Lionel Messi’s life changed when he saw the renowned napkin, and it sold for $965,000 on Friday, according to British auction house Bonhams.
The napkin is a vital part of the 36-year-old Argentine football player’s career because it contains a written agreement in principle to sign Messi, who was 13 at the time, to Barcelona.
The buyer’s premium, or an unknown portion of the transaction price, covers the online auction’s administrative costs.
As per Bonhams, the auction was conducted on behalf of Horacio Gaggioli, an agent involved in the transaction who is from Messi’s native Argentina.
The contract is scrawled in blue ink on the napkin, which was given to Messi’s father Jorge at a tennis club in Barcelona to give him confidence that the sale will close.
A formal, comprehensive deal with the club was soon to follow.
On December 14, 2000, the wording on the napkin was written and signed by Carles Rexach, Barcelona’s sporting director at the time, Gaggioli, and another agent, Josep Maria Minguella.
The initial cost came to $379,000.
Messi made his first-team debut in 2004 and spent nearly two decades with Barcelona before joining David Beckham’s Inter Miami team.
He was a key player in the team’s four Champions League championships and ten Spanish League crowns.
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