Diego Maradona’s Adidas Golden Ball trophy from the 1986 World Cup has resurfaced after being missing for decades and will be auctioned in Paris next month, according to the Aguttes house. The trophy, which was presented to Maradona, the tournament’s best player, at a ceremony at the Lido cabaret on the Champs-Élysées in 1986, was lost and led to various rumors about its whereabouts. Some speculated that it was lost during a poker game, sold to pay off debts or stored in a safe in a Naples bank that was later robbed by local gangsters while Maradona was playing in the Italian league in 1989. However, a reformed member of the mafia claims that the trophy was melted down into gold pieces.
The trophy was authenticated as Diego Maradona’s Golden Ball trophy at an auction in Paris in 2016 and is now up for sale at Aguttes. The auction house expects it to fetch a high price due to its uniqueness. Sports expert François Thierry from Aguttes praised Maradona’s performance in the tournament.
Potential bidders will need to make a deposit of 150,000 euros ($161,000) to participate in the auction on June 6th.