Sports Cards Connection

Name

Sports Cards Connection

Legal name

The Cardboard Connection

Website

https://cardboardconnection.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sports Collectibles Content & Affiliate Marketplace

NAICS

Hobby, Toy, and Game Retailers (45912), Sporting Goods Retailers (45911)

SIC

Retail-Hobby, Toy & Game Shops (5945)

akta.pro primary industry

Sports Collectibles Marketplace & Auction Platforms (CRAMAOAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Sports Trading Cards Retail (CRALAGAA), Sporting Goods, Outdoor & Fitness Marketplaces (CRAFABAI)

Keywords

• Sports card collecting
• Trading card reviews
• Hobby box checklists
• Card collecting community
• Memorabilia marketplace

Headquarters

HQ city

Atlanta

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Affiliate Commission Revenue: The site earns commissions when users click on merchant links and make purchases through the eBay Partner Network and other affiliate programs. This is the primary revenue stream mentioned across all source pages.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Sports Cards Connection (The Cardboard Connection) is a content aggregation and affiliate commerce platform serving sports card and memorabilia hobbyists. The site publishes comprehensive product reviews, set checklists, release calendars, hot-player and auction tracking, player collecting profiles, and a community forum, earning revenue primarily through affiliate commissions when users click through to merchant listings (chiefly eBay) and complete purchases.

Product overview

Cardboard Connection is a comprehensive sports card and memorabilia content platform that aggregates and organizes information across major trading card brands (Upper Deck, Panini, Topps, Leaf) and sports categories (NHL, NBA, NFL, MLB, Soccer, WWE, Non-Sport). The platform serves as an authority site offering product set reviews and checklists organized by sport and release year, a community forum for collectors, eBay auction search integration, card collecting supplies marketplace, hot player tracking, release calendars, and newsletters. The offering functions primarily as an information and affiliate-based marketplace aggregation service rather than a standalone product platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Sports Card Set Reviews and Checklists Comprehensive database of sports card set information covering product profiles, full checklists, set details, expert analysis, release dates, hobby box pricing, and pack odds for trading card products across multiple sports leagues.
• Product Reviews Expert analysis and detailed breakdowns of sports card products, including set reviews, parallel tiers, insert print runs, pack odds, and collector guides.
• New Release Calendar Calendar tracking upcoming and newly released sports card products across all major brands and sports categories.
• Hot Players Tracker Real-time tracking system for hot trading card singles by set and player, plus top 50 most watched eBay sports card auction tracker.
• Auction Search (eBay) Search eBay by most watched items, price, ending time and more for sports card singles and memorabilia.
• Player Collecting Profiles Dedicated player pages featuring rookie card checklists, buying guides, and collecting profiles for notable athletes including Derek Jeter, Mickey Mantle, Kobe Bryant, Mike Trout, Wayne Gretzky, Tom Brady, Michael Jordan, and LeBron James.
• Cardboard Connection Forum Community discussion forum for sports card collectors to discuss collecting, trading, buying, and selling.
• Cardboard Connection Insider Newsletter Daily email newsletter providing hobby news updates, newly announced product details, comprehensive set checklists, and contest/giveaway information.
• How-To Guides Educational resources and guides for sports card collectors covering grading, buying, selling, and collecting best practices.
• Collecting Supplies Directory Trading card and memorabilia supplies directory featuring storage, protection, and organization products for collectors.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Beckett: Long-established sports card and collectibles media brand providing pricing guides, checklists, news, and grading services. Directly comparable as a content authority and reference resource for sports card collectors, with overlapping product coverage and audience.
• Sports Collectors Daily: Online sports card and memorabilia news/content site covering releases, auctions, and hobby news. Closely comparable content-led, SEO-driven model targeting the same collector audience with news and product coverage.
• 130point: Sports card sales and auction tracking platform aggregating marketplace data for collectors. Comparable as an affiliate/data-driven hobby resource that helps collectors track prices and transactions across marketplaces.
• Blowout Cards: Major online sports card retailer with a popular community forum and hobby content. Comparable as a hybrid retailer/community/forum destination for sports card collectors with overlapping monetization and audience.
• Card Ladder: Sports card pricing data and market analytics platform. Comparable as a data-driven hobby resource serving collectors and investors with pricing intelligence and market tracking tools.

Broad incumbents

• PWCC Marketplace: Large-scale sports card auction house and marketplace. Overlaps with Cardboard Connection's eBay auction tracking and collector audience, but operates a proprietary trading venue rather than an affiliate content model.
• Goldin Auctions: Premium sports collectibles auction house covering cards, memorabilia, and more. Comparable as a destination for high-end card transactions tracked and researched by the same collector audience Cardboard Connection serves.
• PSA (Professional Sports Authenticator): Leading sports card grading service with a price guide and population reporting tools. Comparable as a collector resource and existing advertising partner, with overlapping audience interest in card values and authentication.
• Whatnot: Live auction and marketplace platform for collectibles including sports cards. Comparable as both a commercial destination (advertising partner) and a potential disintermediator of affiliate-driven hobby traffic.
• eBay: Global online marketplace and the platform whose Partner Network generates Cardboard Connection's primary revenue. Comparable as the underlying commerce venue whose listings the site aggregates, tracks, and links to.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sportscards
• Facebookfacebook.com/thecardboardconnection

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sports Cards Connection