The number 10 shirt worn by Diego Maradona in the 1984 Copa del Rey final, marked by one of the biggest confusions in the history of Spanish football, became the Argentine star’s most expensive club item ever auctioned. The piece — which has an obvious tear just below the collar — was sold for almost 124 thousand euros (the equivalent of R$790 thousand).
The auction was promoted by Matchday Football Auctions, which put up for sale several objects related to Maradona’s career, including official shirts and even the earrings he wore in his last match for Boca Juniors. But it was the shirt worn in the final between Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao that focused attention and motivated the most intense dispute among collectors.
The decision, played at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, began under tension. The rivalry had intensified after previous clashes, including the serious injury suffered by Maradona the previous season in a split with Andoni Goikoetxea, Athletic’s defender. The Basque team won 1-0, with a goal from Endika, but the result took a backseat to the widespread fight that took place on the pitch after the final whistle.
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The episode gained international repercussion and had a direct impact on the star’s career. Maradona ended up suspended for three months, a punishment that contributed to his departure from Barcelona to Napoli, where he would experience the peak of his career.
According to the Portuguese newspaper A Bola, the shirt used in that historic episode now tops sales of Maradona pieces in club games.
