Maradona’s ‘Hand of God’ Ball Sells For £2.5 Million At US Auction

The football used by Argentine legend Diego Maradona to score his infamous “Hand of God” goal against England at the 1986 FIFA World Cup has sold for £2.5 million ($3.3 million) at auction in the United States.

Heritage Auctions sold the Adidas Azteca ball on Saturday, a strong price that nonetheless fell well short of the $10 million (£7.3 million) some experts had expected it to fetch.

The ball was used throughout Argentina’s dramatic 2-1 quarter-final win over England at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, a match widely regarded as one of the most iconic in World Cup history.

Maradona scored both of Argentina’s goals that day. The first sparked one of football’s most enduring controversies, after he appeared to punch the ball past England goalkeeper Peter Shilton. Tunisian referee Ali Bin Nasser failed to spot the handball and allowed the goal to stand.

The “Hand Of God” And The “Goal Of The Century”

Asked about the incident after the match, Maradona famously described the goal as being scored “a little with the head of Maradona and a little with the hand of God.”

Minutes later, Maradona produced a moment of brilliance that stood in sharp contrast to the controversial opener.

Collecting the ball inside his own half, he dribbled past five England players, rounded Shilton and fired into the net — a strike later immortalised as the “Goal of the Century.”

^{Diego Maradona’s iconic “Hand of God” match ball has sold for £2.5 million ($3.3m) at auction. The Adidas Azteca ball was used in Argentina’s 2–1 win over England at the 1986 World Cup, where Maradona scored both the infamous handball and the legendary “Goal of the Century.” Despite its historic significance, it fell well short of the £7.1m record paid for Maradona’s shirt from the same match in 2022.}

The match ball stayed with Bin Nasser for more than three decades after he collected it at the final whistle. He first sold it at auction in 2022 for $2.37 million (£1.74 million).

The ball went up for sale again the following year, but that attempt collapsed after bids failed to reach the reserve price.

Bin Nasser also signed a letter in 2023 confirming the ball was the only one used throughout the match, a claim later supported by independent authentication.

Auction House Calls Ball A “Unique” Piece Of History

Heritage Auctions specialist Mike Provenzale described the Adidas Azteca as a “unique” piece of football history ahead of Saturday’s sale.

The latest transaction adds another multimillion-pound chapter to the memorabilia trade built around the 1986 quarter-final, a match still regarded as one of the most talked-about in the sport’s history.

The sale follows a broader surge in demand for items connected to Maradona and the 1986 World Cup.

In 2022, the Argentina shirt Maradona wore during the same England quarter-final sold for £7.1 million, setting a record at the time for a match-worn sports shirt sold at auction, underlining how far prices for football memorabilia tied to that single match have climbed in recent years.