Diego Maradona’s legendary “Hand of God” match ball from the 1986 FIFA World Cup quarterfinal between Argentina and England is set to go under the hammer in the United States this month.

Heritage Auctions is scheduled to auction the iconic football from August 21 to 23, with an opening bid of $2.5 million. The auction house reportedly expects the historic ball to fetch around $10 million or more.

The ball has been authenticated through photo matching, including detailed analysis of video footage and still images from the famous Argentina-England clash. Maradona scored both of Argentina’s goals with the same ball, including the controversial “Hand of God” goal and his celebrated solo effort later known as the “Goal of the Century.”

Maradona’s ‘Hand of God’ Ball to Be Auctioned | Iconic 1986 World Cup Ball Could Fetch $10 Million

Bayern Munich's remarkable 44-year streak of having at least one player in every FIFA World Cup final has officially ended after Harry Kane's England and Michael Olise's France were eliminated. Meanwhile, Inter Milan continues its historic run with at least one representative set to feature in a 12th consecutive World Cup final, thanks to Argentina's Lautaro Martínez.


Bayern Munich's 44-year FIFA World Cup final streak ends as inter milan keeps historic run alive

A remarkable chapter in FIFA World Cup history has come to an end as Bayern Munich will have no player in the World Cup final for the first time since 1982. The club's extraordinary 44-year streak, spanning 11 consecutive World Cups, ended after England and Bayern striker Harry Kane were eliminated from the tournament. Meanwhile, Inter Milan continues its impressive record, extending its run of having at least one player feature in the World Cup final for a 12th straight tournament. The historic milestone highlights the lasting influence of Europe's biggest clubs on football's greatest stage.

Bayern Munich's 44-year FIFA World Cup final streak ends | Inter Milan extends historic record

<p>We are just three days away from the football World Cup, a game which is all about a team effort but a hat-trick is more of a&nbsp;glorious individual achievement. When one player scores three goals in a single game than it is referred as "hat-trick" and when it comes to the world cup, the magnitude of hat-trick increases. There have been several occasions when a player has earned glory for scoring a hat-trick in the World Cup.</p>

<p>Ahead of the mega event, let us discuss the historic hat-tricks that have been scored in the history of FIFA World Cup</p>

<p>-The first hat-trick in World Cup was scored by Bert Patenaude of the United States while playing against Paraguay in 1930. However, the goal was a bit controversial. Until 10 November 2006, the first hat-trick that FIFA acknowledged had been scored by Argentine Guillermo Stabile but two days after, FIFA announced that Patenaude's claim to being the first hat-trick scorer was valid.</p>

<p>-Four players, &nbsp;Sandor Kocsis (both 1954) Just Fontaine (both 1958) Gerd Muller (both 1970) and Gabriel Batistuta (1994 and 1998) have scored the hat-trick twice.</p>

<p>-Oleg Salenko - a retired Russian-Ukrainian footballer - has scored five goals in a single match in 1994 World Cup playing against Cameroon.</p>

<p>-Geoff Hurst is the only player who has scored a hat-trick in a World Cup Final.</p>

<p>-Brazilian star player Pele is the youngest player to score a hat-trick. He scored the hat-trick in 1958 at 17 years and 244 days of age.</p>

<p>-There is one jinxed World Cup also where no hat-trick was scored. It was the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany.</p>

<p>-The record number of hat-tricks in a single World Cup tournament is eight, during the 1954 FIFA World Cup in Switzerland</p>

<p>-Inthe the previous tournament, On 16 June 2014, in Germany's opening match of the World Cup, Thomas Muller scored the first hat-trick of the tournament. He bagged the first World Cup hat-trick for Germany since Miroslav Klose in 2002.</p>

<p><em>Miroslav Klose, Germany vs. Saudi Arabia, 2002</em></p>

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<p><em>Gonzalo Higuaín, Argentina vs. South Korea, 2010</em></p>

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<p><em>Pele, Brazil vs. France, 1958</em></p>

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<p><em>Geoff Hurst, England vs. West Germany, 1966</em></p>

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Ahead of the mega event, let us discuss the historic hat-tricks that have been scored in the history of FIFA World Cup

We are just three days away from the football World Cup, a game which is all about a team effort but a hat-trick is more of a glorious individual achievement. When one player scores three goals in a single game than it is referred as "hat-trick" and when it comes to the world cup, the magnitude of hat-trick increases. There have been several occasions when a player has earned glory for scoring a hat-trick in the World Cup. Ahead of the mega event, let us discuss the historic hat-tricks that have been scored in the history of FIFA World Cup -The first hat-trick in World Cup was scored by Bert Patenaude of the United States while playing against Paraguay in 1930. However, the goal was a bit controversial. Until 10 November 2006, the first hat-trick that FIFA acknowledged had been scored by Argentine Guillermo Stabile but two days after, FIFA announced that Patenaude's claim to being the first hat-trick scorer was valid. -Four players, Sandor Kocsis (both 1954) Just Fontaine (both 1958) Gerd Muller (both 1970) and Gabriel Batistuta (1994 and 1998) have scored the hat-trick twice. -Oleg Salenko - a retired Russian-Ukrainian footballer - has scored five goals in a single match in 1994 World Cup playing against Cameroon. -Geoff Hurst is the only player who has scored a hat-trick in a World Cup Final. -Brazilian star player Pele is the youngest player to score a hat-trick. He scored the hat-trick in 1958 at 17 years and 244 days of age. -There is one jinxed World Cup also where no hat-trick was scored. It was the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany. -The record number of hat-tricks in a single World Cup tournament is eight, during the 1954 FIFA World Cup in Switzerland -Inthe the previous tournament, On 16 June 2014, in Germany's opening match of the World Cup, Thomas Muller scored the first hat-trick of the tournament. He bagged the first World Cup hat-trick for Germany since Miroslav Klose in 2002. Miroslav Klose, Germany vs. Saudi Arabia, 2002 × Gonzalo Higuaín, Argentina vs. South Korea, 2010 × Pele, Brazil vs. France, 1958 × Geoff Hurst, England vs. West Germany, 1966 ×

Heroic hat-tricks in the history of football World Cup