PARIS– Diego Maradona’s heirs will take legal action to try to stop the auction of a trophy he received after the 1986 World Cup won by Argentina, his lawyer told The Associated Press on Tuesday.
The Ballon d’Or trophy that rewards the tournament’s best player had been missing for decades, after disappearing under unclear circumstances and only recently resurfacing. The work is expected to be auctioned in Paris next month, auction house Aguttes said last week.
Maradona, who died in 2020 aged 60, captained Argentina to a 3-2 victory over West Germany in the 1986 final in Mexico City. Before that were the “Hand of God” goal and the “Goal of the Century” in the 2-1 victory over England in the quarter-finals.
Maradona’s heirs claim the trophy was stolen and claim the current owner may not have the right to sell it.
Gilles Moreu, a lawyer who works at Paradox Lawyers, said he will make an urgent request to the president of the judicial court in Nanterre, near Paris, for the Ballon d’Or to be removed from the auction. He told the AP that he will also request the judicial forfeiture of the trophy and press charges for theft and concealed theft.
Aguttes said the trophy reappeared in 2016 among other lots acquired from a private collection at auction in Paris.
Maradona received the award in 1986, in a ceremony at the Lido cabaret, on the Champs-Élysées. He later disappeared, giving rise to rumors.
Some say it was lost during a poker game or sold to pay off debts, Aguttes said. Others say Maradona kept it in a safe in a Naples bank that was robbed by local gangsters in 1989, when he was playing in the Italian league. Maradona’s heirs believe he was robbed from the bank.
Moreu, who represents two of Maradona’s daughters, claims that the heirs only recently discovered that the trophy had been stolen. According to the lawyer, Maradona’s family wants the sale to be banned because they believe the Ballon d’Or belongs to them.
Moreu said he was approached by an Argentine colleague after his two daughters discussed the matter with the other heirs, who approved the legal action.
The auction house’s argument is that the person who bought the trophy years ago didn’t know it had been stolen.
“If the owner of an object can claim ownership under French law, it is on the obvious condition that his good faith cannot be called into question,” Paradox Lawyers said in a statement to the AP. “This cannot be the case for the owner of a trophy that was famously stolen from Diego Maradona and whose heirs can legally claim ownership.”
Moreu said: “It doesn’t appear that the seller contacted Diego, which wasn’t that complicated.”
The auction house said it expects the trophy to “reach millions due to its uniqueness.”
Bidders will be asked to make a deposit of 150,000 euros ($161,000) to participate in the June 6 auction.
The Hand of God’s goal came when Maradona shot into the England net. Four minutes later, he weaved through England’s midfield and defense and past goalkeeper Peter Shilton in what FIFA later declared the greatest goal in World Cup history.
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Petrequin reported from Montpellier, France.
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AP Football:
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