On New Yr’s Day 2025, Topps put a sports activities card twist on an previous vacation by turning Jan. 1 into “1 of 1 Day” — an event to have fun one-of-a-kind playing cards throughout the interest. It instantly took off on social media, with everybody from actress Emma Roberts to rival producer Panini and hundreds of collectors exhibiting off their favourite 1/1s all through the day.
So on this second annual 1 of 1 Day, The Athletic is wanting again on a few of our favourite 1/1 card tales from the final yr. Given how extremely coveted and precious 1/1 playing cards will be, they have an inclination to ask all the weather that make for an excellent story: controversy, thriller, shock, pleasure, humor, life-changing windfalls, and quite a lot of different twists and turns. The tales beneath had a little bit of all of that and extra.
Assembly the 11-year-old collector who pulled the Paul Skenes MLB Debut Patch: ‘I used to be shocked’ — The yr began with what could be a working theme for the chronically on-line section of the interest: controversy born on social media. Some individuals doubted that an unnamed 11-year-old hit 2024’s most talked about card on Christmas morning, however The Athletic’s Larry Holder was in a position to communicate to the boy and his mother and father earlier than the cardboard ultimately offered at public sale for greater than $1 million this yr.
What occurs whenever you pull Jayden Daniels’ largest rookie card: Navigating bounties and freak outs — Little did we all know that Daniels’ 1/1 Panini Prizm Black Finite rookie card being hit by a collector often known as “Dr. Moist Muffins” would solely be the beginning of the journey this specific card would find yourself taking in 2025…
Commanders proprietor Josh Harris buys $500,000 Jayden Daniels card in report sale — Yep, a number of months later, the identical card ended up getting purchased by Harris at Fanatics Fest with Daniels standing proper beside him. We had been there to witness the negotiation.
How friendship and $27 changed into a $274,500 Caitlin Clark card — “That was my first thought once I pulled the cardboard. I used to be like, ‘Oh my gosh, I may also help so many individuals and animals with this,’” stated Valerie Coleman, who hit a Clark 1/1 Prizm Black Finite rookie card. It’s a heartwarming sentiment from an exquisite story.
Somebody spent $12,000 on a Jay Cutler soccer card in 2025 — why? — One other quote of the yr contender begins with “Belief me … I don’t need to spend $12,107 on a Jay Cutler card,” and simply will get higher from there.
Meet the household that hit Shohei Ohtani’s most costly card up to now — Was a 1/1 Ohtani card that her household would go on to promote for $3 million sufficient to show that mother right into a sports activities card fan? We discovered.
Karl-Anthony Cities sells Yoshinobu Yamamoto rookie card for $72,000 on record-breaking night time — This may look like a Mad Libs headline, however NBA gamers actually are out right here hitting precious 1/1 playing cards of World Sequence MVPs now.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s precious MLB Debut Patch rookie card nonetheless unclaimed — Talking of the Dodgers starter, his Debut Patch card ended 2025 nonetheless ready to be hit. It maybe units up one among 2026’s largest 1/1 card tales.
Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant card turns into most costly sports activities card ever — A 1/1 Higher Deck Jordan and Bryant card launched in 2007 hit a brand new milestone for the business final yr, demonstrating simply how precious most of these playing cards will be.
The Bronny James ‘LEAVE’ card and probably the most unflattering sports activities playing cards of all time, ranked — The sale of a 1/1 Panini Choose rookie card that includes an unlucky out-of-context jersey swatch prompted us to look at the cruelest sports activities playing cards ever produced.
The Athletic Collectibles Workers’s favourite 1/1 tales of 2025 and the 1/1 playing cards we’d most prefer to personal:
Larry Holder, senior author
Favourite story: The Skenes MLB Debut Patch card and the story behind the 11-year-old boy’s Christmas pull has to high my record. From the boy asking his mother and father for one field of 2024 Topps Chrome Replace; to the mother asking “Who’s Paul Skenes?”; to the journey of receiving the cardboard due to problems as a result of Los Angeles space wildfires; to the skepticism that the story was too good; to the boy writing out his story in a journal the place he stated, “My mind pooped” after hitting the cardboard — this one had so many parts to it. It’s an unbelievable story for one of many extra publicized playing cards in latest reminiscence.
Favourite 1/1 card: How would anybody not say the 1/1 card they’d most prefer to possess could be the Michael Jordan/Kobe Bryant 2007-08 Higher Deck Beautiful Assortment twin Logoman patch autographed card that offered for almost $13 million earlier this yr? Duh!!!
On a extra life like facet, let’s go together with one which’s nonetheless not essentially in my worth vary, however one that will carry some sentimental worth. I’ll take a 2020 Panini Flawless Joe Burrow/Drew Brees twin autographed 1/1 card. This goes again to my days of overlaying the precise sport of soccer. Having coated Brees for his complete 15-year Saints profession, in addition to Burrow’s two seasons at LSU, it could be cool to have the perfect combo card for simply the perfect two gamers I’ve ever chronicled regularly.
Larry Holder’s dream card. Picture: eBay
David Betancourt, editor
Favourite story: Mine was one which resulted in two nice tales from Larry Holder involving the important thing piece to skilled soccer in Washington remaining related for years to return, Jayden Daniels. Not even an injury-filled sophomore season can preserve down my pleasure for Daniels’ playing cards. Daniels’ 2024 Prizm Black Finite card went from the fingers of a collector named Dr. Moist Muffins (maybe the perfect identify within the interest), who ultimately offered it to Josh Roth and Jacob Ramos of Rothcards, to the grasp of Washington Commanders proprietor Josh Harris in a half-million-dollar sale at a Topps commerce night time. My hope is that this card is on show at RFK Stadium 2.0 within the close to future in Washington, D.C.
Favourite 1/1 card: Batman had a memorable 2025 on the earth of collectibles. Absolute Batman is among the hottest-selling comedian books of the yr (even uncooked, non-graded copies of the primary subject are promoting for premium costs), and Gotham Metropolis received the Valuable Steel Gems remedy when Higher Deck’s Skybox Steel Universe Batman playing cards launched in November. As has been the case with earlier iterations of this model from the NBA to the Marvel universe, PMGs of the highest characters are a giant deal. Touchdown the Batman 1/1 Gold PMG from this set could be fairly the bat-pull.
It is the crown jewel of the Skybox Steel Universe Batman buying and selling card set! Chase the Valuable Steel Gems earlier than the Darkish Knight’s rogue gallery will get their fingers on them! pic.twitter.com/v3VmZbnBJZ
— Higher Deck Leisure (@UpperDeckEnt) November 13, 2025
Brooks Peck, senior editor
Favourite story: I actually loved the story of Valerie Coleman’s Clark hit as a result of it’s crammed with a lot kindness and speaks to the communities that type round this nice interest. It’s all the time good to see somebody like that rewarded with one of many yr’s high chase playing cards.
Favourite 1/1 card: I used to be fortunate sufficient to purchase one among my favourite 1/1 playing cards in early 2025 — the 2024 Topps Transcendent Chase Utley patch autographed card, which features a star that dotted an “i” in “Phillies” on one among his game-used jerseys. I wouldn’t thoughts pairing it with one other star-patch autographed card, perhaps a Bryce Harper or Jimmy Rollins, sooner or later, however that is one which’s by no means leaving my assortment.
What are your favourite 1/1 playing cards and tales? Tell us within the feedback!
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