{"id":1289,"date":"2022-11-03T16:28:00","date_gmt":"2022-11-03T16:28:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/moneymade.wpenginepowered.com\/?p=1289"},"modified":"2025-06-02T20:13:18","modified_gmt":"2025-06-02T20:13:18","slug":"most-expensive-sports-memorabilia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/moneymade.io\/learn\/articles\/most-expensive-sports-memorabilia\/","title":{"rendered":"For Love of the Game: The 6 Most Expensive Sports Memorabilia Pieces"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

One-of-a-kind sports memorabilia is the ultimate score for wealthy investors like billionaire Jim Irsay. Here are six sports collectibles that scored millions.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The sports collectibles market has grown since the pandemic caused interest in the hobby to skyrocket. Billionaires like Jim Irsay have redefined collectible investing with multi-million dollar purchases that would’ve been unheard of a few years ago. It’s estimated that the global sports memorabilia market will be worth $227.2 billion by 2032, up from $26.1 billion in 2021<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The value of sports collectibles is increasing, and the categories of collectibles are expanding\u2014from NFTs to figurines like Funko Pops to vintage uniforms, we’re well beyond just baseball cards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That’s not to say that the right baseball card won’t pay off. Even with the Honus Wagner baseball card fetching millions of dollars in 2022, the highest-priced sports cards may be yet to come. Data shows that six-figure sales of sports cards increased 10% year-over-year in Q3 of 2022.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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There are many amazing pieces available for you to invest in right now, whether you want to add them to your personal collection or just buy a few shares.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

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It’s evident that sports cards are an excellent store of value because prices remained stable throughout the three most recent market crashes, but collecting is more than an inflation hedge for many hobbyists. Collectors are also drawn to items and artifacts from historical moments and beloved players.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While collectors who purchase these items are likely motivated by the joy and prestige of owning a piece of sports history, investors can buy fractional shares in those assets as a way of betting on either their value increasing or fielding a million-dollar buyout.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those huge sales can pay off for investors and raise collectors’ spirits, and there have been plenty of record-smashing prices on sports memorabilia. We put together a list of the most expensive sports collectibles\u2014not including cards\u2014ever to sell.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Top 6 Most Expensive Sports Memorabilia Pieces<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

From jerseys worn by legends like Babe Ruth and Michael Jordan to rare documents that provide records of sports history, here are the six most expensive sports keepsakes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

6. James Naismith’s 1891 Rules of Basketball ($4.3 million)<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Some great things have come out of Canada: maple syrup, peanut butter, Trivial Pursuit. We even owe the advent of basketball to a man from the Great North.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 1890, Dr. James Naismith left his job at McGill University in Montreal to teach physical education at the YMCA School in Springfield, Massachusetts. Naismith’s students were restless when stuck indoors during New England winters with no football or lacrosse. The school’s head of physical education gave Naismith two weeks to create an indoor game that would entertain and calm his rowdy students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To minimize physical contact between players, Naismith imagined a sport with elevated goals, passing instead of tackling, and a large, bouncy ball to prevent damage and injuries. The players broke into a fight during the first game, resulting in many black eyes, a dislocated shoulder, and one KO. Naismith revised his rules to forbid running while holding the ball and call foul on physical contact, and the rest is history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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James Naismith’s 1891 rules for basketball.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Source: sothebys.com<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Naismith International Basketball Foundation put the original rules document up for auction at Sotheby’s in New York to raise money for the Naismith charity. The buyers, David and Suzanne Booth, gifted the historical document to the University of Kansas, where Naismith coached for 40 years. David Booth, a KU graduate and avid donor to the athletics department, purchased the rules to honor Naismith’s KU legacy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The $4.3 million<\/strong> sale beat the 1999 title-holder for most expensive sports memorabilia: the $3 million baseball that set Mark McGwire’s single-season home run record.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Historic documents like Naismith’s rules make for interesting investment assets because of their scarcity and backstories. The Rally investment app offers fractionalized shares in valuable assets like this one, including a 1776 broadside of the Declaration of Independence valued at $2.9 million. Investors can purchase shares for as little as $2 and sell them any time on the Rally marketplace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Babe Ruth 1928-30 jersey ($5.64 million)<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

There’s no one more recognized and celebrated in major league baseball than Babe Ruth. The Sultan of Swat held the record for career home runs for nearly 40 years and catapulted the New York Yankees into a century of ruling the game. It’s no wonder Babe Ruth rookie cards are worth up to $2.5 million<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Great Bambino’s other memorabilia is highly valued, too. In 2019, the Ruth family and Hunt Auctions organized a live auction of the baseball legend’s never-before-traded artifacts. Among the 400 items was Babe Ruth’s jersey worn from 1928 to 1930 which sold for $5.64 million<\/strong> (over $1 million more than his previous record-setting jersey price).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Babe it still breaking records! Jersey worn by @mlb<\/a> and @Yankees<\/a> icon Babe Ruth c. 1928-30 sets a world record price of $5,640,000 for any piece of sports memorabilia!! Live auction at @yankeestadium<\/a> still has the mythical presence of the Bambino #Yankees<\/a> #SultanofSwat<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/4yFirdcjK6<\/a><\/p>— Hunt Auctions (@HuntAuctions) June 15, 2019<\/a><\/blockquote>