NFTs to strengthen the market for sports memorabilia to 227.2 billion dollars by 2032, says study

• The market for sports memorabilia is expected to grow with a CAGR of 21.8% from 2022 to 2032
• Market size estimated at USD 26 billion in 2021

The market for sports memorabilia is set to reach USD 227.2 billion by 2032, representing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 21.8 percent over the next ten years, according to new data from Market Decipher.

The report from the market research and consulting firm estimated the market size for sports memorabilia at $ 26 billion in 2021. Collectibles for non-fungible tokens (NFT) are currently estimated at $ 1.4 billion and are estimated to reach $ 92 billion by 2032.

Although the NFT segment is seeing much faster growth, due to its emerging industry character and rapid adoption, the memorabilia industry is still a leader in the sports collector sector, the report continues.

Market Decipher states that several factors have led to a significant increase in the prices of sports memorabilia in recent years. This includes the growing wealth of baby boomers, the presence of millennials in the market and the growing interest from foreign buyers.

Gamed items such as balls and jerseys are in high demand, while baseball trading cards had “a remarkable market share” in 2021. Sportswear currently has a market share of 30 percent.

With the exception of trading cards and NFTs, the market for nuclear sports memorabilia is estimated at $ 12.2 billion in 2021, growing at a rate of 15.6 percent from 2022 to 2032.

The ordinary market for physical collectibles is expected to remain stable. However, Market Decipher notes that NFTs are taking a “downward flip” at the end of the year, as well as a decline in the value of cryptocurrencies. Nevertheless, the report says that the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) Top Shot digital collectibles platform, which has stretched over $ 1 billion in sales in two years, still has great growth potential.

Market Decipher adds that NFT sports collectibles are expected to have an exponential growth of 38 percent from 2022 to 2032. NFTs will also cross half the value of physical collectibles by 2032.

The study cites auction sites such as Ebay and Auction of Champions as having helped transform sports collectibles and the memorabilia industry.

Per sport, football leads the industry’s sales of sports memorabilia by USD 2.5 billion, only with a view to the sale of memorabilia, according to Market Decipher. The trading card business is also bringing in around $ 2.5 billion in sales for football collectibles. The NBA, National Hockey League (NHL), National Football League (NFL) and Major League Baseball (MLB) have been identified as having the majority of the market share.

The United States leads the industry on a regional basis with around 70 percent of the market in 2021. The Asia-Pacific countries (APAC) are recovering rapidly and are experiencing a growth of 34 percent in the overall market for collectibles for sports memorabilia.

China is still a large market for collectibles, and India is emerging as an important NFT destination. The UK leads the European market. The Middle East region is also forecast to experience a growth of 29.8 percent in the forecast period.