News
New Fanatics program to reward collectors for pulling ‘The Ten’ hottest sports cards on the market
Fanatics Collectibles and Fanatics Live launched a new program Wednesday that will highlight 10 of hottest sports cards on the market and reward collectors for finding them during card breaks on the Fanatics Live platform.
Patterned after the “Billboard Hot 100” or the FBI’s “Most Wanted” list, “The Ten” will feature a revolving showcase of 10 cards across all sports. Any collector who pulls one of “The Ten” on the Fanatics Live app will receive $10,000 in Fanatics Live credit.
“The Ten” will feature a monthly collection of cards that both Fanatics and collectors consider the hottest cards in the hobby, from new releases to compelling cards that have yet to surface. For example, the first 10 will feature the 2023-24 Bowman Chrome University Bronny James/LeBron James 1/1 dual-auto card, as well as the 2023 Bowman Chrome Baseball Draft Tom Brady 12/50 inscribed card that has not yet been pulled.
The inaugural list of “The Ten” features cards of such legends Tom Brady and Steph Curry as well as young stars like MLB's Corbin Carroll and Anthony Volpe and the NBA's Luka Doncic and Chet Holmgren.
The monthly lists will feature “a well-balanced portfolio” of cards from across all sports and all brands, including Panini and Upper Deck as well as Topps and Bowman products.
With the new program, Fanatics hopes to reach core collectors chasing the top cards in the hobby, including 1/1 Superfractors and other highly sought-after Refractors and parallels.
“Our primary goal is to elevate the collectors experience and try to really give back to the hobby and collectors as much as we can,” James Kollar, senior director, marketing at Fanatics Live, said in an interview with SCD. “How can we enhance the experience for collectors and literally put money back in their pockets and give them the ability to continue to foster their hobby?”
Fanatics Live participants and the collecting community will have input on which cards make the lists each month to encourage discussion and engagement around the cards and the hobby, Kollar said.
“It will be a monthly program that we roll out that we get to choose collectively with our partners … to really have this conversation that people can discuss what’s being put out and, two, to celebrate the people that are really going to benefit from this,” Kollar said.
“Really, it’s the cards, especially in this initial run of the first 10, that we think will really resonate throughout the entire space and really inspire [collectors] to go chase them.”
Also See: Top 40 sports card sales on eBay in 2023
The program also will help dealers and collectors promote new products as well as popular releases that still have chase cards available.
“It allows the partners and breakers on our platform to also go buy that product and create shows to market the fact that they are going to be chasing this card for the collectors that are buying in as part of ‘The Ten,’” Kollar said. “It reinvigorates product that hasn’t been sold in a while and makes them exciting again, and brings back that momentum of trying to find these legendary cards.”
Fanatics Live will create pack and box breaks and other content around “The Ten,” including special shows celebrating big finds and revealing the next 10 cards. Fanatics also plans to create a webpage tracking the 10 cards and the ones that are found.
The program, which will include guest athletes and possibly other prizes and rewards, will also focus on the stories of collectors.
“What is awesome about this is it is a constant storytelling piece,” Kollar said. “People are chasing these cards and when they are found, it gives us the opportunity to tell the story of what that card was, the lucky winner who was able to find it, our breakers and sellers and shops on the platform, how much it means to them to be the one who was actually able to find this. It gives us a ton of storytelling possibilities.”
Fanatics Live, the company’s livestream shopping platform, features more than 60 breakers and selling partners. According to Fanatics, it has shown double-digit growth each month, with an average watch time of 56 minutes, since debuting at last year’s MLB All-Star Game and the National Sports Collectors Convention.
“It really set the tone for what we want to be as a brand,” Kollar said. “It’s truly like a community … and I think ‘The Ten’ is going to be really exciting for us. We are excited to see how the community reacts.”
Jeff Owens is the editor of SCD.
