I have always been an avid collector of sports cards.  My collection has grown tremendously and I still have fond memories of getting supplies for my collection with my father.  Over the years sports cards have changed.  The future of card collecting has arrived.  Panini has introduced the first video trading card.  I recently had a chance to see this card at a sports card convention and it is absolutely amazing.  The card is a larger and much thicker than your typical sports card.  It shows a detailed video of the player including some of his greatest highlights.  The football cards are going to be numbered which will make them collector’s items right when they hit the market. It also means that they will not be that cheap.  Panini has yet to release the pricing on these amazing cards and currently it seems that they were at the show trying to see how customers react.

How the Hobby Will Change in The Near Future

As licensing of baseball cards and football cards gets more and more expensive companies will start producing unlicensed cards.  Most of these cards will not have team logos but will be licensed by the players association.  I am not sure how collectors will feel about this but so far buyers are more concerned with the design of the cards more than licensing.

Expect card manufacturers to start adding more autographs cards and jersey items to make up for lack of licensing.  Upper Deck is working on some new products when it comes to the way they print sports cards which may be interesting.  Some of the hockey cards that they have produced are some of the most futuristic cards I have ever seen.  One of the sets that are a great example of futuristic card design is the Upper Deck ICE cards produced in 2010.

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