How do sports memorabilia buyers know they are getting the real deal?

Prices in the booming sports memorabilia market show no sign of slowing. But how do collectors spending thousands - or even millions - of pounds know they are buying the genuine article?

When the hammer went down on Michael Jordan's No. 23 jersey from the opening game of the 1998 NBA Finals, the $10.1m (£8.8m) price made headlines across the globe.

Twenty bidders, spurred on by the desire to own what the auctioneers described as "a rarefied piece of history", had helped set a world record for an item of match-worn memorabilia.

Soaring like the Chicago Bulls legend himself, the figure towered above the previous high of £7.1m set just months earlier for Diego Maradona's so-called "Hand of God" football shirt.

While very few people could ever contemplate battling for those particular items, the wider market continues to thrive with thousands of pieces of kit and equipment traded annually by auction houses, specialist websites and private collectors.

Months, years and decades later, though, how easy is it to confirm a shirt or pair of boots belonged to a particular player and what happens when ownership of an item is disputed?

Earlier this month a shirt said to have been worn by footballer Jim Baxter when Scotland defeated world champions England at Wembley in 1967 was withdrawn from sale by Glasgow auction house McTear's after two other parties claimed jerseys they own are in fact the real deal.

And Maradona's family attempted to halt the sale of the Hand of God shirt last year alleging it was not the one the star had been wearing in the second-half of Argentina's 1986 World Cup quarter-final, also against England, when he scored two of the most famous goals of all time.

Sotheby's said "remarkable provenance" - a record of where the item had come from - proved that claim was without merit.

Swapped with England midfielder Steve Hodge, the exchange had been described in detail by both players in subsequent books, with the jersey displayed at the National Football Museum for nearly 20 years.

Photo-matching specialists were also able to provide "conclusive" results by examining unique details such as patches, stripes and numbering.

Sotheby's chief science officer reviewed those results to give a further level of confirmation, a spokeswoman explained.

Trying to build a picture of an item's history is often a "minefield", says David Convery, head of sporting memorabilia at Northamptonshire-based Graham Budd Auctions.

"As specialists, there are a lot of methods we use for shirts - little details the public might not be aware of - as we go through the verification process.

"Proving it is the hardest thing to do. In most cases though we start with the vendor. Is it an ex-player or family member"The tiara from the side showing the turquoise plumage and large diamond at the centre. " class="sc-d1200759-0 dvfjxj"/>