As ESPN’s documentary, “The Last Dance” continues to showcase NBA legend Michael Jordan and the historic run of the ‘90s Chicago Bulls, another piece of Jordan memorabilia has sold for a record-breaking amount of money.
An autographed pair of Nike Air Jordan 1s in the Bulls' white, black and red from 1985, which Jordan wore most often on the court, sold for $560,000 in an online auction on Sotheby’s on Sunday. It marked the new world auction record for any pair of sneakers, passing the previous record set for the Nike 1972 Nike Waffle Racing Flat ‘Moon Shoe’ which sold for $437,500 in July 2019.
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A pair of 1985 Nike Air Jordan 1s, made for and worn by Michael Jordan, in an undated photo ahead of the online auction by Sotheby's New York. (Sotheby's via Reuters)
According to a press release provided by Sotheby’s, a bidding war drove up the value by $300,000 in the final 20 minutes of the auction, and the sneakers went for 3.5 times more than their $150,000 high estimate. Bidders ranged from 19 to 50 years old, across four continents.
With the final episode of the documentary set to air on Sunday night, it was perfect timing for the sale.
The shoes sold for $560,000.
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“We are extremely excited about today’s record-breaking result,” Sotheby’s Director of eCommerce Development Brahm Wachter said in a statement.
“Building off the momentum from our debut sneaker sale last year, which previously set the record for a pair of sneakers with the Nike Moon Shoe, we wanted to set the bar even higher for our second sneaker sale. We saw tremendous bidding up until the moment the sale closed, with the value more than doubling in the final hour alone. That coupled with strong international bidding from six countries on four continents shows not only the incredible appeal of Michael Jordan as one of the most recognizable and legendary athletes of all time, but also that sneaker collecting is truly a global and growing market.”
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In 1984, Nike gave Jordan a signature line of shoes and clothes, which proved to be an unusual move to lure Jordan to sign with Nike. Jordan wore the present pair of Air Jordan 1s during the early part of his career and it raised the sneaker’s popularity.
The shoe became so popular and successful that Nike continued to make new signature Air Jordans each season.
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