Rare Jordan & Kobe Card Shatters Records with Unbelievable $12.9 Million Sale—What Makes It So Valuable?
The winning bid beat the 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle card, which was sold for .6m in August 2022, though the exchange rate at the time meant this was equivalent to £10.8m.
The Jordan-Bryant card is the second most expensive sports collectable ever, behind baseball legend Babe Ruth’s 1932 World Series “called the shot” jersey which sold for £18.1m (.12) in August 2024.Every once in a while, something extraordinary comes along and rewrites the rules of sports memorabilia forever. Today, it’s a basketball card — but not just any card. An anonymous collector dropped a jaw-dropping £9.56 million (or .9 million for my American friends) on a rare gem signed by the legends Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant. This isn’t merely a card; it’s a singular piece of sporting history, the crown jewel for collectors and fans alike. The card, part of the 2007-08 Upper Deck Exquisite Collection, was expected to fetch around £4.4 million, yet the bidding stormed past expectations — more than doubling estimates with 82 intense rounds. It surpassed one of the most iconic baseball cards ever, and while it’s the second priciest sports collectible on record, it truly feels like the Holy Grail of modern basketball memorabilia — a treasure that can never be replicated. Here’s why this sale has everyone in the sports world talking… LEARN MORE.Heritage’s director of sports auctions Chris Ivy told ESPN the Jordan-Bryant card was “the pinnacle” for modern card collectors. The card is known as the 2007-08 Upper Deck Exquisite Collection Dual Logoman Autographs Jordan & Bryant card and was sold by Heritage Auctions in the United States.Heritage Auctions/HA.com
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“The pre-auction estimate was m-plus. So sometimes if a piece is unique like this, it’s really beneficial to let it have its day,” Ivy said.He added that “another one can’t be created” and has always been looked at by modern basketball collectors as a “holy grail”.It had been in the hands of its previous owner for more than a decade and went into auction with a valuation expecting it to achieve £4.4m (m) or above. In total 82 bids were then received as the estimate was more than doubled.Jordan is widely regarded as the greatest player in NBA history winning six NBA championships with the Chicago Bulls between 1991 and 1998.Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash in 2020, is also considered an NBA legend and won five championships during a two-decade stint at LA Lakers between 1996 and 2016.
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