Lionel Messi’s World Cup-winning kit is about to break the record for the most money ever paid for a sports item.

It is thought that a set of six of the icon’s Qatar 2022 shirts will fetch more than the £8.1 million paid for a Michael Jordan jersey and the £7.1 million paid for Diego Maradona’s “Hand of God” shirt. One of Messi’s shirts that is being auctioned off is the one he wore in the first half of Argentina’s epic final win over France.

The 36-year-old scored twice in a 3-3 tie and again in the 4-2 shootout win, which helped him win his eighth Ballon d’Or.

The sale is being run by Sotheby’s in New York, and some of the money raised will go to charity.

Six of the legendary Barcelona player’s shirts from Qatar will be sold. He has since left PSG for Inter Miami. His best play is the one he scored from the penalty spot in the 23rd minute of the first half of the final, which was the only goal.

Three of the tops are from his semi-final match against Croatia, his last-eight match against Holland, and his round-of-16 match against Australia. There are also two tops from the three group games.

If the price is met, Messi’s six shirts will beat the record set by Michael Jordan’s jersey from September 2022, 25 years ago. Jordan is now 60 years old. 

That shirt is from Game 1 of the 1998 NBA Finals, which was the star player for the Chicago Bulls’ famous “Last Dance” season.

For football fans, though, the short-sleeved shirt that the late Maradona wore when he jumped to handle the ball against England in the 1986 World Cup quarterfinal might be a better match.

“Hand of God” was what the Argentine named it. But Peter Shilton, the England goalie, called it “cheating” and never forgave him.

But Steve Hodge, who played for Shilton’s Three Lions, traded shirts with Maradona after the game. Hodge got £7.1m at Sotheby’s in London last year for his part of the deal.

The New York branch of that auction house said that the Messi tops are being sold by AC Momento, a US-based tech start-up.

Sotheby’s also said, “Some of the auction proceeds will be given to the UNICAS Project, which is run by the Sant Joan de Déu (SJD) Barcelona Children’s Hospital with help from the Leo Messi Foundation and helps kids with rare diseases.” 

“This builds on the work the Leo Messi Foundation did with the SJD Barcelona Children’s Hospital Pediatric Cancer Center, which every year helps 400 kids with cancer.”

“The set of shirts will be on view at Sotheby’s New York in a free, public exhibition open from 30 November to 14 December (the same period during which bids are invited).”