Mint Condition - July 21, 2026
Fanatics Fest Takeaways | Is It Good or Bad for the Hobby? Will it Replace The National?
I write an email discussing the latest action in sports collectibles - all in 5 minutes or less. If you would like to receive it directly in your inbox, subscribe now!
I went to Fanatics Fest on Friday with a friend and spent all day browsing dealer tables, experiencing the countless sponsor and brand activations, reconnecting with old hobby friends, seeing a different celebrity walk by about every two minutes, and simply taking a step back and thinking about how far sports fandom - and collectibles interest specifically - has come over the years.
Here are some of my takes:
Fanatics Fest is great for sports fandom…Fanatics Fest is an incredible celebration of sports, what it means to be a fan, and the appreciation that fans deserve for supporting their favorite leagues, teams, and athletes. Everyone there shared a passion for sports and the positive influence they have on communities, cultures, and people. The combination of league and team activations, countless sports and non-sports celebrities, endless rows of collectibles dealers, and most of the hobby’s key companies led to an incredible four days for hundreds of thousands of fans. The sports world and the card hobby are better off with Fanatics Fest than without it.
…but Fanatics Fest could change the hobby for better or worse (depending on your perspective). Do we really think an annual Fanatics Fest is the only card-related event that Fanatics will run? They always think bigger. A few potential ways I see this going: regional and international Fanatics Fests in other major markets (LA, Chicago, London, Tokyo) and operating their own card-only shows (maybe alongside major product releases or sports events). For example, it’s not hard to imagine a Fanatics-run card show in Philadelphia during the week of Opening Day, appearances by Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, and past Phillies greats, and the release of 2027 Bowman — a celebration of sports, baseball season starting, and cards. Now, I don’t think Fanatics is looking to replace The National. No matter how big of a mark you put on an industry, you have to honor the most sacred traditions and for the hobby, that’s the Natty. The hobby’s traditions are great, though they’re also relatively static — the biggest shows happen on similar weekends year after year, products are dropped around the same time every year. Fanatics continues to take a novel approach to all things cards. Expect more shows, different settings, an ever-changing release calendar with both legacy and new products. It’s up to collectors to decide whether that’s good or bad for the hobby.
Where is the mid-end, raw, non-GOAT supply and demand? All day walking through dealer tables, I was thinking about how very few were selling any cards priced below $100. And for those who were, they were found in (hundred) dollar boxes that received minimal traffic. And on the other side of the table, when I tried to sell pieces of my Giancarlo Stanton collection, which includes prospect autos and 1/1s, to 10+ dealers, none of them bit. I absolutely recognize this was partially a product of the cost of dealer tables and the higher-end clientele coming to Fanatics Fest — it is an upscale event, not a dollar bin show. However, I also believe this was partially a product of where the hobby is moving. It all feels more expensive and more speculative. The majority of collectors, investors, and speculators spending the most money in the hobby are looking for modern, high-end (call it 4-figures and up), high-upside (even if there’s high-downside), rarity, slabs, and GOATs. This sentiment has always been a part of the hobby to some degree, but it is way more prevalent than years prior. Take Tom Brady investing at least 5-figures to buy a speculative Fernando Mendoza asset (his first licensed Topps auto), or how most unboxing headlines are from what’s pulled in group breaks or repacks and not from a person simply opening a box they purchased, or how mass retail boasts about buying hundreds of thousands of dollars in boxes from attendees (which then presumably gets passed down to these same people through group breaks and repacks) rather than how much they’re selling. The money flowing into the high-end and speculative part of the hobby is accelerating. What happens if or when this money pulls back? Is this a virtuous cycle that can sustain or are we due to a correction? What does this mean for the low/mid-end? Are those cards undervalued? There is a lot more to unpack here.
Kids and the enjoyment they get from cards should always be at the forefront: The biggest smile I saw at Fanatics Fest wasn’t from a kid meeting their favorite athlete, a breaker pulling a chase card from 2026 Topps Finest, or a dealer landing a big consignment of MJ cards. The biggest smile I saw was from two kids after my friend handed over his cards to them and said, “Hey, you can have these, you’ll appreciate them more than me.” There were $15-20 worth of sports and Pokémon cards in there and after no dealer would take them off his hands, he decided to gift them to the first kids he saw. The kids and their parents profusely thanked him. A nearby dealer said, “This is what the hobby is all about.” And I couldn’t agree more. Kids aren’t making headlines with their 5-figure buys. But they are the lifeblood of the hobby and the direction of the industry should always prioritize their involvement.
Thank you for reading. Be sure to subscribe and share with others. See you soon!
I have no idea who Joel is nor when I started getting his emails, but he is an informative writer that I enjoy reading. He provides insight that goes deeper than your traditional, surface level fluff most writers on collecting provide. Not saying he is going to win a Pulitzer, but he is certainly a cut above the others that I follow
I've never been to a Fanatics Fest but have gone to 10+ Nationals. The FF feels like a trade show more than a memorabilia show.
The point about no one buying your Stantons doesn't surprise me. The direction the hobby has taken in the last 15 years really saddens me. Everything is speculating, investing, grading, and flipping assets vs collecting now. The only under $100 cards people want are the ones they think will become $100. Set collectors are shunned, I hope it comes back. I don't see it though.