Nearly 90 items from the late Argentine football legend Diego Maradona's collection were showcased in an international virtual auction, which ultimately received little interest. The offering included 87 items, with minimum starting bids ranging from $50 to $900,000, as ordered by Argentine authorities in agreement with the heirs of the 1986 World Cup winner.
The auction did not see the expected turnout, with some items selling for a total value of around $26,000, despite the entire collection being estimated at approximately $1.4 million, according to reports from Agence France-Presse and shared with "Al Arabiya." Among the listings was a house in the Villa Devoto neighborhood of Buenos Aires, which Maradona gifted to his parents in the 1980s when he was playing for Boca Juniors, with a minimum bid set at $900,000.
Debt Settlement
No bids were placed on two BMW cars from 2017 and 2016, with minimum bids of $225,000 and $165,000, respectively, by any of the roughly 1,500 registered bidders during the three-hour auction held on Sunday. A Hyundai van was offered with a minimum price of $38,000, along with a two-bedroom apartment in the Mar del Plata resort, located 400 kilometers south of Buenos Aires, starting at $65,000.
Additional items included the treadmill used by Maradona while living in Dubai (minimum $3,500), a photo of the football star with the late Cuban leader Fidel Castro priced at $400, which sold to a buyer in Dubai for $1,600, and a Cuban cigar with a starting bid of $300, acquired by an Argentine for $550. The auction organizer excluded a handwritten letter signed by Castro, despite previous expectations.
Also featured were ties, hats, shoes, sports equipment, six televisions, furniture, and sports gear, as well as paintings and photographs, completing the items for auction ordered by Judge Luciana Tedesco. The proceeds will go towards settling debts and expenses of the estate, rather than the heirs of Maradona. Courts will decide how to handle any unsold items.
