Tom Brady
Super Bowl LVI sparks demand for rare tickets, memorabilia from historic championship games
In some ways, it almost doesn’t matter who’s playing in the Super Bowl. It just matters that there is a Super Bowl. It’s enough to get gridiron collectors hunting for related items from the big game’s long history.
So with LVI upon us (that’s 56; NFL, you can drop the Roman numerals anytime now!), let’s look at Super Bowl items that changed hands recently on eBay. As you’ll see, it’s a fairly budget-friendly subcategory, compared to the crazed prices being paid for the hobby’s cream-of-the-crop cards. Each entry here is preceded by selling price and number of bids.
• $7,000 on 1 bid for a Super Bowl ticket inscribed “SB LV MVP” by, yes, Tom Brady. The autograph was authenticated and graded 9 by BGS.
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• $6,600 on 42 bids for a Super Bowl XXXVI (36) full ticket autographed by Brady. The ticket has a PSA 9 grade, and the sig was authenticated by PSA/DNA. That Super Bowl, by the way, was played in 2002. It was Brady’s first — his improbable come-from-behind special against the Rams.
Multiple other listings offered top-condition examples of Brady-signed Super Bowl XXXVI full tickets. One sold for $5,800 on 102 bids, another fetched $5,700 on 43 bids, and two others reeled in $5,350 on 55 bids and $5,111 on 70 bids. All had grades of PSA/DNA 9.
• $5,850 on 45 bids for a Super Bowl XXXIX (39) ticket graded BGS 10 and inscribed “SB 39 Champs” by, you guessed it, Brady. (Notice a trend?) This was the 2005 game in which the Patriots upended the Eagles, 24-21.
• $4,049 on 24 bids for a Super Bowl XXXVIII (38) Brady-signed ticket graded PSA/DNA 9. Selling for slightly less was another specimen of this ticket, even with a higher grade (BGS 10) went for $3,800 on 20 bids. The Patriots edged the Panthers, 32-29, in that Super Bowl
• $3,684 on 36 bids for a Brady-signed Super Bowl LV (55) ticket graded BGS 10. This one marked Brady’s first and only championship with Tampa Bay.
Stepping outside the realm of Brady-related Super Bowl items, consider the prices paid for these earlier items:
• $6,450 on 33 bids for the Super Bowl XXX (30) game ball presented to Emmitt Smith. Smith led the Cowboys over the Steelers, 27-17, in that 1996 contest.
As the photograph shows, the ball was later professionally painted with game details and logos on a painted white panel. Emmitt himself sold the ball through Notable_Live on eBay, with portions of the proceeds going to Pat and Emmitt Smith Charities.
• $3,000 on 1 bid for a LeRoy Neiman serigraph of Joe Namath handing off to running back Matt Snell in Super Bowl 3. Another sold for $2,000, also on a single bid. Namath shocked the sports world by leading his Jets past the heavily favored Baltimore Colts.
• $2,025 on 8 bids for a complete Super Bowl III press kit — an amazing and rare item. Issued to a member of the media covering the Jets/Colts matchup in 1969, it included a game program, a full ticket and auxiliary pass, a press guide, radio and TV guides for both teams, a mimeographed “pre-game lead,” lineup cards and more.
All of it was housed in a sturdy leather briefcase complete with a gold-embossed identification of the event: “Third AFL-NFL World Championship Game / January 12, 1969.”
• $1,750 on 1 bid for a dual-autographed Super Bowl XI (11) ticket authenticated by PSA. The two autographs? Winning coach John Madden, who died on Dec. 28, 2021, and wide receiver Cliff Branch (although the game’s MVP was fellow WR Fred Biletnikoff). The Raiders beat the Vikings, 32-14, in that one-sided game.
In the “undervalued” department, a Super Bowl I full auxiliary press ticket graded PSA 5 got away for $660 on 40 bids. Green Bay topped Kansas City in that game. Plus, a Super Bowl II (Green Bay over Oakland) ticket stub sold for $800 on a single bid. It was ungraded and, judging by the photos with the listing, in only Fair condition — but still a desirable piece of NFL history.
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