The football Diego Maradona used to score his infamous "Hand of God" goal against England at the 1986 World Cup has sold for $3.35 million, the latest chapter in the memorabilia's turbulent auction history.
The ball changed hands for nearly 32 million Swedish kronor, well below the auction house's hopes of matching the $9.3 million fetched by Maradona's jersey from the same match in 2022. Tunisian referee Ali Bin Nasser, who missed the handball and awarded the goal, kept the ball after the quarter-final and first sold it in 2022. The buyer held it for only four years before reselling at a modest premium.
Maradona's strike, six minutes into the second half in Mexico City, was followed four minutes later by his dribble past multiple English defenders for the "Goal of the Century." Argentina won 2-1 and went on to lift the trophy. In the same auction, Mohamed Ali's robe from his 1975 bout against Joe Frazier sold for $549,000.