Napkin used by Barcelona to sign Messi sold for nearly $1 million

The napkin on which Barcelona promised to sign Lionel Messi when he was a 13-year-old has been sold for £762 400, auction house Bonhams said on Friday.

The napkin was signed in December, 2000 by Barca's former sporting director Carles Rexach and transfer advisor Josep Minguella along with Argentine agent Horacio Gaggioli over lunch at a tennis club.

The napkin on which Leo Messi’s first professional contract with Barca was signed was SOLD this morning for $𝟗𝟔𝟒,𝟒𝟓𝟎. pic.twitter.com/OfR7zE5XuZ

— Barça Worldwide (@BarcaWorldwide) May 17, 2024

Messi became one of Barcelona's greatest players, winning over 30 trophies and leaving the Catalan club as their all-time leading scorer with 672 goals.

He also won a record eight Ballon d'Or awards for the world's best player and led Argentina to the World Cup crown in 2022. Messi now plays for US club Inter Miami in Major League Soccer.

"Yes, it's a paper napkin, but it's the famous napkin that was at the inception of Lionel Messi's career," Ian Ehling, the head of fine books and manuscripts at Bonhams New York, said in a statement.

"It changed the life of Messi, the future of FC Barcelona, and was instrumental in giving some of the most glorious moments of football to billions of fans around the globe."