The blue ink napkin that helped Lionel Messi join FC Barcelona and begin one of the most historic careers in football history was sold at Bonhams auction on Friday.
The winning bid was 762,400 pounds, or $965,000. Bidding began on May 8th at 220,000 pounds ($274,824).
Considered a unique and historic piece of football history, the napkin represented Barcelona's determination to sign Messi, a 13-year-old prodigy from Argentina.
The napkin was signed by former Barcelona sporting director Carles Reczak, the club's transfer advisor Josep Minghella and Horacio Gagioli, the agent who arranged Messi's tryout with Barcelona in September 2000. .
The auction was conducted on behalf of Mr. Gaggioli, who kept the napkin safe before bidding.
The napkin was written in Spanish: “On December 14, 2000, in Barcelona, in the presence of Mr. Minghella and Mr. Horacio, Carles Rexac, Sporting Director of FC Barcelona, under his own responsibility, “Despite any objections, I agree to sign this agreement.” Lionel Messi, on the condition that he sticks to the agreed amount. ”
Messi, a star for Major League Soccer's Inter Miami, is a 2022 World Cup winner with Argentina and an eight-time Ballon d'Or winner as soccer's best player. He scored 674 goals in 782 games for Barcelona and helped the club win 35 titles between 2004 and 2021.
“This is one of the most thrilling items I've ever worked with. Yes, it's a paper napkin, but it's the famous napkin used by Lionel Messi early in his career,” Bonhams said.・Ian Ehring, head of luxury books and manuscripts in New York, said in a pre-release news release. “It changed Messi's life and the future of FC Barcelona, contributing to giving billions of fans around the world one of football's brightest moments.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Lionel Messi's napkin contract sells at auction for nearly $1 million