The ongoing pandemic altered many aspects of our lives including the sports card hobby. When it comes to sports cards, the hobby is at an all-time high for sports cards in general including new products and single cards. Over the past few years record sports card prices have been seen including multiple cards on the Top 10 Most Expensive Baseball Cards and Top 10 Most Expensive Football Cards list. In addition, many of the Top 10 Most Expensive Soccer Cards are also seeing increases in their values.
As you start to look at the most expensive selling soccer cards and the hottest soccer cards on the market, many belong to the same group of stars including the great Pele as well as Lionel Messi, Christiano Ronaldo, and Erling Haaland. Leading the charge is one of the most iconic soccer cards in the industry and a must have vintage soccer card for any soccer card collector.
If you are new to sports cards, take the time to read our beginners guide to sports cards while also taking the opportunity to learn more about sports card grading with our sports card grading guide.
Top 10 Most Expensive Soccer Cards 2022
As you continue to read on, you will learn more about the most expensive soccer cards in the world as well as deeper look into the various items impacting the value of soccer cards.
Items Impacting the Most Expensive Soccer Cards
Like any sports card or item that is being collected or sold, many items impact the value of that specific items. The same can be said for soccer cards and what makes one soccer card worth more than another soccer card. Here are the various items impacting the value of all sports cards including soccer cards.
ERA & Year of Soccer Card
Arguably the most popular sport around the entire world, soccer continues to grow nationally as well as within the United States. While more fans are drawn in, even non-sports fans know of futbol great Pele. When it comes to value, the older the card or the ERA of that card can have a major impact on the overall value of the card.
Rarity of the Soccer Card – The More Rare, The More Expensive Soccer Cards are
Another item impacting the value of a soccer card or any sports card in general is the rarity of that specific card. The harder to find the card, the more value that card will have associated with it. The rarity of a single card could be based on the year of the card and the condition it is in such as the 1958 Alifabolaget Pele rookie card with a high graded value by PSA. The higher grade, the lower the quantity of cards that have received that grade. In addition, newer cards include 1/1 autograph cards, SuperFractors, and other short prints that have a lower quantity produced of each card.
Graded Soccer Card or Non-Graded Soccer Card – Key impact for Most Expensive Soccer Cards
After looking at the Top 10 Most Expensive Soccer Cards, it is easy to see the importance of having a graded soccer card compared to a non-graded soccer card. All 10 of the highest selling soccer cards are graded by one of the top sports card grading companies. Another way to see the impact of a graded card verse a non-graded card is to use a site like eBay to look at past sold cards of a soccer card you own both graded and ungraded. As sports grading has grew in popularity during the ongoing pandemic, so did the overall sports card hobby.
In addition, grading vintage soccer cards can also drastically drive the value of the card up based on the population report of each specific card. Not sure what sports card grading company is better? Read our articles comparing BGS VS PSA, PSA VS SGC, CSG VS BGS, and BGS VS SGC.
Current Soccer Trends (Hot, Cold, Awards, Call Up, Upcoming World Cup, etc.) – Major Impact on Most Expensive Soccer Cards
Lastly any major soccer trend can swing the value of a card depending on the player, the importance of what is going on, and even what may happen in the future. For example, if a young breakout star is delivered a serious injury his card may drop in value. Whereas the same star wins league owners or awards because of their breakout season will see their values spike. Other trends impacting soccer cards are major futbol events taking place such as the upcoming World Cup in Qatar that could drive soccer cards even higher.
Top 10 Most Expensive Soccer Cards 2022
#10 1977 Futbol Diego Maradona RC PSA 7 – 10th Most Expensive Soccer Cards
$157,200 sold by Goldin Auctions in March 2021
#9 2019-20 Topps Chrome Bundesliga Red Refractors Erling Haaland BGS 10
$170,400 sold by Goldin Auctions in August 2021
#8 2004 Panini Mega Cracks Lionel Messi PSA 10
(Card image may not be actual card sold)
$270,600 sold by Goldin Auctions on August 11th, 2021 (Cert #23117535)
#7 2004 Panini Mega Cracks Lionel Messi PSA 10
$304,770 sold by Lelands Auctions on January 30th, 2022 (Cert #43876555)
#6 2003 Panini Sports Mega Craques Cristiano Ronaldo PSA 10
$312,000 sold by Goldin Auction in October 2021 (Cert #28618501)
#5 2004 Panini Mega Cracks Lionel Messi PSA 10
$336,000 sold by Goldin Auctions on June 29th, 2021 (Cert #27460749)
#4 1958 Alifabolaget Pele RC PSA 8
$340,100 sold by eBay Marketplace on March 28th, 2021 (Cert #42711395)
#3 1958 Alifabolaget Pele RC PSA 8.5
$372,000 sold by Heritage Auctions in November 2021 (Cert #19663664)
#2 2019 Topps Chrome Bundesliga SuperFractor 1/1 Erling Haaland BGS 9.5
$432,000 sold by Goldin Auctions in June 2021
#1 1958 Alifabolaget Pele RC PSA 9 – All-Time Most Expensive Soccer Cards
$900,000 sold by Goldin Auctions in November 2021 (Cert # Unknown)
Want to see more of the most expensive sports cards? Here is a look at the Top 10 Most Expensive Hockey Cards, Top 10 Most Expensive Baseball Cards, Top 10 Most Expensive Football Cards, and Top 10 Most Expensive Basketball Cards. Which soccer superstar will see their soccer trading card land as one of the most expensive soccer cards all-time?
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