Pele’s World Cup medal to go under the hammer alongside classic memorabilia
A collection of World Cup memorabilia, including Pelé’s 1958 medal, is expected to fetch more than £2 million at an upcoming auction.
The prestigious medal awarded to the legendary footballer in his youth is expected to be worth up to £500,000 alone. Brazil won 5-2 in the final against hosts Sweden, played at Rasunda Stadium near Stockholm.
More than 450 lots will be up for grabs this month, including the iconic jersey worn by goalkeeper Peter Shilton at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico and the jersey worn by Gordon Banks during his famous save against Pelé in 1970.
The auction also includes items from England’s successful campaign at the 1966 World Cup, such as Banks’ own winners’ medal and Alan Ball’s jersey from the final.
The sale, organized by sports memorabilia specialist BUDDS, is expected to raise a total of more than £2 million after “strong interest” from collectors around the world.
David Convery, head of sports memorabilia at BUDDS, said: “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 for historical significance.
“Individual items such as Pele’s World Cup winner’s medal, Gordon Banks’ shirt from the Savior of the Century or Peter Shilton’s jersey from the Hand of God match normally make headlines on their own.
“It is extraordinarily rare to see them all in one sale.
“These are pieces of football history linked to moments that millions of people felt emotionally connected to, even if they weren’t born at the time, whether it was the euphoria of 1966 or the agony of the Hand of God goal.
“Opportunities to acquire objects of this scale and historical significance do not come along very often.”
An online auction of jerseys for the countries competing in the 2026 FIFA World Cup will take place from 1 to 21 June, before a live sale at BUDDS’ Wellingborough auction rooms on 25 June.
In addition, the jersey worn by Brazilian icon Pele in the 1958 World Cup is expected to sell for more than 6 million dollars at auction. The blue, short-sleeved number 10 jersey will be auctioned online between 29 June and 16 July.
“This is not just a shirt; it is the garment worn by one of the greatest footballers in history on the night his reign began,” Brahm Wachter, Sotheby’s head of modern collections, said in a statement. he said.
The Athletic reported that this piece, with an estimated value of more than $6 million, will be the most valuable piece of memorabilia belonging to the only winner of the World Cup trophy three times (1958, 1962 and 1970).
The record for the highest price paid for a football jersey was $9.28 million spent on a Diego Maradona jersey in 2022.
