In the lives of many people around the globe, sports are a very important aspect. It is a staple of culture and after a long day’s work, a source of entertainment. There are sports fans who collect memorabilia from their favourite players, sports or games. These items tend to become quite expensive over time. Real fans don’t mind paying the tag price of course. Which items in the sports world are most valuable? Here are the top ten.
$4,415,658 Babe Ruth Jersey
With a total of seven hundred thirteen homeruns, Babe Ruth retired in 1925.He is the irrefutable greatest baseball player of all time. Babe wore a jersey that was sold for almost four and a half million dollars. This makes it the all-time highest selling sports memorabilia. In 1920, the jersey was worn and it was also the earliest he had ever worn with the team. In Baltimore, the jersey had been on display and no one knows the reason it was auctioned.
$4,338,500 The Founding Rules of Basketball by James Naismith
The game of basketball gives credit for its creation to James Naismith. For forty years at Kansas University, he was the Athletic Director. The rules he created in 1891 sold for almost four and a half million dollars when it was on the auction block. He is also credited with helmet creation for the protection of players. He was Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame’s first member.
$3,000,000 Seventieth Home Run Ball of Mark McGwire
Nicknamed Big Mac, Mark McGwire played baseball for sixteen years. In 1988 he broke the record with home runs totalling seventy in all. He had hit five hundred eighty-three home runs in his career in 1988. The ball he hit for his seventieth home run sold for three million dollars. He hit this ball from the Montreal Expo’s Carl Pavano in the season’s last bat. The game was won six to three with the win going to the St Louis Cardinals.
2.8 Million The 1909 Baseball Card by Honus Wagner
The Flying Dutchman was the nickname of Honus Wagner. He played with the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Louisville Colonels for twenty-one years. In 1939 he was inducted into the Hall of Fame of Baseball. Most believe that Wagner was the game’s all-time greatest players. The American Tobacco Company wanted to include a 1909 baseball card of him. This was not allowed to be done by Wagner so there were only sixty packs released of the two hundred produced. He did not want kids to purchase a pack of cigarettes just to get a card with him on it.
$1.4 Million Soccer Rule Book
Soccer is one of the world’s most popular sports. On each team there are eleven players and the game is played on a field shaped like a rectangle. In over two hundred countries, soccer is played, making it the world’s most popular sport. All players need to use only there head or feet to touch the ball. The goal keepers are allowed to use their arms or hands to touch the ball exclusively. Written in 1858, the rule book of soccer is the first known set or rules for soccer. It is believed to be the only print copy surviving of the Sheffield Football Club Rules, Regulations and Laws.
$1.275, 707 Summit Series Jersey of Paul Henderson
Canada professional ice hockey player Paul Henderson scored three out of the 1972 games against Russia. He scored the winning goal and wore number nineteen. He played for The Birmingham Bulls and the Toronto Toros. With all the league game success, his career highlight still remains to be the 1972 Summit Series. Into the Canadian Hall of Fame, he was voted twice. One as the Canadian national team member in 1995 and the other one as an individual player in 1994.
$1,265,000 Yankee Stadium First Home Run Babe Ruth Bat
The three nicknames of Babe Ruth were The Sultan of Swat, the Bambino and Babe. He lived up to each and every one of those nicknames. Babe Ruth in 1920 hit a total number of fifty-four home runs and the first one being against The Boston Red Sox, which happened to be the team that sold him. The bat he used is the highest sold bat in the history of the world. Of all time, Babe Ruth remains one of the best loved players of baseball the world over. When it comes to sports memorabilia, the ones from Babe Ruth has always been in the lead in terms of sales. The weight of the bat is forty-two ounces and the length is thirty-six inches. For every home run he made in a year, Babe Ruth reportedly carved a notch.
$1,100,000 Boxing Gloves of Muhammad Ali Fight Against Floyd Patterson in 1965
Voted on of the century’s top sportsman, Muhammad Ali was born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr. In the year 1965 he played against Floyd Patterson in a Las Vegas, Nevada heavyweight title fight. These gloves for fighting from that fight was sold for 1.1 million dollars. This was the second fight for championship that Ali had gone through. Most people say that Ali prolonged the fight against Patterson due to the taunts and did not knock out Patterson until round number twelve.
$996,000 Yankees Contract of 1919 with Babe Ruth
For the Boston Red Sox, there were twenty-nine home runs done by Babe Ruth and everyone was shocked to see him playing for the New York Yankees after he was sold. For his new team he hit fifty-four home runs. The contract was sold for almost a million dollars. It shows how Ruth was sold to the Yankees from Boston. Stated in the contract is that if Babe did not show up for the 1920 training he was to return the first payment.
$940,000 Called Shot 1932 Babe Ruth Jersey
Babe Ruth, whose full name was George Herman Ruth Jr played for three different teams. Known for his home run power, he had also been a right fielder and a pitcher. One legendary home run known as the called shot of Babe Ruth was when Babe was given a hard time by the Cubs and he pointed to the bleachers hitting his home run exactly to where he pointed.
What sports memorabilia do you have lying around? They may be worth a fortune particularly if they are similar to the ones listed here.