Featured Image Caption: Multicolored Soccer Ball on Green Field
Jump to read...
Many collectors now consider sports cards full-fledged assets for long-term investment, with some tracking their values like volatile stocks. That comparison is, to a certain extent, valid considering how many different factors can affect card values at any given time.
One of the biggest such factors in recent times has been athlete endorsements. Whether it’s a brief mention on an Instagram Live feed or a professional brand partnership, an endorsement from a top athlete can have a surprising impact on card prices. Let’s dive deeper with a few notable examples.
The Biggest Athlete Endorsements
LeBron James and Bronny James Jr.
LeBron James’ card values tend to be high-value releases across the board, but his endorsement of the 1/1 dual autograph card from the 2023-24 Bowman University Chrome Basketball set offers an interesting look at how a simple signature can cause prices to skyrocket.
Bronny James Jr. and LeBron James signed this card at a small mom-and-pop shop in Illinois. Despite being new, it last sold for $114,000 in March 2024 at a perfect PSA 10 grade.
We can compare that with a standard Bronny James Jr./LeBron James #1 from the Topps Now 2024 collection. A PSA 10 version of this card is still valued at just $41.86.
This is the astronomical price increase that only a legendary celebrity endorsement can bring. For collectors, it’s a one-of-a-kind piece that celebrates one of the most iconic father-son narratives in the sport.
Lionel Messi
2020 was a huge entry point for thousands of collectors across the globe, introducing everything from new TCGs to innovative soccer trading cards. One of the most memorable collaborations of 2020 was Topps’ exclusive deal with Messi, bringing the popular but reclusive player into the limelight.
Messi’s exclusive deal was a never-before-seen look into the player’s psyche, allowing him to pick out the 40 best players in the Champions League at the time. The flagship card from this collection is the Topps Chrome UEFA Champions League Lionel Messi Auto #1, currently priced at an impressive $829.
While he might be neck-and-neck in terms of popularity with Ronaldo, even Messi’s older collectibles (like the valuable 2010 World Cup sticker) are priced at around $218.75, a far cry from his endorsed release.
Tom Brady
Tom Brady is an excellent example of how even subtle endorsements can help maintain high card values. Considered by some to be football’s GOAT, Brady has used sports cards to maintain his star power even after his retirement in 2023:
- Brady purchased an ownership stake in CardVault, a popular collectibles retailer.
- He regularly opens sports card boxes live, highlighting and endorsing his cards when he pulls one.
This approach has worked wonders for Brady’s own cards. Even a relatively recent 2021 Panini Score Teal card featuring Tom Brady sells for over $5,000 on the secondary market. Additionally, Topps’ recent post announcing the release of Tom Brady’s inaugural on-card autograph card is one of the biggest highlights of the 2025 collecting season.
Endorsements, Or Something More?
It’s tempting to associate a card’s booming popularity with a recent athlete endorsement. After all, the social media buzz you get from seeing a top athlete discuss their own rarest cards is unlike anything else. The true driving forces behind sports card values, however, are usually a little more complex.
Performance:
Much like endorsements, athlete performances have an outsized impact on card values. Big ticket events like the Super Bowl can turn great players into household names overnight, with their sports cards becoming the hottest commodities in the market.
Take Shohei Ohtani, for example. His on-pitch performance caused his sports card prices to boom even before Topps announced their exclusive deal with the star. Sports card sales tend to soar when an athlete does well, and that also applies to slumps and injuries.
Rarity:
This is another major driving force behind today’s most expensive cards. Looking back at the 1/1 Bronny James Jr./LeBron James dual-auto, it’s difficult to say whether the card’s impressive value comes from its public endorsement or its extreme rarity. The real answer? Most likely both.
Cards with short print runs (like 1/1s) tend to have high prices right out of the gate, and an athlete endorsing them works as more of an advertising tool, putting the card in front of millions of collectors worldwide.
Market Trends:
Demand and supply will always determine sports card prices. There’s no better example than the 2020-21 season, when thousands of sports card stores went online for the first time. This made the hobby accessible to millions of new potential buyers and drove prices up to levels never seen before.
Other factors, like nostalgia, also play a role here. Collectors might be willing to pay more for a sports card just because it evokes their favorite memories of a certain player. Similarly, a player’s legacy also helps maintain their card values at high levels. This likely plays a huge role in Tom Brady’s card values.
Finding the Next Big Sports Card
Athlete endorsements are a great place to start if you’re looking to be the first to the next big sports card craze. That said, you can get an even bigger advantage over other collectors by tracking the best-performing players in a league and investing early, far before the endorsement. Similarly, monitoring market trends can give you a considerable head start on collecting tomorrow’s biggest athletes.
Pricing in the Star Power
While pinning down the exact reasons behind a sports card’s fluctuating value might be easier said than done, the power that athlete endorsements have is undeniable. A live card pull or a shoutout from the likes of LeBron or Tom Brady can make card values skyrocket overnight, giving their most faithful fans the windfall they’ve been waiting for.
By Tiffany Young
who can usually be found watching her favorite Twitch streamers, playing Breath of the Wild, or binging the latest Netflix original. She enjoys writing about everything from vintage vinyls to nerdy collectibles.
Member since March, 2024
View all the articles of Tiffany Young.
Leave a Reply