Soccer: Paper scraps used in World Cup draw on eBay

BERLIN - An interior decorator from Germany is trying to cash in on the contents of a rubbish bag after finding 32 scraps of paper bearing the names of the World Cup finalists.

Matthias Blume, who helped to clean up after the World Cup draw was made in Leipzig on December 10, said his attempts to sell the scraps of paper to souvenir hunters were being challenged by Fifa.

"I was helping dismantle the stage for the show and ... I always have my eye on the trash to see if there's anything useful or anything that can be recycled, Blume said.

The 31-year-old, who lives in the eastern German city of Magdeburg, took all 32 slips home as a souvenir and was going to throw them away after showing them around.

After prompting from friends, who reminded him of a lucrative auction for a used car that once belonged to Pope Benedict, he contacted internet auctioneer eBay and it gave him the green light to offer his scraps of paper.

"I started thinking, 'These things can't just be thrown away'," Blume said. "There are so many World Cup fans around the world. These pieces of paper are part of history."

But Blume said Fifa officials were challenging his attempts to capitalise on the simple slips of paper that had the English words "Germany" or "Brazil" or "Japan" written on them due to trademark issues.

Blume, who has hired a lawyer, said he had no plans to withdraw the slips of paper from the auction.

He had expected up to €100 ($177) per piece of paper and said he was amazed that bids for "Germany" had already hit €1000.

- REUTERS