Rookie cards used to be the cards to own.
But in a hobby filled with autographs, game-used memorabilia and short-printed parallels, the hierarchy isn't so clear anymore.
My latest for @TheAthletic on ultra-modern chase cards (free to read):
I'm not sure I've ever seen as much backlash from a single hobby-related event as I've seen today over the comments made on a Backyard Breaks stream.
For what it's worth, I've reached out to just about every company that does major business with BYB for comment.
Silence.
BREAKING: The National Sports Collectors Convention reports a third straight year of record attendance following Chicago's show.
Organizers didn't provide an exact number, but reported "double-digit growth" over the more than 100,000 collectors to attend Cleveland in 2024.
Really interesting nugget here from @Sportico on Fanatics' collectibles business.
Topps' trading card division did $368M in sales in 2020 prior to the acquisition. That number jumped to $1.6B in 2024.
SCOOP: @Fanatics revenue was $8.1 billion in 2024. The company has about $400 million in total debt, $1 billion in cash, and projects to be EBITDA profitable in 2025.
Revenue
Commerce: $6.2B
Collectibles: $1.6B
Betting: $300M
More w/ @bpcoffey 👇
sportico.com/business/finan…
Cool moment Sunday as the first pitch with Jen Pawol behind home plate gets tossed to the dugout to be authenticated by MLB.
Pawol made history Saturday as the first woman to umpire a regular-season game.
The hat worn during her debut was sent to @baseballhall in Cooperstown.
A senior PSA official declined cllct’s request for comment on a new collaboration with Backyard Breaks.
PSA previously hosted BYB at its HQ in early 2024.
BYB has faced significant backlash since co-founder Grant Telford made offensive comments on stream earlier this year.
A Victor Wembanyama Green Kaboom 1/1 NFT sold for $50,001 Monday night to become the second-highest sale for any Wembanyama NFT on Panini Blockchain.
If it were a physical card, it would be the 9th most expensive public Wembanyama sale in 2025.