Messi’s record-breaking boots auctioned for £125,000

Lionel Messi’s boots which scored him his one-club record-breaking goal have been bought for £125,000 at an auction. The Barcelona captain scored his 644th goal for the club in last year’s December 3-0 win over Real Valladolid. The goal broke past record by Pele, who had netted 643 times for Santos, and set Messi as the player to have scored the most goals for a single club. According to reports by ESPN, the pair of boots were donated to a charity for children’s health by the player, and sportswear company Adidas. They were thereafter exhibited in Cataluña’s Museum of Art (MNAC) in Barcelona for the auction which began on April 19 with a starting price of £40,000. While the auction house, Christies, estimated the boots to sell for a maximum of £70,000, bids swamped in for the online auction at the last hour and bumped up the price till it was finally sold for a whopping £125,000 on Friday. According to Christies.com all the proceeds from the sale are going to Barcelona’s Vall d’Hebrón Hospital where it will be used to “help children with cancer or other serious illnesses, as well as their families.” Before the auction, Messi in a press statement released by Christie’s said, “Reaching the historic milestone of 644 goals with the same club gives me a lot of joy, but what’s really more important is being able to give something back to the kids struggling with their health, we hope this will raise a lot of awareness for this great cause.” Applauding the generosity of the star player, Dr Albert Salazar, Managing Director of the beneficiary hospital said, “For the Vall d’Hebron University Hospital, the funds raised through this auction will help us to continue to improve the health of many children and their families through the arts. I am sure that the generosity of Lionel Messi and Adidas will allow us to initiate further projects related to Arts and Health which are proven to have such a meaningful impact”