Lionel Messi's first contract with Barcelona was signed on a napkin. Now it's up for auction


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LONDON — Lionel Messi's record-breaking career with Barcelona started with a contract written on a napkin. It's up for auction with a starting price of 300,000 pounds. British auction house Bonhams is selling the napkin in an online auction from March 18-27 on behalf of Horacio Gaggioli, an agent from Messi's home country of Argentina who was part of the deal. It outlines an agreement in principle to sign Messi and was intended to reassure his father, Jorge Messi, that the deal would go through. A more formal and detailed contract with the club followed soon after.

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