Sold! Babe Ruth jersey sells for record $5.6 million

A New York Yankees jersey worn by the baseball legend was sold at auction for a record $5.6 million on Saturday

In this July 1929 file photo, New York Yankees' Babe Ruth, who was injured, stands in the dugout during a game at Cleveland. A Babe Ruth road jersey dating to 1928-30 has sold at auction for $5.6 millShow more

So, Babe Ruth is still setting records long past his death.

On Saturday, a New York Yankees jersey worn by the baseball legend was sold at auction for a record $5.6 million (Dh20.56m).

The shirt, worn by Ruth between 1928-1930, was said to have gone under the hammer for a grand total of $5,640,000 – making it the most expensive piece of sports memorabilia ever sold.

The buyer’s identity was not disclosed, although you would imagine they must be pretty big fans. Ruth, who died aged 53 in 1948, is widely regarded as the greatest baseball player in history. He played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball between 1914 and 1935, winning seven World Series.

Ruth does have history at auctions, though: the previous record for sports memorabilia was for another of his jerseys, which sold for $4.4m in 2012. Saturday’s shirt, one of a number of items auctioned at Yankee Stadium, was from Ruth’s private family collection.

"The legacy and significance of Babe Ruth to the game of baseball and American popular culture is unmatched by any other figure in the history of this country," president of Hunt Auctions David Hunt said in a statement.

"While the record-setting prices attained today are certainly astonishing I am not surprised at all given the incredible materials and the mythical status the Babe holds in the history of this country."