Defending champions Argentina celebrated at full time after beating England 2-1 to progress to their second successive World Cup final. The victory came on the same day that a shirt worn by a teenage Pele in the 1958 World Cup final sold for £3.6m at auction in New York, becoming the second most valuable football jersey in history.
The famous No 10 shirt, auctioned by Sotheby's, was worn by Pele when he scored twice against Sweden as a 17-year-old, winning the first of his three World Cups. It is his most valuable item of memorabilia ever sold, having previously changed hands for £70,505 in 2004. The sale price of $5m was only beaten by the Argentina shirt Diego Maradona wore in the infamous 'Hand of God' game against England at the 1986 World Cup, which sold for £7.1m in 2022.
“Argentina beat England 2-1 to reach World Cup final as Pele's 1958 shirt sells for £3.6m”
"Today's result is a powerful testament to the enduring legacy of one of the greatest footballers of all time," said Brendan Hawkes, Sotheby's head of sports strategy and development in New York. "This shirt is not only a lasting reminder of one of the most important moments in football history, but it is principally connected to the very moment that catapulted Pele into a global sporting icon."
Other items in 'The Beautiful Game' auction included the captain's armband worn by Maradona during the 1986 World Cup, which sold for £380,000. A shirt Lionel Messi wore in Barcelona's dramatic 6–1 comeback against Paris St-Germain in the 2017 Champions League went for £161,482, while David Beckham's shirt from his 50th England cap at the 2002 World Cup fetched £37,996. Argentina will now await the outcome of the other semi-final to learn their opponent in the final.
