Historic World Cup items to go under hammer in £2m sale
Historic football treasures, including Pele's medal, head to Wellingborough auction
A collection of World Cup memorabilia, including Pelé’s 1958 winner’s medal, is expected to fetch more than £2m at auction in Wellingborough.
The medal, awarded when Pelé was just 17, could sell for up to £500,000 on its own, according to organisers.
It is part of a sale of more than 450 lots spanning decades of football history. Items include the jersey worn by England goalkeeper Peter Shilton during the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, and the shirt worn by Gordon Banks when he made his famous save from Pelé in 1970.
Memorabilia from England’s 1966 World Cup triumph will also go under the hammer, including Banks’ winner’s medal and Alan Ball’s shirt from the final.
The auction is being organised by sports memorabilia specialists BUDDS, who say there has already been strong international interest from collectors.
David Convery, head of sporting memorabilia at BUDDS, said the scale and significance of the sale made it stand out.
“This is the largest collection of World Cup memorabilia ever offered at auction, and it is difficult to imagine many sales that could rival it in terms of historical significance,” he said.
“Individual items such as Pelé’s World Cup winner’s medal, Gordon Banks’ shirt from the ‘Save of the Century’, or Peter Shilton’s jersey from the ‘Hand of God’ match would normally be headline attractions on their own.
“To see them all appearing in a single sale is extraordinarily rare.”
He said the emotional connection to football’s biggest moments continued to drive interest in such items.
“These are pieces of football history connected to moments that millions of people feel emotionally attached to, even if they weren’t born at the time,” he said.
“Whether that’s the euphoria of 1966 or the agony of the ‘Hand of God’ goal, these objects carry powerful memories.”
Convery added that opportunities to acquire items of this calibre were uncommon.
“Opportunities to acquire objects of this calibre and historical importance don’t come along very often,” he said.
An online auction runs until 21 June, followed by a live sale at BUDDS’s Wellingborough auction rooms on 25 June.