A shirt worn by Brazilian football great Pelé during the 1958 World Cup final has sold for $4.9 million (£3.6 million) at a Sotheby’s auction in New York.
Sotheby’s said the shirt received 10 bids from more than five bidders during its The Beautiful Game sale. It described the result as the highest price achieved at auction for an item of Pelé memorabilia.
Pelé wore the shirt when Brazil beat Sweden in the final, scoring twice as a 17-year-old. The victory was the first of the three World Cups won by the forward, who remains the youngest player to score in a World Cup final.
The garment had previously been sold at auction in 2004 for $105,600, according to the auction house.
Among the most valuable football shirts sold
The sale places Pelé’s shirt among the most expensive football jerseys to have been sold at auction. Sotheby’s said it is second to the Argentina shirt worn by Diego Maradona during the 1986 World Cup quarter-final against England, which sold for £7.1 million in 2022.
Brendan Hawkes, Sotheby’s head of sports strategy and development, said the result reflected Pelé’s enduring standing in football and the historical significance of the 1958 final.
“This shirt is not only a lasting reminder of one of the most important moments in football history,” Hawkes said, adding that it was linked to the match that established Pelé as a global sporting figure.
Other lots in the sale
Other football items offered in the auction included Maradona’s captain’s armband from the 1986 World Cup, which sold for $512,000 (£380,000). The armband was worn during the tournament in Mexico, including in the match against England that featured the so-called “Hand of God” goal.
A Lionel Messi shirt from Barcelona’s 6-1 Champions League victory over Paris Saint-Germain in 2017 sold for $217,600 (£161,482). A David Beckham shirt from his 50th England appearance, during the 2002 World Cup, sold for $51,200 (£37,996).
Pelé, who died in 2022, is widely regarded as one of football’s defining figures. His performance in the 1958 final remains one of the most notable moments of his international career.
