Six jerseys worn by Argentina's World Cup winning football ace Lionel Messi were sold on Thursday for $7.8 million by the auction house Sotheby's. 

According to Sotheby's, the final price for the jerseys, which were each worn during the first half of one of Argentina's games in the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, is the highest price for a piece of sports memorabilia this year. Argentina won their third World Cup by defeating France in a penalty shootout following a 3-3 tie in the final. The triumph, in which Messi scored two of Argentina's three goals, marked a pinnacle moment for one of the sport's all-time greats.

"These historic shirts are not only a tangible reminder of one of the most important moments in the history of sports, but are principally connected to the pinnacle moment in the career of the most decorated football player in history,"Sotheby's head of modern collectibles, Brahm Wachter, said in a statement.

During the two week online auction, which ended Thursday, the shirts were on display in Sotheby's New York offices.
The winning bidder's identity was not revealed.

Sotheby's stated a percentage of the auction revenues will go to the UNICAS Project, which is led by Sant Joan de Déu Barcelona Children's Hospital and supported by the Leo Messi Foundation to treat children with rare conditions.

Messi, 36, played for Barcelona for 17 years before joining Inter Miami in the MLS. He has won the Ballon d'Or, which is awarded yearly to the best player in the world, an unprecedented eight times.

Sotheby's had anticipated that the Messi jerseys would establish a record for game-worn sports memorabilia at auction, but that did not happen. Michael Jordan's 1998 NBA Finals jersey, which sold for $10.1 million at Sotheby's in New York last year, still holds the record for a game-worn item of sports memorabilia.

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