Back in 2000, Lionel Messi left Newell’s Old Boys to join Barcelona, and the rest – as they say – is history. The deal was closed at that time by Horacio Gaggioli, Messi’s agent at the time, and to mark the occasion, the “contract” which was used to organise the deal was signed on a napkin by the Argentine, Gaggioli, Carles Rexach, who was Barcelona’s technical secretary, and Josep Maria Minguella.
The napkin is well known, and is seen as a significant item in Barcelona’s recent history. Gaggioli has kept it himself in pristine condition over the last 24 years, but now, according to La Vanguardia (via MD), he has taken the decision for the napkin to be auctioned off.
Bonhams, a prestigious specialised British company, will auction off the napkin between the 18th and 27th of March. The sale price is estimated to be between £300,000 (around €350,000) and £500,000 (€585,000).
Gaggioli had assured that the napkin would go to Barcelona, given the significance of it in Messi’s joining of the club, so club officials could well be furious that it is now being auctioned in the coming months.
