In a market that has grown more lucrative in recent years, a mint condition Mickey Mantle baseball card was the most ever paid for sports collectibles.
Diego Maradona's 1986 World Cup jersey, which he wore when he scored the "Hand of God" goal, was the most expensive soccer jersey in history.
The Honus Wagner baseball card was sold in a private sale for over $7 million.
The title belt from 1974's "Rumble in the Jungle" sold for $6.2 million last month.
The market for sports collectibles is growing fast.
The prices have gone up for items that may have been collecting dust in attics and garage. Many of those items end up on consumer auction sites like eBay.
Chris Ivy, the director of sports auctions at Heritage Auctions, said that the Mantle card was destined to be a top seller because it was near perfect.
He said that some people saw collectibles as a way to hedge against inflation.
Ivy said savvy investors knew inflation would come down the road. It became an alternative to traditional Wall Street investments for members of Generation X and older.
During the Pandemic, there was only so much to watch. Ivy noted an increase in calls from potential sellers who wanted to sell sports equipment.
Ivy said that sports collectibles were attractive because of the confluence of factors.
Some media coverage has been caused by a rise in prices and growth. He said that it all was built on itself. The beginning of the Pandemic added fuel to the fire.
According to David Yoken, the founder of Collectable.com, the sports market was worth more than $5 billion before the H1N1 epidemic.
According to the research firm Market Decipher, the market will grow to $227 billion within a decade due to the rise of so-called NFTs.
Sports cards have been in demand as people spend more time at home and have an opportunity to look through old comic books and small stacks of bubble gum cards featuring marquee sports stars.
Stephen Fishler said that the lure of making money on something that might be sitting in one's childhood basement has been irresistible.
The world of modern sports cards has gone crazy.
One of the few baseball legends in near- perfect condition is the 1952 Mantle baseball card.
Anthony Giordano of New Jersey bought it for $50,000 at a New York City show in 1991.
The switch-hitting Mantle was a three-time American League Most Valuable Player and a seven-time World Series champion. In 1995 the Hall of Famer passed away.
Some people think it's a baseball card. Who doesn't care? It's just a piece of art. It is a Rembrandt to others. A professor at Oklahoma State and amateur sports card collector said that it is a thing of art for some people.
He said that when it comes to sports cards the worth is in the eye of the beholder or the pocketbook of the potential bidder.
Whatever the market is willing to support is the value.
There is a person with the name _____.
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