Diego Maradona is omnipresent even after his death. © ANSA / CIRO FUSCO

Maradona's Golden Ball: Lost for decades, now auctioned off

The award was lost for decades, but now the Golden Ball of Argentine football legend Diego Maradona is being auctioned in France.

07 Maj 2024

From: dpa

The trophy will go under the hammer on June 6th at the Aguttes auction house in Neuilly-sur-Seine near Paris, the company announced on Tuesday. Aguttes did not initially provide an estimated price. Two years ago, Maradona's World Cup jersey was auctioned for 8,4 million euros.

Maradona was awarded the Golden Ball as the best player at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. Maradona wrote football history there with the “Hand of God” and led the Albiceleste to their second World Cup title.

Stolen in Naples in 1989

The trophy was missing for 35 years. In 1989 it was stolen from Maradona's locker in a bank in Naples. In 2016, a collector in France bought it with a number of other trophies for a few hundred euros, without initially knowing what it was. It was only later that the authenticity of the Golden Ball was established using two reports. Now the collector could really cash in.