Peter Shilton’s ‘Hand Of God’ Shirt To Be Sold Ahead Of 2026 World Cup

The jersey worn by Peter Shilton when he faced Diego Maradona in an infamous 1986 World Cup quarter-final will be sold as part of an auction leading up to the 2026 finals.

Shilton was the captain of an England team defeated by Argentina and two notorious goals scored by Maradona. The first was illegally handled past the goalkeeper but was mistakenly allowed to stand in the days before the implementation of Video Assistant Referees (VAR). The second, scored just four minutes later, is considered the greatest of all time, the so-called Goal of the Century.

The photograph of Maradona punching the ball past Shilton – an incident which has become known as the Hand of God – is still perhaps the most famous sporting image of all time. Despite an illustrious 20-year international career during which he became the most-capped player in his country’s history, Shilton has become a prisoner of the incident, forever remembered wearing the grey shirt and his inability to beat the smaller Maradona to the ball.

The infamy of the moment has inflated any memorabilia associated with the match far above anything else known in sport. In 2022, the dark blue jersey worn by Maradona was sold by Steve Hodge, the England midfielder who swapped shirts with him after the game. The final valuation was a world record for a match-worn jersey with the hammer going down at the English auction house Sotheby’s as bidding reached $8.9 million ($9.3 million including fees).

Now Graham Budd Auctions has included the shirt worn by Shilton, the other protagonist in the so-called “Hand of God” incident, as it’s star attraction among a roadshow of World Cup memorabilia which will be sold in the lead up to the 2026 tournament to held in Canada, Mexico and the United States. Supporters will be encouraged to bring their own collectibles to be valued by Graham Budd Auctions which can be added to the lots on sale.

The grey goalkeeper jersey worn by Shilton during the entirety of the 1986 World Cup quarter-final was sold by the former England captain to a private collector many years ago and is now being auctioned next year by an anonymous private collector. Graham Budd has placed a reserve price of between $268,000-$400,000 on the 40-year-old nylon shirt manufactured by Umbro. It is understood that Shilton, now aged 75, will not have anything to do with the auction.

England’s goalkeepers had always traditionally worn yellow, green and blue shirts depending on the kits worn by the opposition team. A new first choice all-grey kit was introduced for the start of the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. Unlike the shirts provided for the England outfield players to wear in the midday heat, it was fitted with no ventilation.

The 1986 kit featured the first England shirts to have a tournament inscription woven in blue thread under the Three Lions crest. Unlike the subsequently produced replica versions, the match-worn jerseys from the 1986 World Cup had no space between the lettering “Mexico’86” (sic).

This particular kit was only worn by Shilton during the five matches England played in Mexico during the 1986 World Cup. Extensive photo matching comparing the shirt’s stripes with the jerseys worn in the other four games conclusively prove that the item on auction is the one Shilton sported during the game against Argentina.

Also featured among the Graham Budd World Cup collection to be auctioned next year is the original World Cup winners medal presented to Pelé at the end of the 1958 World Cup, the shirt worn by Alan Ball during the 1966 World Cup final and England goalkeeper Gordon Banks’ winners medal from the same match. Like the Shilton shirt, all of these items have six-figure valuations.

The items will be displayed at various locations around the United Kingdom in the run up to the 2026 FIFA World Cup which marks the 60th anniversary of England’s only victory in the competition and the 40th anniversary of the “Hand of God” match.