Learn about: Sports Trading Cards

When the goal is to have a new great hobby this summer, sports trading cards is just what the doctor ordered! Sports trading cards come in every sport imaginable, from the National Basketball Association, National Football League, Maj. League Baseball, and even the many professional soccer leagues of the world! The NASCAR circuit is not even left out when it comes to sports trading card enthusiasts as all of the drivers that are currently on the NASCAR circuit have at least one top card. Many of the sports card decks that used to come with gum have now been replaced with die-cut hologram specialized cards that are usually always the collector’s final goal of this set.

Still a Low Cost Hobby to Enter Into

The sports card hobby is great and can be started with as little as a dollar or two. The main goal is to collect the ones that are either the favorite team or player or the ones that might grow in value. Many cards that were bought or traded for are now worth hundreds of thousands of dollars! Many decks of sports trading cards are now in the range of 3.00 to 7.00 and more. Serious collectors normally buy their sports trading cards by the case lots as this way they can be assured of the most-sought after cards in a set. Think back to when you were a kid and had that great Michael Jordan rookie card! Just think how much that rookie card is worth in today’s market! Probably a lot of money! This is the beauty of sports trading cards as a hobby, there’s gold in them there cards!

Any sports trading cards hobbyists need to understand that it takes money to buy packs of cards. Gone are the days when 25 cents got a pack. Many of the most-expensive sports cards are now seen as almost works of art. The most treasured and valuable sports trading card as of 2010 is Honus Wagner’s baseball card valued at 500,000.00!

In the Game Trading Cards

In The Game is a sports card manufacturing company with offices in Canada and the United States. In The Game, often abbreviated to ITG, was founded by Dr. Brian Price in 1998. Currently, In the Game only produces hockey trading cards.

In The Game's first entrance into the trading card market came in the 1998-1999 season, when they produced the NHL Players Association's "Be a Player" brand trading card set, which featured one certified autograph card per pack. Since then, In the Game has expanded its production to include other sets.

In 1998, Dr. Price was asked by Ted Saskin of the NHLPA to determine what should be done with the NHLPA's Be a Player hockey product. The product was started in 1994 and was supposed to give to each of the NHLPA licensees for two years. Pinnacle had the license for 1996 and 1997 but they went bankrupt and are a Player needed a home. Price was hired by the NHLPA as a consultant to determine the fate of is a Player. After he completed his research, he advised Saskin that Upper Deck should be given back a Player brand because of collector loyalty. Saskin felt that if Upper Deck had the brand that they would control too much of the marketplace.

That is ironic since it was Saskin that give Upper Deck a monopoly in the hockey trading card market several years later. However, at that time he asked Price if he would come back into the hockey card market and manufacture is a Player in partnership with the NHLPA, he agreed and In the Game was born.