She is Argentine, emigrated to the United States, lived on the street and now makes a lot of money as a number 1 collector of Lionel Messi figurines

Damián Olivera Bergallo, argentino de 37 años, vive desde hace casi una década en Estados Unidos. Una vez allá, llegó a dormir en su auto, pero con el tiempo logró convertir un pasatiempo de los recreos del colegio en una fuente de ingresos. Es más: no sólo participa en el boom de las figuritas de fútbol (a las que en España llaman “cromos”), sino que también es el coleccionista número uno de las de Lionel Messi, según el ranking oficial de la certificadora Professional Sports Authenticator (PSA).

How did this native of Ramos Mejía stand out in a field that has famous fans, such as actor Mark Wahlberg, DJ Steve Aoki and billionaire businessmen Gary Vaynerchuk and Rick Harrison?Olivera Bergallo counts for La Nacion that in 2014 she went to a donation center with $ 200 to buy some used clothes and when she arrived she saw boxes of stacked figurines that made her change her idea: “I had seen that the soccer had a future.People focused on typical sports, such as American football, basketball and baseball, but I saw that the fans of soccer were growing.I knew that in the other sports the figurines generated a lot of business, but that to those of Soccer nobody was paying them attention.And as I thought that after a few years the soccer was going to be a rage here, I began to try to get figurines of the biggest: Messi, Maradona, Cristiano Ronaldo.I focused mainly on Messi ".

Although the flea is his priority, he treasures collections from other players in his taste, such as Javier Mascherano, David Beckham and Wayne Rooney."Nothing were worth.I could buy an entire box of figurines for $ 10, something that is now impossible.And so, little by little, I started, ”adds who every time I could separate some money invested it in more soccer figurines with the strong pálpito that at some point, as now, they were going to have a much higher value.

What figures do the business handle in the United States?An example: in 2021 a figurine of a very young Diego Maradona was sold for 550.960 dollars, and in 2020, one from Pelé for 295.200.Amazing figures, such as those that also pay for nascent stars, such as the Norwegian sensation Erling Haaland, by Borussia Dortmund: “One of him was sold for 150.000 dollars.It is as if suddenly people had seen what happened with Messi and I would like to do the same with the new players, ”says Olivera.

It happens that in this business, whose leading brand is the Italian Panini, the most value figurines are those of the years of debuts (roakie) of stellar players.From 2004, the year in which Lionel Messi's professional career began, there are 11 different figurines and getting some of them requires a titanic work.Olivera has all: “I contacted people to look for them in Barcelona and send them to me.I got them little by little, but it was an ant work, ”he says.Although he obsesses everything that has to do with Messi, he prefers not to have everything at once: "While they offered me to buy Messi's complete collection, I prefer not to do it, but enjoy this day after day," he clarifies.

So fanatic is, and so profitable is the business, that Olivera Bergallo spends much of his day sitting on his desk opening packages of figurines, one after another, and selling by ebay, twitter and houses of shares and also some direct buyers.What values do you handle compared to Messi's?“If we talk about certified figurines and in perfect condition, the lower price of Messi is 100 dollars, which are those of the 2016 and 2020 period.And one of his first, in quality 10, costs 250.000 dollars, aproximadamente”, cuantifica.

And what relieves its quality and determines its value?"Here there are several companies that certify the quality," she says;PSA, which has it as a collector number 1 of Messi in the field.“For a figurite to have an important value, it must have a high quality.Goes from 1 to 10: 10 is the perfect and 1 is the worst.And, of course, it is necessary that there are few in circulation, ”explains who in his six -meter office for four has collected about 1200 Messi figurines, from the first batch of 2004, until the last one, from 2021.Relative to Rosarino has approximately 300 autograph chromes, six pairs of ankle boots, 20 captain tapes and even a giant painting, also with the signing of the crack in Barcelona.

For the work that demands to make this type of objects, he prefers to keep the business selling more chromos from other players than Messi.“The value and sale of historical players who did not sell, such as Andrea Pirlo.Then I prioritize selling those, so as not to have to detach myself from my Messi collection.Every so often auction some other, because it is my business and I must keep it ".

In the distance, and without knowing him personally, he feels closely linked to the captain of Barcelona and the Argentine National Team.It happens that beyond the hobby that links it with its idol, Damián empathizes with the personal history of the flea, since both still suffer some equivocal look from some compatriots: that they had a path raided towards success abroad abroadIn their respective items.“Many times I hear the love and hatred they have for him in Argentina: that he lives in Spain, that the anthem does not sing, that the country does not feel...And that clashes me.Some acquaintances tell me that I live in Disney, and nobody sees the sacrifice that must.“With 12 or 13 years Leo had to inject himself into one leg, and suffered the rejection of several clubs because he was a boy.He also had to leave part of his family and not see her for years.That is not like everyone else, and I feel very connected to that story of sacrifice of him, ”he says.

Just as the Rosario was closed several doors in his country and received containment in the city, Olivera Bergallo never managed to take off with the various labor projects he had in Argentina after leaving his job in a large international credit card company.That's why he decided to change his air: “It cost me a lot.I worked, worked and could not get where I wanted to get.I always had good ideas and wanted to do things, but I felt obstacles, ”he recalls.One day of 2012 he made the trip abroad, but the landing in the north was not simple.This is said: “When I arrived in Orlando I thought that my savings were going to pay and that I was going to put a company, but in two months my savings left, the person I had married was not what I thought and ended alone, on the street.I had nothing.And I couldn't even call my family ".

After losing his reservations, he played background living on the street.He slept in his car, almost a scrap that he had bought for $ 200 and forced him to stop an hour every time he reheated.But he recovered, washing dishes, working as a cook and delivery.He made small investments in Crypto Currency, and later worked Amazon.Today, beyond the pandemic that affects the world, life smiles in the economic, after uprooting and sacrifice to stand in the United States."I started to improve between the end of 2016 and early 2017, after several jobs, but the figurines made me make a difference and that's why I started dedicating me full time in 2018," he celebrates.Of course, this demands a great cultural change in work: “Here you work all the time;Do not stop for lunch.In fact, I look at the matches while I open packages, ”.

Despite being its top collector, Olivera Bergallo suffers a disagreement with Messi, since he still couldn't see it on a court, something he hopes to realize as soon as he yields the pandemic.“A few years ago they came to play Michigan Barcelona and Napoli, 20 minutes from my house.And as I knew that Messi came, I took seats 1 and 2, for my brother and for me.He gave the chance that he was injured and could not play...Last year he had planned to go to Barcelona to see one of his matches, he had everything reserved and everything was canceled.So I don't know now when I'm going to see it.I hope before retiring, ”says Damián.

While as Boca's fan enjoy that Messi plays some selection games in the Bombonera, remains attentive to what can happen after June, in case Leo's figurines get to have a different shirt from Barça.“It is also said that I could come to play the United States, which would be huge for my hobby.But I think Barcelona is going to do everything possible to retain it, ”says Damián Olivera Bergallo, the Argentine who went to sleep in a car to be the biggest collector of Lionel Messi in the lucrative world of figurines.