Maradona's 'Hand of God' football to fetch between £2.5-£3million at auction

The football could fetch up to £3million at auction

A football which sporting legend Diego Maradona used to score his controversial "Hand of God" goal is set to fetch up to £3 million when it goes on auction next month.

The Argentina star, who passed away in 2020, famously punched the ball which featured in his country's quarter-final match against England at the 1986 World Cup.

The goal drew lots of criticism at the time after Maradona used his fist to hit the ball past England goalkeeper Peter Shilton into the net.

Despite it being challenged by the England players, both referee Ali Bin Nasser, who is the current owner of the football, and his assistant confirmed the goal, leaving Maradona to celebrate.

The footballer, who was Argentina's captain at the time, claimed the goal was scored "a little with the head of Maradona and a little with the hand of God".

Maradona's controversial goal drew lots of ciritcism

"I couldn't see the incident clearly," Mr Bin Nasser said about the goal.

"The two players, Shilton and Maradona, were facing me from behind.

"As per Fifa's instructions issued before the tournament I looked to my linesman for confirmation of the validity of the goal - he made his way back to the halfway line indicating he was satisfied that the goal should stand.

"At the end of the match the England head coach Bobby Robson said to me: 'You did a good job but the linesman was irresponsible'."

Maradona's shirt worn during Argentina's quarter-final game against England sold for £7.4 million earlier this year

Maradona scored another goal during the game which was described as the 'Goal of the Century', subjecting England to a 2-1 defeat. Argentina went on to win the World Cup that year.

In a 2005 interview, Maradona admitted he'd scored the goal with his hand, but shared he had no regrets over what had happened.

The famous football will now be sold by Graham Budd Auctions on 16 November. Mr Bin Nasser said he felt it was the right time to share the item with the world and expressed his hope that the eventual buyer will put it on public display.

"With the history surrounding the ball, we are expecting this lot to be hugely popular when it comes up for auction," said auctioneer Graham Budd.

The football from the 1986 match isn't the only piece of Maradona memorabilia that has been auctioned for big money. The famous footballer's shirt worn during the quarter-final sold in May for a massive £7.4 million, which was a new world record for a sporting item.

Bin Nasser's shirt from the England-Argentina match, in addition to a signed shirt he later received from Maradona, will also be available at next month's auction.