Sports cards thriving after highest monthly sales volume on record

August can be a busy time for the sports card industry, but the 31-day period that started during the annual National Sports Collectors Convention and ended days before the start of a new NFL season established a new benchmark for hobby sales volume.

According to Card Ladder, which tracks online sales data for single trading cards and wax across multiple selling platforms, including eBay, sales within the hobby exceeded $421 million in August. The figure surpassed the sales volume from March ($303 million) by more than $100 million, becoming the month with the highest sales volume on record since Card Ladder began tracking transactions in January 2010.

The month’s activity was highlighted by the $12.9 million sale of a dual logoman autograph of Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan from the 2007-08 Upper Deck Exquisite Collection. Kevin O’Leary, a Canadian businessman and entrepreneur perhaps most known for his appearances on the ABC reality television series “Shark Tank,” is a part of the group that purchased the card.

O’Leary made multiple television appearances after the conclusion of the sale, bringing mainstream attention to sports cards and collectibles.

As pointed out on X (formerly Twitter) by Nat Turner, the CEO of Collectors Holdings, the parent company of Card Ladder and PSA, commented on the volume tracked by Card Ladder. He noted that it doesn’t include “offline/most private transactions, shows, etc.” Card Ladder also doesn’t track sales from retail websites (Dave & Adam’s Card World and Blowout Cards, among others). Sales from social media marketplaces (such as Facebook Marketplace), private sales and transactions through hobby shops and card shows aren’t taken into account by Card Ladder “unless reported and verified by a Card Ladder researcher.”

A new monthly sales record for trading cards according to @CardLadder in August of $416.8M, far surpassing the previous record from the month before.

Card Ladder tracks pretty much every online platform with recorded transactions, and notably does not include offline/most… pic.twitter.com/TiHmfy5tNt
— Nat Turner (@natsturner) September 1, 2025

According to Card Ladder, eBay accounted for the largest percentage of where sports cards were transacted in August, generating more than $300 million in sales. Fanatics Collect ($37.3 million), Heritage Auctions ($33.2 million), Goldin Auctions ($14.7 million) and Robert Edwards Auctions ($13.3 million) were the other high-revenue generating platforms in August. It should be mentioned that Card Ladder’s sales data doesn’t include memorabilia sales.

With a lot of meat seemingly left on the bone, the sports card hobby appears to be thriving.

The month started with the 45th NSCC drawing a record number of attendees gathering at Chicago’s Donald E. Stephens Convention Center, marking the third consecutive year in which a new attendance record had been established. Among the specific markets on the rise, Card Ladder’s index for soccer (46.5%), racing (16.6%) and UFC/MMA (10.03%) were up by double-digit percentages, month over month.

Football was on the cusp of a double-digit jump, improving 9.04 percent from Aug. 3 through Sept. 1 compared to the previous 30 days. The positive news for the football card market comes as the NFL prepares to open the 2025 regular season on Thursday, when the reigning Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles host the Dallas Cowboys.