Pele’s shirt from the 1958 final was put up for auction at the 2026 World Cup

A shirt worn by the legend Pele during the first World Cup final, which Brazil won in 1958, will be displayed briefly in front of the public before being put up for auction in New York, Sotheby’s announced on Tuesday.

The one who would later be called “The King” was 17 years old at the time, and he scored two goals out of five for the “Seleção” team against Sweden, the host country of the competition (5-2), after a semi-final victory over France with the same score.

The shirt bearing the number 10 will be displayed briefly during the 2026 World Cup, which will be held especially in the United States, starting on July 1 at the new headquarters of Sotheby’s, the Brewer Building, in Manhattan. The sale is scheduled to close on July 16.

The value of this shirt is estimated at more than six million dollars, and it may become one of the most expensive pieces in the history of football, after the record sale of the shirt Maradona wore on June 22, 1986 in Mexico City during the legendary quarter-finals against England ($9.3 million). Argentina had won 2-1 thanks to two legendary goals by the player, one of which was awarded by the referee.

In a statement, Sotheby’s said that the shirt worn by Pele, whose birth name was Edson Arantes do Nascimento, during the 1958 final, was a gift from the player to his teammate and friend Dida.

The shirt was kept for decades within the latter’s family, before it ended up in a museum, then it was put up at public auction for the first time in 2004 for an undisclosed sum.