Sports cards sometimes get so famous, you know them merely by their nicknames.
The Honus. The '52 Mantle. The Goudey Babe. The Luka Logoman.
All those cards rank among the ultimate grails in hobby history, but where do they fall on the list of the 10 most expensive sports cards to ever sell publicly?
Well, cllct has searched the archives to produce this list of the 10 most valuable cards ever. But this list is sure to be extremely fluid, so we'll keep updating it the next time a card joins these prestigious ranks.
1. 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle SGC 9.5: $12.6 million
For most collectors, the title of the most important card ever created often involves a comparison of two vintage grails. The 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle is one of them.
Regularly called his rookie card incorrectly — that’s actually Mantle’s 1951 Bowman — the 1952 Mantle is typically held in such high regard because of what the 1952 Topps set meant to sports cards as a category.
To many, 1952 Topps was the birth of the modern sports card, delivering a physically large issue that featured bright colors and even statistics on the back, which were much more difficult to track down at the time. The front of each card included colorful team logos on the front of a card for the first time.
Decades later, 1952 Topps’ status as one of the most important sets ever is not in question — at the time, however, it was less clear. According to legend, Topps loaded pallets of unwanted 1952 Topps onto a garbage barge and dumped them into the Atlantic Ocean to make space in its warehouse.
Even with the destruction of hundreds of cases, 1952 Topps cards aren’t particularly rare in most cases, but they are incredibly difficult to find in high grades.
The single best Mantle example, graded by SGC, is this 9.5, which fetched $12.6 million at Heritage in 2022. There are just three PSA 10 examples in existence, and experts believe one could sell for $30 million or more should they ever reach the open market.
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2. 1909 Sweet Caporal T206 Honus Wagner SGC 2: $7.25 million
Along with the 1952 Mantle, the T206 Honus Wagner is often discussed in collecting circles as the most important trading card ever created.
And like that ‘52 Mantle, an odd story surrounding the card adds a significant amount to its legacy.
It’s believed Wagner wanted to be better compensated for the use of his image, and production of the card was halted early on. Because of this, only around 60 copies exist today — making them arguably the most coveted trading card of all time.
There are so few Wagner examples, some are known by nicknames, like “The Gretzky,” which was owned by hockey legend Wayne Gretzky.
There’s the “All-Star Cafe” Wagner, too, which was owned by actor Charlie Sheen and once stolen from the New York City restaurant.
The record-setting example, which isn’t even the best in existence, sold via a private sale in 2022.
3. 1914 Baltimore News Babe Ruth SGC 3: $7.2 million
Though Ruth is widely considered a better player than both Mantle and Wagner, he has never quite captured the interest of the hobby in the same way.
His scarcest cards can fetch millions, however, and none has been more coveted than his 1914 Baltimore News.
Originally collected by a paperboy in 1914, the card was passed down through his family for generations, before eventually landing at REA for auction in 2023.
Like the T206 Wagner and 1952 Topps Mantle, the 1914 Baltimore News Ruth has an iconic design that is easily spotted, and it carries a near-record price to match.
4. 1909 Sweet Caporal T-206 Honus Wagner SGC 3: $6.6 million
Once sold for just $1,100 in the 1970s, this Wagner example briefly became the most expensive sports card sale of all time when it fetched $6.6 million at REA in 2021.
This copy has sold a handful of times over the years, including for $1.23 million after it finally graded in 2012. REA reported at the time that it had sold privately between 2012 and 2021.
Prior to this sale, the record for a T206 Wagner was $3.75 million in May 2021. This SGC 3 example would top it just a few months later.
5 (tie). 2003-04 Upper Deck LeBron James Exquisite Collection RPA BGS 9: $5.2 million
Considered one of the most important modern cards ever created, this LeBron James RPA sold in a private deal brokered by PWCC in 2021.
At the time, this James RPA was tied with a 1952 Topps Mantle was the most expensive card ever sold. The card’s reign as king lasted just a few months, when it was eventually toppled by the Wagner featured above.
5 (tie). 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle PSA 9: $5.2 million
In a private sale brokered by PWCC, reported to be worth $5.2 million, to actor Rob Gough, the sale of this PSA 9 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle card briefly held the record for the most expensive card ever sold. It is one of six PSA 9 copies, with just three higher in the PSA population (and one SGC 9.5).
It is just the third disclosed sale of a PSA 9 copy of the famed card, with the earliest reported sale on CardLadder coming in 2006, when entertainment lawyer and legendary collector John Branca sold his for $282,588. Another was sold by former NFL player Evan Mathis in 2018 for $2.88 million.
7. 2018-19 Panini National Treasures Luka Doncic Logoman 1/1: $4.6 million
At the time of the sale, a private transaction reported by PWCC in 2021, this was the most expensive NBA card of all time.
The card was reportedly sold by Matt Allen, who also goes by Bolillo Lajan San, to Nick Fiorella, according to CBS. The same card sold the following year via PWCC for $3.12 million.
8. 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle SGC 9: $4.5 million
A year after the SGC 9.5 Mantle from the “Rosen Find” smashed records, this SGC example from the same source sold at Heritage for $4.5 million.
9. 2017 Panini National Treasures Patrick Mahomes Platinum Shield 1/1 BGS 8.5: $4.3 million
The title of the most expensive football card ever sold belongs to this 1/1 Mahomes card which sold in 2021 via private sale for $4.3 million
10. 1933 Goudey Babe Ruth PSA 9: $4.2 million
The single-highest graded example of the No. 53 Babe Ruth 1933 Goudey card sold for $4.2 million at Memory Lane in 2021.
Ben Burrows and Will Stern are reporters for cllct, the premier company for collectible culture.