Miami Beach auction house Futbolasta to sell scores of important soccer relics in “The Nations and Idols”

While many of the great soccer players who have written the history of the game hail from the Americas, most of the sport’s history is preserved from a European perspective. Whether it’s club greatness or international competition, the Continent dominates the long-term view. A Miami Beach auction house, FUTBOLASTA Auctions, is seeking to change that and make available to fans important pieces of history related to the global game and its significance in North and South America.

Ariel Gonzalez, founder of FUTBOLASTA and The Futbol Gallery, has had his eye on some of the most significant soccer items in this hemisphere for more than a decade.

“I have been doing this since 2002 … I started a business in Miami, this auctioneer house,” Gonzalez said. “It’s very important, for example, in most soccer auctions around the world, there’s no items from the Americas … from USA, Mexico, Argentina, Brazil. These auctions brings an opportunity to people from our continent to get the chance of getting stuff from the Athletes that represents the different countries.”

World Cup Relics

While the auction, entitled “The Nations & Idols” will feature scores of items, Gonzalez puts a premium on the older items, especially those coming from the 1930 FIFA World Cup in Uruguay. This includes a captain’s medal awarded to Carlos Schneeberger of Chile by Jules Rimet and a match report from the United States’ first World Cup match, a 3-0 victory over Belgium.

Pelé New York Cosmos jersey.

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In more recent times, the auction features a Pelé jersey from the New York Cosmos of the 1970s North American Soccer League and a Lionel Messi jersey from Copa América.

“You will see a lot of stuff from 1930 to 2014, taking most of the legends,” Gonzalez said. “Especially all the legends from our continent.”

To hear more from Ariel Gonzalez of FUTBOLASTA Auctions, listen to Episode 53 of Magic City Soccer, which is available now!