The legendary signed napkin that sealed Lionel Messi‘s move to Barcelona as a teenage prodigy has been bought for £762,400, auction house Bonhams has confirmed.
The starting price for the ‘world’s most iconic napkin’ was £300,00 but such is its status that it sold for more than double.
On it is a pledge, signed in blue ink, from Barcelona’s then-director Carles Rexach in December to sign 13-year-old Messi from Newell’s Old Boys in Argentina.
It was also signed by transfer advisor Josep Minguella and Argentine agent Horacio Gaggioli during lunch at a tennis club.
From that napkin sprung an extraordinary career. Messi spent 17 seasons with Barca’s first team, becoming their top scorer with 672 goals and winning 30 trophies.
The napkin that secured Lionel Messi’s first move to Barcelona has been sold for £762,400
It was signed during lunch at a tennis club, confirming the club’s intention to sign the teenager
‘Yes, it’s a paper napkin, but it’s the famous napkin that was at the inception of Lionel Messi’s career,’ said Ian Ehling, head of fine books and manuscripts at Bonhams New York.
‘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.’
It is almost impossible to picture an elite football club doing transfer business on a napkin nowadays.
Messi’s journey to the Catalan club started when Barcelona had been tipped off about his potential when he was playing as a youngster within the ranks of local side Newell’s Old Boys.
His father, Jorge Messi, worked as a supervisor at a steel mill at the time while his mother, Celia, similarly worked in a factory, however Messi always seemed destined to follow a career in football.
After scouting Messi in his native Argentina, the youngster and his father were flown to Barcelona for a trial, but there was concern amongst some senior club members that he wasn’t tall enough to make it as a professional player.
Just as negotiations looked like stalling, Jorge met with Barcelona’s Sporting Director, Carles Rexach – a longstanding player and coach for the club and Josep Minguella, the transfer advisor to Barcelona.
The famous napkin that measures 16.5 x 16.5cm read: ‘In Barcelona, on 14 December 2000 and the presence of Messrs Minguella and Horacio, Carles Rexach, FC Barcelona’s sporting director, hereby agrees, under his responsibility and regardless of any dissenting opinions, to sign the player Lionel Messi, provided that we keep to the amounts agreed upon.’
Messi’s outstanding career at Barcelona saw him achieve collective and individual success
It is hard to imagine elite clubs conducting transfer business on napkins nowadays, but the humble circumstance only enhances the legend
It was then signed by all parties along with Gaggioli, the Argentine agent who brought Messi to Barcelona’s attention.
That evening, club president Joan Gaspart signed an official letter confirming the prodigy’s move.
The rest as they say is history as Messi set out on his path to success at the Nou Camp, embarking on a 17-year first-team career before leaving amidst the club’s financial woes in 2021.
Here we are eight Ballon d’Ors later, with Messi having won the 2022 World Cup with Argentina. He moved to PSG in 2021 and joined Inter Miami in 2023.
