Raffle scores with Maradona and Pele-signed boots

MaradonaImage source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Deigo Maradona starred in Argentina World Cup teams

At a glance

  • Football boots signed by Pele and Diego Maradona have helped raise thousands of pounds for a school raffle

  • Lochaber High School was donated the boots to help it raise funds for its music groups

  • Pele is a legend of Brazilian football

  • Maradona, who played for Argentina, died in 2020 at the age of 60

  • Published

Boots signed by two of the world's greatest footballers - Pele and Diego Maradona - have helped a school raffle raise more than £3,000.

Lochaber High School in Fort William was raising funds for its pipe and wind bands.

Brass instructor Mark Reynolds said interest in its £2-a-ticket raffle went through the roof after word of the signed boots spread last month.

Pele was a member of Brazilian national teams that won three World Cup championships, and he is Brazil's all-time leading scorer with 77 goals in 92 games.

Maradona, who died in 2020 at the age of 60, scored 34 goals in 91 appearances for Argentina and represented his country in four World Cups.

He was captain when Argentina won the 1986 World Cup, scoring the famous "Hand of God" goal against England in the quarter-finals.

The ball used in that goal, which saw Maradona score by punching the ball into the net, is expected to fetch up to £3m in an auction due to be held next week.

Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Pele is a legendary Brazilian footballer

Image source, Lochaber High School
Image caption,

The signed boots were donated to the school raffle

The funds raised from the auction of the boots will be used for buying sheet music and instruments.

The football boots, which come with certificates of authenticity, were donated by a member of the Commando Association.

Parts of Lochaber were used for training Allied commandos during World War Two, and the Commando Memorial at Spean Bridge remembers military personnel who lost their lives in the war and in conflicts since.

The raffle donation was made in recognition of Lochaber High School's work with veterans, including an annual concert and music students regularly playing at events at the Commando Memorial.