Collectors have the chance to buy a piece of football history when the goal line from the 1966 World Cup final is auctioned by King Sturge this month.
The Wembley Stadium goal line has been the subject of discussions and debates for decades thanks to England hero Geoff Hurst’s controversial second goal.
As every football fan knows, Hurst's shot hit the underside of the crossbar and bounced on the line. The German players claimed the ball didn't actually cross the line but the Swiss ref, Gottfried Dienst, and the Russian linesman Tofik Bakhramov, said "Goal" so it stood.
The famous goal line was dug up when Wembley was re-turfed in 1969 and a TV producer called Bob Gardam took it home. He planted it in his back garden in Hertfordshire where it has remained ever since.
Now the new owner of the house has decided to donate part of the goal line to the National Football Museum in Preston where it will be displayed for the nation to enjoy.
The donation will be made at the annual Football Hall of Fame Awards, in association with The Football Foundation and FA Grass Roots, at the Millennium Mayfair Hotel on 18 September when the goal line will be reunited with the match ball, for the first time since 1966, in front of a celebrity audience.
The remaining section of the goal line is to be divided in to seven lots each one yard long (half a metre). These will be auctioned off by King Sturge at an online auction opening on 8 September and closing on 29 September 25% of the auction proceeds to benefit UNICEF UK in conjunction with Soccer Aid.
The IOG (Institute of Groundsmen) have verified that the Wembley turf was not replaced between 1966 and 1969 and the STRI (Sports Turf Research Institute) confirmed the authenticity of the goal line through scientific soil analysis.
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