Pele, Gretzky items among auction features
SPORTS MEMORABILIA
LONDON: A oneofakind trophy created for Brazilian World Cup football great Pele and a jersey worn by Canadian ice hockey maestro Wayne Gretzky as a rookie in 1979 are among items celebrating 100 years of sporting history that are headed for auction.
Sotheby's said yesterday it had teamed up with sports specialist Goldin Auctions to offer some 100 lots of memorabilia from athletes including Babe Ruth, Rafael Nadal, Muhammad Ali, Tom
Brady and
LeBron James in an online auction from
November 24 to December 3.
The Century of Champions auction covers artefacts from baseball, tennis, basketball, boxing and more, including rare collectors, cards and clothing.
Gretzky's 197980 worn and signed, rookieseason Edmonton Oilers road jersey is one of the top items with a presale estimate of $US450,000 ($NZ651,000) to $US600,000.
The Jules Rimet trophy given to Pele after he helped Brazil win its third World Cup in 1970 is expected to fetch up to $US800,000. It was made for Pele by world football body Fifa and first sold by the player at a 2016 auction of his career memorabilia.
A Tom Brady 2000 playoff contender championshipsigned rookie card, described as in near mint condition, is priced at $US250,000 to $US 300,000, while a 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle baseball rookie card could fetch up to $US200,000, Sotheby's and Goldin said.
The worldrecord price for an item of sports memorabilia was set in 2019 when Pierre de Coubertin's 1892 Olympic Manifesto sold in New York for $US8.8 million, eight times over the expected price. — Reuters