World Cup jersey, shoes, gold medal: Eckel's legacy auctioned

Created: 2022-11-19, 4:44 p.m

The official winner's medal of the 1954 World Cup from Horst Eckel's estate.

© Helmut Fricke/dpa

The estate of soccer world champion Horst Eckel (1932-2021) was sold at a public auction in Mannheim for a total of around 250,000 euros.

The most sought-after exhibit was Eckel's jersey from the 1954 World Cup final in Bern, bought on Saturday by an anonymous telephone bidder for 78,000 euros.

The same bidder bought Eckel's World Championship gold medal for 76.

Mannheim - 000 euros and Eckel's final shoes for 20,000 euros.

"It's a German," said auctioneer Wolfgang Fuhr about the bidder.

The man indicated that the testimonies of one of the most important moments in German sports history would be made available to the public.

According to Fuhr, bidders from the World Cup host country Qatar and from China were also interested in the gold medal.

A total of around 240 numbers were offered, most of which found buyers.

Eckel was the last of the "heroes of Bern" to die almost a year ago.

His daughter Dagmar justified the auction by saying that she needed money to take care of her mother.

"Objects are objects, people are people," said Dagmar Eckel.

It is a "well thought out and considered" step.

The World Cup jersey has been hanging in the German Football Museum in Dortmund since 2015.

According to Dagmar Eckel, he has terminated the loan agreement.

There have recently been disagreements between the two sides about this step.

It is unclear where the new owner will leave the jersey.

The Palatinate Eckel had celebrated his greatest club successes with 1. FC Kaiserslautern.

His daughter had announced not to auction everything - for example not an FCK ring and the wedding ring and Eckel's wristwatch.

"Things he wore are more important to me than the 1954 gold medal," Dagmar Eckel said.

Among the exhibits were numerous everyday objects, such as a suitcase and a refrigerator.

Eckel's Federal Cross of Merit also went under the hammer - and changed hands for 3,800 euros.

dpa