fascinating battle that the Argentines waged against Kylian Mbappé’s fearsome France.
“If you think about something like a World Cup, maybe you can get a t-shirt (at an auction). That alone would be something incredible.“Wachter noted.
“But six of those shirts here, it’s not something that, even in my position, I see often. Having them all together is truly unprecedented.“he added.
Passion for Messi and sports collecting
The United States has been experiencing a ‘fever’ for Messi since the landing this summer of the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner at Inter Miami in the MLS.
But Sotheby’s emphasized that the Messi phenomenon is something universal, so it expects bids from all over the planet.
“Messi has global appeal. Obviously with Messi arriving in Miami there is a lot of excitement around soccer in the US. That said, for this particular collection, we’re talking about a global audience, really everywhere,” Wachter said.
The record for the most valuable sports collection at auction is held by Jordan, but the record for the most expensive item of clothing in football belongs to the great reference who has accompanied Messi throughout his career: Diego Maradona.
$9.3 million dollars reached in 2022 ‘The Hand of God’ party t-shirt at Sotheby’s London
“I think this lot is in that range (that of Jordan and Maradona’s records) and we hope to break the record“Wachter said.
Finally, Wachter reflected on the growing market for sports pieces in the world of auctions and also on how collectors focused on art seem increasingly interested in bidding on objects related to sports.
“People have realized that they can enjoy these pieces the same way they enjoy art. I think so You hang Messi’s shirt from the World Cup final in your house, it may provoke more reactions than a Basquiat painting. It seems to me that people are appreciating these things in new ways,” he concluded.
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