As historic quarterback Tom Brady closes the door on his NFL playing career, those who held onto his 2000 Playoff Contenders Championship Rookie card are about to be in luck.
In the year 2000, the 44-year-old former NFL star was chosen by the New England Patriots in the 6th round of the draft, coming in at 199th overall. What no one anticipated was the unsuspecting player to grow into one of the best football players to ever play in the NFL and push the limits of what athletic accomplishments look like.
Considering his humble beginnings and significant impact on the world of football, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that Brady’s rookie card has clocked in as the third-most-expensive football card of all time. On eBay, the card sold for 2.3 million dollars and Brady memorabilia continues to skyrocket in price.
According to ESPN, from January 23 to the 29, directly after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback announced he would be hanging up the jersey, the online marketing website saw a, “198% increase in Tom Brady collectible sales, including a 233% increase in rookie card sales and a 341% increase in his jersey sales.”
Why Tom Brady’s 2000 Contenders Rookie Championship card is selling for so much
Thus far, the collectible that has earned the most attention is the 2000 Contenders Rookie Championship card, which has sold for 2.3 million dollars.
“The Rookie Championship Ticket of future [Hall of Famer] Tom Brady is arguably one of the most iconic football cards in existence,” the item’s description reads. In addition, there is some back story as to why this is among the most sought out pieces of memorabilia: it is one of the rarest items in the quarterback’s 22-year long career, it’s autographed, and rookie cards are generally highly sought out.
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The eBay seller wrote, “With only 100 copies of this card ever created, and NO 10’s ever being graded (either PSA or BGS) makes this card the most sought after Tom Brady card there is.”
Although the item holds the record for the most expensive trading card to be sold in eBay’s history, it is only the third most expensive trading card in the world of sports. The card follows behind Patrick Mahomes’ $4.1 million rookie card and the same Tom Brady rookie card with a better-graded version, which sold for $3.1 million.
While the quarterback settles into his retirement, his memorabilia rising in price is foreseeable.
