This past June, both Barron’s and Kiplinger ran features touting sports collectibles as a winning investment. The Barron’s article, titled “Sports Collectibles Can Be a Winning Investment,” cited a 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle baseball card—considered the “Mona Lisa” by collectors—that sold for $12.6 million two years ago, followed by Michael Jordan’s National Basketball Association 1998 finals Chicago Bull jersey at $10.1 million, and Diego Maradona’s “Hand of God” jersey from 1986 at $9.3 million as proof that “sports collectibles can be a winning investment.” And that was before Babe Ruth’s road gray jersey that he wore in Game 3 of the 1932 World Series in Chicago, where he made his controversial “called shot” home run, sold for $24.1 million through Heritage Auctions this past August!

The Kiplinger article echoed Barron’s play on sports collectibles as the “new blue-chip investment class.” The Kiplinger article, “Sports Memorabilia Appear to Have Arrived as Investing Class,” written at the same time as the Barron’s article, points to Sotheby’s decision to “step into the ring with sports memorabilia” as a clear declaration that “Sports collectibles have made it to the big leagues in investing.”

In 2022, Sotheby’s sold Michael Jordan’s famed “Last Dance” game-worn jersey for $10.1 million. This past June, the prestigious auction house announced a new multi-year partnership with sports merchandise giant Fanatics to sell the world’s most valuable trading cards across all sports—those estimated to fetch $100,000 or more. Cards will be sold through a combination of live and online auctions hosted by Sotheby’s, with the first scheduled this month in New York City. The live sale will offer a sought-after 1948 Leaf #79 Jackie Robinson rookie card with an estimate of between $275,000 and $350,000. Graded by PSA, in nearly pristine collection. A subsequent online sale is scheduled for December.

While sports memorabilia for the last several decades has generated some major sales and notable headlines, it has largely been viewed as the interest of a few passionate, albeit wealthy sports fans. For those of you following along with the Journal and Ken Hall’s Gavels ‘N Paddles column, you know this is no longer true as investors and collectors of all classes, sizes, and ages see investment opportunities in sports memorabilia from their favorite or famed athletes or teams and a willingness to invest in something special.

Since the pandemic, demand for sports collectibles has reached new heights, according to Kiplinger. “Valuation in the market is expected to have a CAGR of 21.8% over the next decade. Collectors who have held on to memorabilia are now seeing massive returns.

For example, a pair of Jordan’s sneakers worn in his “flu game” during the 1997 NBA finals first went up for auction in 2013, where they sold for a record $104,765 — the most ever paid for a pair of game-worn shoes. But when they came up again in 2023, the shoes sold for $1.38 million. By then, even that was not a record.”

Both Barron’s and Kiplinger make a case for sports memorabilia as a new investment strategy for the discerning investor. Part of it is straightforward logic: The return on sports memorabilia has outpaced the S&P 500 in recent years. Kiplinger’s article suggests that “If you’re an investor and would like to allocate a portion of your investment money, even a few thousand dollars, investing in a baseball card or other collectibles could be part of a sound allocation strategy.”

So, what can you do to build a sports-based investment portfolio of your own?

In the world of baseball, there is probably no more enviable private collection than that owned by Marshall Fogel. It’s as legendary among sports collectors as the icons it showcases. In a 2015 interview with Fogel, he offers the serious collector the following advice for strategically building their own major league baseball collection:

• Take the time to learn about the item you are purchasing: “Don’t get caught up in the excitement of what you read about the player or team. Stay focused on the authenticity of the item you’re buying.”
• Find mentors – collectors that can help you understand and authenticate what you are buying: “You need a mentor to learn what you are doing and not rely on the facts promoted in auction catalogs. You’re buying a product. The dealer and auctioneer are not responsible for your selection.”
• Collect horizontally, not vertically: “For example, if you collect all Brooklyn Dodgers items, you’re going to end up with a lot of substandard collectibles with minimal or no market value. The best strategy is to collect horizontally – skim the top & buy the best you can afford across numerous subject matters.”
• Stay ahead of the game: “Study price guides and previous auction prices. The majority of auction companies publish past auction prices on their web site. In this way, the collector can follow price changes over periods of time. Then, when a similar item comes up for auction, they can make well-thought-out decisions as to whether the price is right, and it’s a good investment. For example, a mint-graded 1955 Topps b baseball card of Roberto Clementi in the 1990s sold for $2500. Today, that card has the value of over $125,000.”
• Condition matters: “There is a substantial difference in value between items in ‘very good condition’ as opposed to the same item in ‘near mint-to-mint condition.’”
• Collect players who are no longer living; whose record and personality are already defined: “Don’t get excited about a modern-day player that may be headed for the Hall of Fame because a lot of these players crash and burn.”
• Letters of authenticity (LOA) are not guarantees of anything: “They are not insurance, they’re an opinion. They should be called Letters of Opinion. Do your homework & look for clear and convincing evidence that what you are purchasing is authentic. Words like ‘could be,’ ‘possibly be,’ ‘might be,’ that are included in letters of authenticity or opinion do not meet the clear and convincing evidence test. Either it is or it isn’t.”
• You don’t have to spend large sums of money: “To obtain value, one doesn’t have to spend large sums of money on collectible items. There’s value in items that are affordable but appreciate; however, high-end sports material will probably continue to grow in value.”

Read our complete interview with Marshall Fogel here: https://journalofantiques.com/features/collecting-in-the-big-league

Image: Heritage Auctions