Sports memorabilia has become a hot-ticket investment

On Sunday, a historic jersey worn by baseball legend Babe Ruth shattered the record for the most expensive piece of sports memorabilia ever auctioned off, at $24.1 million.

The record-setting New York Yankees jersey was worn by Ruth during his famous “called-shot” game in the 1932 World Series. As the legend goes, Ruth was being heckled by opposing Chicago Cubs players when he pointed deep into the center-field stands – then pounded the next pitch exactly in that direction for a home run.

When keeping it real goes… right? The jersey sale comes as the game-worn memorabilia market is experiencing a boom at least partly fueled by new authentication methods.

Photo-matching – an authentication process that involves matching the details of jerseys, shoes, or other objects to details seen in historical photos – has grown increasingly commonplace in the vintage sports memorabilia market, where an estimated 50%-80% of items are fraudulent.

• In 2021, 44% of the 25 most expensive pieces of sports memorabilia were photo-matched. By 2023, that figure had risen to 92%, including the newly sold Babe Ruth jersey.
• Over that same period, the number of game-worn sports memorabilia sales above $1 million nearly doubled, reaching 13 last year.

📸 Big picture: The sports memorabilia market is like a child trying to get some X Games-like air at the playground – on the upswing. Analysts say the industry has emerged in recent years as a blue-chip investment class alongside art, with returns consistently outpacing the S&P 500.