The year in collectibles: What lies ahead in 2026?

After flipping the calendar to 2026, cllct is assessing the current state of the hobby.

We assembled a panel of the top experts in the industry to recap some of the biggest trends of the past 12 months — both the good and the troubling.

Plus, we looked into our crystal ball to try to forecast what lies ahead in 2026.

In the final installment of our two-week series, our panel forecasts what trends might emerge in the hobby over the next 12 months.

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(Answers have been lightly edited for brevity and clarity. Questions were distributed before Collectors' acquisition of Beckett on Dec. 15.)

Are there any emerging trends you see on the horizon that will play a major role in 2026?

Brian Dwyer, president, REA:

We’ve seen some of the contracts between major sports leagues and card manufacturers shift, including the NBA’s partnership with Topps resuming after a 15-year hiatus. So there will likely be some really interesting modern card innovations and designs on the horizon that I’m excited to see.

There’s a ton of potential for innovation here, and collectors should be excited about it.

Elizabeth Gruene, GM of pop culture, PSA:

We have seen One Piece submissions trending upward recently. The latest release, OP13, has had great reception, and there’s a lot of excitement for the Red Manga Rare chase cards.

This will be an important part of the TCG collecting space as collectors seek to diversify their collections away from just Pokémon.

David Hunt, president, Hunt Auctions:

It is almost impossible to not be aware of the "chance-related" or mystery packaging trends that continue to grow within the hobby.

Even with vintage materials, we see that element of chase within certain products that ultimately has become the main sales driver. Many feel great concern over this trend. My concerns really lie more in the long-term effects rather than the current trend itself.

Eventually, if the supply and demand becomes wholly related to the value or chase of certain items, rather than the pursuit or collectability, then it is a very slippery slope as to what happens with that overall market when value wanes at any given time.

Adam Ireland, VP and general manager of global collectibles, eBay:

Interest in live shopping continues to grow. We’ve seen this in all key metrics across our eBay Live experience.

We’ve been thoughtfully scaling eBay Live to be THE destination for The Hobby to shop and connect. I’m excited about the year ahead for eBay Live.

Chris Ivy, director of sports auctions, Heritage Auctions:

One of the areas of the market that hasn’t been fully appreciated or leveraged yet are period-signed vintage cards versus ones signed later in life by the athlete.

In most cases, the difference in scarcity between cards signed during the era of issue versus all others is immense, yet the price premiums don’t truly reflect that gap in rarity.

Sometimes, it takes a large public offering and corresponding results to get the masses to notice, and I feel we are on the precipice of a more meaningful market swing in that direction. Third-party services have yet to document the difference, but if they ever did, the disparity in existing populations of period-signed cards versus those signed later would be staggering.

Even without a move to distinguish them by these services, I feel like the buyers are ready to make theirs.

David Leiner, president of trading cards, Topps:

The international business and number of international collectors is rising significantly. The World Cup is going to put the sport on a major pedestal — and it’ll be played in North America, which today is the epicenter of card collecting.

I have firsthand knowledge traveling all over the world that collecting is growing and thriving, fans are looking to be educated on the hobby and enter the space and community. This bodes well for not just soccer but all sports on a global scale.

Jason Masherah, president, Upper Deck:

Breakers are going to continue to play a major role within our industry, both from a financial and entertainment perspective. There is an interesting trend happening where fans and collectors will join live breaks, even when they don’t have a slot they are invested in. They simply want to watch a personality open trading cards.

But now, there is the potential for these personalities to begin representing our industry as a whole — whether they realize it or not. As the attention turns more to these personalities and less to the cards, it will encourage people to become more salacious and provocative in order to bring in those viewers.

Mike, Junk Wax Hero on YouTube:

The continued consolidation in the industry. Collectors (PSA's parent company) has purchased both SGC and Beckett in the past two years, leaving CGC as the only viable competitor in the sports cards space.

TAG only does modern cards and has largely moved to TCG, and while there are a lot of smaller graders, none of them have emerged as reputable enough or gained enough scale to really capture much of the market. With Fanatics owning most of the licenses, we have two large companies controlling much of the industry.

Evan Parker, founder, Mantel:

Soccer cards are going to explode with the World Cup hitting North America this year, and I wouldn't be surprised to see soccer card growth outpacing every other category, with multiple World Cup stars sitting toward the top of the 2026 most-graded player lists.

Matt Quinn, vice president, CGC Cards:

Modern collecting for TCG has become better defined with manufacturers producing better variety among chase cards at different value points. It allows for different tiers among collecting methods.

Claire Shelton, head of video games, PSA:

We’ve seen many collectors who are placing an increasing emphasis on collecting full sets of specific franchises (Final Fantasy, Elder Scrolls, Fallout, etc.). As collections continue to shift toward personal importance over perceived hype, I firmly believe those who are assembling such collections as trophies to their favorite franchises will continue to do so.

**Max Spiegel, president, Certified Collectibles Group: **

For decades, card manufacturers have been very attuned to the secondary market, constantly innovating to drive collector enthusiasm. We’re now starting to see that in other collectible categories.

For example, the U.S. Mint making 232 sets of “last circulating pennies,” including a 24k gold penny, is something I never would have expected just a few years ago.

I think we’re going to see IP owners across all collectibles categories (coins, comics, etc.) creating more products that are limited, varied and valuable. The innovation and gamification of collecting will bring countless new people into these hobbies.  

Kenneth Thrower, director of grading, CGC Video Games and Home Video:

There is always an element of crossover collecting affecting our hobbies from other collectible markets. A new hit movie, card, comic, game or TV show will spark demand for fans. That in turn, might mean fans will look for collectibles in other categories that have not previously been explored.

Nat Turner, CEO, Collectors:

The rise of “mystery shopping” or digital repacks went to a new level in 2025, and I think will play a major role in 2026.

These platforms, of which there are many now, are proving to be powerful discovery engines for both enthusiastic card collectors as well as folks who are just getting into cards. Emulating the feeling of opening a pack of cards in a card shop, with a lot less friction, is a really smooth on-ramp into card collecting, all while sitting on your phone.

I personally think this trend will introduce many more people into card collecting, as they’ll be exposed to the concept and discover cards they never knew existed, or players or characters they’ve never collected, etc.

I could be wrong, but I would predict the total dollars spent on these digital packs will exceed the dollars spent on physical packs (including physical packs opened digitally, not to confuse things further) within the next 12-18 months.

Brahm Wachter, head of modern collectibles, Sotheby’s:

Experiences are becoming a bigger and bigger thing. If you look at what Fanatics was able to accomplish with Fanatics Fest, and the rave reviews that received from people in the community, it becomes clear people don’t want to collect in the dark anymore. They want to collect with their friends and meet new people in the community.

This desire to connect with other collectors and athletes will be a major part of our strategy in 2026.

The year in collectibles: What lies ahead in 2026?

Soccer cards, global markets, in-person experiences all expected to explode in year ahead

Are there any emerging trends you see on the horizon that will play a major role in 2026?