Sports Cards Nonsense

Mike and Jesse are joined by Shep in the studio for the first guest on the new set. Football season is almost upon us and Mike and Shep look at what will be a disappointing rookie class for 2026 and where collectors will go. Plus, the new CAP program from Topps for Card Shops and why they need to focus on maintaining a healthy ecosystem for the LCS's. Wrapping up with Good Charlotte and Josh Luber at our SCN studio at The National.

0:00 - Intro

6:00 - Football Season is upon us. When is a good time to sell football cards?

9:30 - Who is a buy/sell before the season, and why does Shep want to sell Joe Burrow now

17:00 - 2026 NFL Rookie Class

27:00 - Theft in the hobby

32:50 - WhatNot raising money

35:10 - Topps’ Retail Reserve is now the Collector Access Program and how it works.

50:10 - The hobby is currently at a crossroads where they need to decide if they want to make as much money now or help the hobby long-term.

55:30 - Will CAP fix things for the LCS vs. corporatization? Mike takes some positives from Topps at least responding to people's concerns.

1:00:00 - Why won’t the market accept multiple high-end grading companies at a time?

1:07:10 - What will the lockout in MLB do to pricing?

1:10:30 - Good Charlotte Joined Josh Luber in the SCN Studio!

1:30:00 - Wrapping up!

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Some of our favorite moments from The National that didn't make it into other podcasts this week. We have a roundtable with some of the personalities from the network. Interviews with the youngest and oldest new shop owners at The National. Plus, an interview with Adam Ireland and Papa Gio opens a box of mob cards.

0:00 - Intro

2:10 - Roundtable featuring Jesse, Doug Plagens, Alex from CleverCubanCards, and Alex Tressler

31:30 - Mike interviews the youngest and oldest new shop owners at The National

37:30 - Adam Ireland from eBay Collectibles joins Mike to discuss eBay's investment into the space

48:00 - BJ is joined by Papa Gio to open a special box of Mob Cards

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Another jam-packed episode of Sports Cards Nonsense with Mike and Jesse. We're live in the new studio and the bounties for the Cooper Flagg Debut Patch are getting higher and higher. Plus, Bryan and Danny from Black & Gold Sports Cards stop by. We also hear from Logan Paul and Gary Vee from Jesse's panel with them and Gronk with Gio at The National.

0:00 - Intro to the new studio

2:30 - Are collectors experiencing post-National FOMO?

8:00 - Cooper Flagg Bounty

12:10 - Market Predictions for the rest of 2026

15:30 - Grading Shutdowns

21:00 - Bryan and Danny from Black & Gold Sports Cards Join the show

22:45 - How did the idea to bring Bart the Robot to The National come up?

43:55 - Gio on comps at The National after pushback from his Bobby Orr video

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There was so much to take away from The National, and Mike and Jesse tried to pack it all into one episode. Plus, we got a first-timer's perspective from Mike, who helped film and edit much of our footage from the week.

0:00 - Intro and National Thoughts

5:00 - Favorite pickups at The National

19:45 - The National EQL Packs

29:30 - The viral story of the dad and son who stole a big Mahomes card

33:50 - Gio’s story with Gronk

44:00 - The PSA Experience Mike and Jesse had

48:00 - PSA not getting cards back by the end of the show. Plus, the demand for grading as a whole.

50:45 - Trade Nights at The National

58:00 - Mike joins after helping with The National

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Michael Rubin joins Sports Cards Nonsense for an extensive conversation about Fanatics Collectibles, Topps, the future of sports cards, rising card prices, breakers, hobby shops, global expansion, and the changing collector experience.

Recorded at The National, this interview examines Fanatics’ claim that it may have multiplied the size of the hobby, the company’s plans to grow collecting internationally, the success of its London store, and how athletes such as Lewis Hamilton, Tom Brady and LeBron James are helping introduce sports fans to trading cards.

The conversation also covers Fanatics Fest, Topps’ direct hobby-shop accounts, entry-level versus premium-product pricing, sports-card supply and demand, celebrity collectors, non-sports cards, FIFA and the global future of the hobby.

Topics:

Fanatics Fest versus The National
Fanatics’ growth in sports cards
Global expansion and the London store
Lewis Hamilton and celebrity collectors
How Fanatics measures success
Fanatics’ celebrity-authenticity rule
Is the sports-card boom sustainable?
Breakers versus hobby shops
Card-shop pricing and allocations
Why sports-card prices rise
Topps direct accounts and distribution
Is Fanatics making too much product?
What Fanatics still needs to fix

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