The Golden Ball trophy, awarded to Diego Maradona for being named the best player at the 1986 World Cup, will be auctioned off in France on June 6. This is the first ever Golden Ball to be put up for sale and it’s expected to fetch millions of dollars.
Maradona received the Golden Ball after leading Argentina to victory in the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. He scored five goals during the tournament and captained his country while playing every minute of each game. His standout performance during the World Cup is most famously remembered for his two goals against England in the quarterfinals, one of which he used his hand to score, later referring to it as the “Hand of God.”
The Golden Ball award was introduced at the 1982 World Cup and is a highly esteemed honor given to the best player of the tournament. Past winners include Paolo Rossi of Italy, Romario and Ronaldo of Brazil, and Zinedine Zidane of France. Argentine legend Lionel Messi is the only player to have won it twice.
