Autographs are one of the most exciting parts of sports memorabilia, but also one of the riskiest.
This category focuses on signed items, COAs, holograms, authentication companies, signature changes, fake autographs, and the small details collectors should pay attention to before buying. That includes Michael Jordan, Upper Deck Authenticated, Fanatics COAs, LeBron signature changes, Maradona, Pelé, fake PSA slabs, and other authentication issues in the hobby.
A clean signature is not always safe. A shaky signature is not always fake. The item, surface, signing period, provenance, authentication, and seller all matter.
I write about autographs from a collector’s point of view: what looks right, what feels wrong, where the market puts trust, and why paperwork alone is not always enough.
My Bernie Williams card made me think about a question collectors do not always separate cleanly: when does an autograph become an inscription? You can see the card above. Under the signature there is a small extra mark, almost like a heart or personal symbol. At first glance it looks different from a standard autograph, … Read more
I bought a Vladimir Guerrero Sr. autograph recently, and it made me think about the whole father-son thing in sports cards again. It is a strange setup. The parent has the name, the career, the mythology. Then the kid arrives with the same name on the jersey and suddenly every card, every stat, every autograph … Read more
Muhammad Ali memorabilia has always been one of the most fascinating parts of the sports memorabilia market. Very few athletes combine sporting greatness, cultural weight, political meaning, and global recognition the way Ali does. That is why signed Ali items can still attract serious attention: boxing gloves, photos, programs, trunks, robes, and other objects connected … Read more
I have been looking at Pelé signatures again today. Mostly the later ones. Not just from photos. Actual pieces in hand. That matters. Some late Pelé signatures are not pretty in the way people expect. The shape is still there, the name still reads right, but the line can look heavy. Slow. Tired, almost. That is the part I … Read more
Upper Deck is in a strange place today. Not gone. Not irrelevant. But also not sitting in the middle of modern basketball cards anymore. A quick look at the Upper Deck Store in May 2026 says enough. Goodwin Champions, Skybox Metal Universe Champions, World of Sports, multi-sport boxes, hockey, nostalgia, niche products. That is the … Read more
I recently saw a Diego Maradona mural on the wall of a bar. That is not unusual. Maradona is still everywhere in football culture, especially when Napoli, Argentina, or the number 10 are part of the setting. What caught my attention was the painted signature next to the mural. This was obviously not a real … Read more
Today I want to look at a question that matters a lot in modern sports memorabilia: Are Fanatics COAs legit? I am using a real example from my own collection: a signed Victor Wembanyama basketball from Fanatics. Wembanyama is already one of the most important young names in basketball, and after becoming one of the … Read more
LeBron James autographs have always been among the most important signatures in the modern sports card market. But if you look closely, his autograph has not stayed the same over time. That is especially interesting now because new Topps cards have appeared with LeBron signatures that look noticeably different from what many collectors are used … Read more
People tend to focus on the headline numbers. The $10.5 million Jordan jersey at Sotheby’s. The Dynasty Collection sneakers at $8.5 million. The 1986–87 Fleer rookie card with an autograph that reached $2.7 million. Game-worn Finals sneakers from 1998 selling for more than $2 million. The same name keeps appearing across all of them. Jordan. … Read more
Over the last few years, fake PSA slabs have become much more common across marketplaces, Facebook groups, trade forums, and private sales. A lot of collectors still assume that a PSA slab automatically guarantees authenticity, but after recently inspecting several counterfeit slabs in hand, I no longer think a certification number alone means very much … Read more