Important points
- Sotheby's will auction off millions of dollars worth of sports memorabilia as part of its new annual “Sports Week.”
- Sports Week items include jerseys worn by Kobe Bryant and LeBron James, as well as Muhammad Ali's boxing trunks.
- The new service comes just months after Sotheby's established a partnership with the NBA.
As the sporting goods market heats up, Sotheby's is offering millions of dollars worth of sports memorabilia as part of its new annual “Sports Week” spanning six live and online auctions from March 27 to April 12. We plan to auction off the items.
The auction house will sell collectibles such as apparel worn by Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Michael Jordan. Highlights include the tennis racket worn by Novak Djokovic at the 2015 US Open, an autographed Air Jordan worn by Jordan himself during the 1996 NBA Finals, and the one used in Tom Brady's final game of his NFL career. That includes football and the jersey worn by Victor Wembaneyama at this year's U.S. Open. NBA All-Star Game.
The prize money for Kobe Bryant's jersey in the 2009 NBA Finals is expected to be between $1.5 million and $2.5 million. The boxing trunks worn by Muhammad Ali during his 1975 fight with rival Joe Frazier in the Philippines could fetch between $4 million and $6 million.
This isn't Sotheby's first foray into the world of sports merchandise. Last year, the auction house sold a set of jerseys worn by Lionel Messi at the 2022 World Cup and a set of individual sneakers worn by Michael Jordan in each NBA Championship game. Messi's jersey reportedly sold for $7.8 million, and the Air Jordan Dynasty Collection sold for $8 million.
The auction house also works extensively with the NBA, which partnered with Sotheby's on its All-Star Game collection. They auctioned off 64 game-worn jerseys last year and will auction off similar collectibles from the 2024 NBA Finals this summer as part of a multi-year partnership announced last November. It's planned.
Sotheby's first 'Sports Week' comes amidst reportedly unprecedented growth in the sports memorabilia market, with Sotheby's anticipating breakthrough sales in sneakers and sports memorabilia categories in 2022. “In 2023, we once again demonstrated the strength of collectibles worn in games.''
