Brazil and Paris-Saint Germain star Neymar is now the proud owner of the 2021 African Cup of Nations final football after paying €160,000 at an auction organised by Idrissa Gueye.
Gueye, a Senegalese international himself, organised the event as part of his quest to help children on the continent of Africa.
The auction was attended by several of Gueye’s Paris teammates, with a number of signed shirts from likes of Marco Verratti, Keylor Navas and Karim Benzema all being made available to buy with the proceeds going towards HIV and cancer treatments in the region.
None of those attractions, however, brought in nearly as much as the AFCON final ball.
Many Europeans will remember that game for when Mohamed Salah had dozens of laser pens controversially shone in his eyes prior to missing a crucial penalty.
But for those directly connected, that final means so much more.
It was Senegal’s first ever continental footballing triumph and the ball in question was signed by every member of the AFCON squad.
Neymar’s bid of €160,000 was enough to clinch the iconic piece of memorabilia for himself and with the money set to go to a brilliant cause, we applaud the superstar for his generosity.
Neymar’s other charitable endeavours
Whilst the Brazilian divides opinion on the pitch and often comes under heavy fire for his tendency to go down easily.
It would be fair to say that he doesn’t get the credit he deserves off it.
Neymar frequently involves himself with charitable causes. In 2020, with the coronavirus wreaking havoc across his home nation of Brazil, he anonymously contributed $950,000 dollars to supporting charities in an attempt to ease the burden on his fellow compatriots.
Beyond that, he also runs his own charity in Sao Paolo – the Instituto Projeto Neymar Jr, which seeks to help disadvantaged children from poor backgrounds.
Wow, what a man.
