Alan Rosen was the Indiana Jones of vintage sports cards. The Paterson, N.J., native earned the nickname “Mr. Mint” for his ability to find old cards boxed and stored in perfect condition. From 1978 until his death in 2017, his obsession with finding mint condition vintage cards turned him into the hobby’s first card millionaire…
Buying a famed 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle card might be a challenge given the price tag for even the most damaged example, but it’s not hard to find. There are thousands of graded examples of that card in existence, even after how many were supposedly thrown away by unwitting parents over the past 70 years….
As interest in trading cards explodes and values rise, hobby shop owners across the country are recognizing the need to improve the retail experience they offer. More of a cool hangout spot vs. the musty old mom & pop shop. That’s the bet a European card retailer made and the concept has proven so successful…
If you arrive at the card show the moment it’s scheduled to open, and you’re there to buy top-end modern and ultra-modern cards, you’re probably too late. At most shows of significant size — meaning anything from the regional level and up — the best cards are often sold before the show even opens. We…
What would you collect if you were a world-famous DJ? For Steve Aoki, the answer is: just about everything. The Grammy-nominated DJ tours globally year-round in front of millions of fans. But his Las Vegas home is something he calls “Aoki’s Playhouse.” And it lives up to the name. Open the big cement door, secured…
The last place you might expect to see representations of sports fandom — at least outside of Quidditch — is New York Comic Con, the epicenter of comic book culture and all its many offshoots on the east coast. At an event where it’s more jarring to see a person not elaborately dressed up as…
Welcome to The Athletic Collectibles Staff’s 2025 Sports Card Power Rankings! Here we spotlight a mix of the most notable, eye-catching, and downright fun sports cards released so far in 2025. Our selections and rankings are not based on anything scientific — not market value, rarity, or sales volume — it’s about highlighting cards we…
One word has butted its way into common trading card vernacular within the past 18 months, while becoming one of the most lucrative business approaches within the hobby. Repacks. A repack typically contains one card — either graded or ungraded — that has already been pulled from its original pack or box produced by a…
Welcome to The Athletic collectibles staff’s sports card of the week! Here we feature a notable, interesting, or just plain fun sports card. With football season in full swing, let’s highlight one of the best quarterbacks of the current era. Lamar Jackson’s 2018 Panini Select Field Level #205 card is one of the key rookies…
In July, Collectors Holdings executive Ryan Hoge said that its SGC grading division would become more of a “boutique grading brand” specializing in vintage cards — generally considered cards issued before 1974. That raises the question, is the vintage market itself just a small, boutique corner of the ever expanding sports card universe? Positing that…