An auction in North Texas has set a record for the most valuable sports card ever sold. Heritage Auctions sold an Upper Deck Exquisite Collection Dual Logoman card with both Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan.
The card was estimated to sell for $6 million. The winning bid came in at $12.9 million.
Heritage Auctions held the previous record of $12.6 million for a Mickey Mantle rookie card in 2022.
"It's the premier event every year in sports collecting," says Heritage Auctions' Mike Provenzale. "It's got some of the rarest, most significant and most valuable cards and collectibles that exist. This ranges from baseball material in the late 1800s to cards that were made just this year. It's got cards, memorabilia, game-worn items, game-used, autographs, photographs, tickets. Anything a sports collector, a sports fan would want is on offer."
The basketball card is the only Kobe Bryant/Michael Jordan dual-signed Logoman card. The card was produced by Upper Deck Exquisite Collection in 2007-2008.
Provenzale says the value of collectibles and sports cards increased as more hobbyists were home during the pandemic.
"Jordan material exploded in 2020 many multiples of what it was before," Provenzale says. "And then with Kobe passing, same thing. When an athlete or celebrity passes young, it really creates a lot of interest and desirability for their cards and collectibles."
Among other items were tickets to every Super Bowl, baseball jerseys worn by Pete Rose and Ichiro Suzuki and clothes worn by "Macho Man" Randy Savage in the wrestling ring.
A picture signed by every member of the 1927 Yankees was expected to sell for at least $200,000. The picture has a heart drawn around the head of picther Hank Johnson.
"This photo belonged to his girlfriend, and she was there for spring training," Provenzale says. "When the photographer took it, she asked for a copy and was commemorating the occasion, a very fastidious person. You can see how she had them all sign by their image in the picture. The people on the bottom are signing in the shadow, so she had them sign in white. The people in the top, it's a white background, so she had them sign in black. It was just a keepsake for her. She wasn't thinking, 'I'm creating this six-figure item in a hundred years.' She was just documenting the time."
A picture of Mickey Mantle in elementary school was expected to sell for more than $80,000.
"You can see seven-year old Mickey Mantle right there. If I didn't tell you which one he was, you'd be able to pick him out, the blonde hair, the biggest kid in the class," Provenzale says. "Look on the back, and his autograph is pretty similar to when he was a rookie in his early pro days."
Mr. T's script from Rocky III was expected to sell for at least $16,000. The script includes notes and marks made by Mr. T.
"My favorite line from the movie is when the reporter asks Mr. T, 'What's your prediction for the fight?' and he says, 'My prediction? Pain,'" Provenzale says. "But in here, the line was longer and he crossed out the rest of it."
Provenzale says these items are popular with collectors because they are rare, but they also tell a story about athletes' and actors' lives.
"You can invest in something more interesting than pork belly futures, real estate or something like that," he says. "This is something you can tell a story about."The auction runs through Sunday.