French newspaper auctions rare photos of Pele, Garrincha, Maradona and football history

The French newspaper L’Équipe held this Tuesday (8) an auction of historic football photos, including rare images of the Brazilian team. Among the records is the team’s arrival in France for the 1938 World Cup.

On that occasion, Brazil finished the competition in third place and had Leonidas as the tournament’s top scorer. The selection trained in Saint-Ouen.

The oldest photo in the collection dates from 1920 and depicts the first game between France and England in women’s football, at the former Pernishing stadium in Paris, in front of 10,000 spectators.

The values ​​of the lots vary from 500 euros (R$ 2,585) to 1,500 euros (R$ 7,755).

“These files represent almost 12 million images. This photo gallery is one of the most important in the world, and this auction should also allow the entry of photographic heritage into the field of art”, analyzes the editor-in-chief of the photography department at L. ‘Team, Francois Gilles.

According to him, one of the goals is also to honor photographers who have traveled the world for decades covering football, like André Lecoq, who has 40 photos in the national team and has covered nine editions of the World Cup. All photographs are accompanied by captions that describe the moment they were taken.

“We have a color photo of Garrincha from 1962 and its rarity comes precisely from the fact that it is in color. Garrincha facing two Mexican players at the 1962 World Cup in Chile. He has fun tormenting his opponents. We have the 1970 team, before the final against Italy. All the stars staring in the same direction, except Pelé, the best player in the world. Also, we have portraits of Zico, Socrates, Ronaldo, Ronaldinho”, he says.

Gilles also reveals that one of the biggest rarities involves Maradona and the ‘Hand of God’. A work that shows the action in the game against England in three acts. He adds that the newspaper’s best-selling cover, from when France were world champions in 1998, is another ‘legendary’ piece.

Part of the money received from the sale will be donated to the Fondaction, the company’s solidarity fund that helps associations. It is also a way to economically diversify the newspaper, which has recently digitized around 5 million photos.

The auction takes place in Paris, but it is possible to purchase the pieces online. The buyer gains the right to resell the photo, whose printing is certified and unique, without being able to use it commercially. And the newspaper retains the editorial rights.