Belgian racing pigeon sells for record-breaking £1.07m

'In football terms you have Messi and Ronaldo – it's that level'

The racing pigeon was sold in an online auction (Screenshot/Pipa)

A racing pigeon, described as the "best long-distance pigeon of all time", has been sold in an online auction for a fee of more than £1m, more than three times the previous world record.

The Belgian bird, named Armando, was sold by auction house Pipa, on behalf of owner Joel Verschoot, for 1.25m euros (£1.07 million) after an online bidding war between two Chinese fanciers.

“This pigeon has a race record that has never been matched by any other pigeon,” said Nikolaas Gyselbrecht, Pipa’s founder and chief executive.

“In football terms you have Messi and Ronaldo – it’s that level.”

The sale makes Armando the most expensive bird ever to be sold at auction, according to Pipa.

“Nobody expected this. No one,” Jorge Ferrari, a Pipa employee, said.

Chinese enthusiasm for the long-distance racing of homing pigeons has driven prices up sharply and birds from Belgium, the sport’s traditional heartland, are particularly prized.

The furious bidding over the bird lasted throughout Sunday evening.

Armando attracted offers from countries around the world, including the United States and South Africa.

The pigeon was retired from racing at five years old but continues to hold value because of its breeding potential.

Its price was pushed up by about 700,000 euros (£600,000) by two Chinese fanciers in the final hour of the two-week auction.

The pigeon was eventually sold to an anonymous bidder in China.

"Belgium's best long-distance bird of all times is now the most expensive bird ever to be sold in auction," Pipa said.

“There was nobody in the pigeon world who thought that would happen,” said Mr Gyselbrecht.

“We were hoping for four or five hundred thousand, and maybe a little bit dreaming of six.”

But the record-breaking sale has raised some eyebrows in the racing pigeon world.

“A lot of people I know congratulate me and think it’s good,” said Mr Gyselbrecht.

“But there’s also a group of people that do not like that so much money is involved.

“It’s like in football, some people can’t believe the money being paid. There are some who don’t like it.”

The highest sum previously paid for a pigeon in an online auction was 376,000 euros (£322,000).

Armando’s sale also beat the record offline auction price of 500,000 euros (£428,000), paid for a pigeon named Mr Fantastic.

Additional reporting by agencies