Investing in Football Memorabilia: How to Bag a Bargain

The craze around collecting football memorabilia seems to be making a comeback. But, many fans now aren’t sure of what to look for and how much an item they already own in storage could be worth.

With this guide we’ll take a look at football programmes in particular and along the way. We’ll cover which editions have sold for the most money and offer you advice on how you can get started collecting rare footie programmes today…

Football match programmes: the history

The initial football programmes were published and launched alongside the Football League launch in 1888. Unlike today, the aim of a programme was to keep score and it was made up of a single sheet detailing the teams and match date.

Football fans are likely to have heard of the Villa News and Record for Aston Villa — one of the first programmes released. Soon after, the football programme took on a weightier format of between four and eight pages, while the covers became more attention-grabbing and attractive. 

During and after World War II, a paper shortage cut the number of programmes that clubs could produce — making any that were released very collectible today.




Did you know, football programmes started out as pocket sized but then were later developed to A4? From a single sheet of basic info, the availability of saddle stitched and a growth in popularity turned football programmes into thick, glossy books crammed with trivia, statistics and high-resolution photos that fans loved to buy before every match.

These days fans rely on football programmes for player information. The programme can also act as a mouthpiece for the club in question, allowing managers and players to speak to fans via interviews and club statements.

What price should you pay?

Some professional collectors will pay out a lot of money for certain football programmes. In 2012, a family from Ipswich managed to make around £46,000 by auctioning off a set of football programmes they stumbled across in their house, which goes to show how easy it is to not realise the treasure you have sitting around your home.

Fairly recently, New Bond Street auctioned the oldest-known programmed from a Football Association Cup Final for £30,000 — detailing Old Etonians vs Blackburn Rovers from 1882. Similarly, in 2012, the single sheet programme from 1909 between Manchester United and Bristol City sold for £23,500.

Examples of some very valuable programmes

Football programmes have always been significant part of a match day, but how collectable are they really? Reports have suggested that the first Wembley final programme dating back to 1923 between Bolton and West Ham United is worth just £1,000. 

Alternatively, there’s the programme from the one and only time a non-English club lifted the FA Cup — Cardiff City vs Arsenal in 1927 — which ended with a score of 1-0 and has a value of about £2,500!

However, a programmes worth a lot more is the 1966 England vs West Germany. But be warned; there were three reprints of the original, so tracking down a bona fide version is tough. 

If you want to be sure you’re buying an original, check the weight and colouring — the reprints are more lightweight, while the front cover of the original is a deep, royal blue. Different paper types are also used for the team pages in the original, but not in the reprinted versions.

Hang onto any cancelled game programmes as they’re worth something too — take the Manchester United vs Wolverhampton Wanderers game in 1958 following the Munich air disaster. 

This can go to auction for around £10,000. However, once rescheduled, another programme was created where the club showed respect to those involved in the disaster by leaving the team page blank.

A set of handy tips for collectors

Make sure you grab a bargain if you can, when it comes to football programmes:

• Age — anything over 50 years old is most collectible. 
• Rarity — if there are many available, this will bring the value down. 
• Popularity — programmes with an iconic footballer on the cover or detailing a famous match are the most prized and valuable. 
• Condition — creases, missing staples and water damage all harm the programme’s price, so ask for a photo before you pay. 

There are a wide range of programmes in existence that are valuable, so it’s worth collecting them at any match you go to — especially if it also specifies a special event, such as the last time a player plays. 

Also, certain teams typically hold greater monetary value than others when it comes to programme collecting — although, programmes from your team’s past will be more personally valuable to you. Sides such as Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool, Spurs, West Ham, and Arsenal are all highly sought after and are worth keeping an eye out for if you want a particularly valuable item. The Football Programme Centre is also a good source of advice if you’re keen on becoming a serious collector.

Where The Trade Buys are print experts and retailers, based online and in the UK. As well as offering bollard signs for businesses, they specialise in promotional and office print services for B2B industries.

Sources:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-18399222

https://www.antiquestradegazette.com/news/2013/auction-record-for-any-football-programme/

https://www.justcollecting.com/miscellania/top-5-most-fascinating-football-programmes

http://www.footballprogrammecentre.co.uk/football-programme-guide.php

Want to Keep Collecting and Save Money? Here's 5 Places You Should Look

For collectors, it is always a constant task to look for new treasures and add them to a growing collection. This is a pleasant and enjoyable hobby for many, even (and perhaps especially) at an older age. However, at times, it can be difficult to know where to find the best pieces and easily expand the collection, especially if you're on a budget. By frequenting the most popular places to look for collectibles, it can make for a great way to find rare products at a great price. 

1. Antique Stores 

Antique shops are an ideal place to find unique items that are still in great condition and are well-preserved. It can be an enjoyable experience to scour the store and be able to view hundreds of incredible items, while having the opportunity to ask questions about the history of each item.

For those who want to purchase a number of collectibles, antique malls are an ideal place to frequent and find dozens of merchants in one location. This is a great place to barter and negotiate with sellers. If you ever spend over $20 at an antique mall, ask for a 10% discount—you should receive it. This little secret can end up saving you lots!

2. Pawn Shops

Pawn shops only sell items that have value, making it easy to find historic products that can increase in value. Jewelry is a high commodity, along with coins, stamps, and musical instruments for plenty of like items. If an item is too expensive, it's appropriate to ask for a cheaper price, as well as pawn a separate item to be able to make the purchase. If you're looking at boats, vehicles, or aircraft for sale, you should keep in mind that the pawn shop will probably rack up the price higher than they bought it for (so be willing to pay more).

3. Garage Sales

It may take a bit of work and energy to dig through another person's personal belongings, but garage sales are one of the best places to search for valuable finds after people often clean out the garage or attic. Better yet, you'll probably find collectibles at their cheapest here. Precious dolls, pocket watches, and antique spoons are a common find for those who frequent the weekend deals.

For older products, estate sales often sell hundreds of items that may be worth even more they are selling for. Keep on the lookout for items like this. If you live in a neighborhood that doesn't hold a lot of garage sales, go to a local thrift store. You can find things for very cheap there, and quite often there are hidden treasures amongst all the junk.

4. The Internet

For those searching for a specific item to add to their collection, the best place to look is online where a basic search can pull up hundreds of websites. Online sellers often sell specific products, making it easier to purchase a gem for a convenient process that beats driving around town. You can try sites like eBay for online auctions; often you can get a really good deal that way, and you can control how much you pay. If you're looking for larger items, such as collectibles cars or planes, you can try trade-a-plane.com. Sites like these will have Trade a Plane airplanes for sale which you can find for a good price. Make sure you don't outbid yourself and end up paying more than you wanted.

5. Flea Markets

Flea markets are an upgrade to garage sales, making it easy to shop in one place for rare finds that are hard to find in stores. Flea markets are often a place where the work has been done for you by merchants who scour garage sales and then sell their best finds. You can barter here as well and get a good price on a valuable item.

5 Valuable Collectibles You Didn't Know You Had

As we all know there are lots of cool antiques out there that could be worth a lot of money. Each time we go to our parents’ home or grandparent’s room we just look at all their old stuff and think to ourselves; how much is that worth? 

We see a lot of people take their collectibles and other antiques to pawn shops or sell them on EBay to try and make some extra cash. Sometimes they are getting robbed and don’t know it or they are potentially making bank off something simple they never knew was worth money. If you have seen an episode of “Pawn Stars” you know exactly what I mean. So how can you tell if you have anything worthwhile in your parents’ basement or grandparents’ house? Here are a couple of items that have been a hot commodity lately. 

Musical Instruments

If your Grandpa or Father played a guitar back in his day or was part of a garage band odds are he has a couple instruments lying around the house. You might want to look into them and see if there are any classic or vintage guitars. Some classic Les Pauls and Gibsons have been known to sell well over 20,000 dollars. There are other instruments too like antique player pianos and grand pianos. If you happen to stumble across a player piano that has some old paper music sheets then you might want to get that restored and appraised.

Chest

These are something that most old timers have lying around somewhere in their house. Trunks, chest or anything of the sort that has been hand crafted might just make you singing all the way to the bank, especially if you have a treasure chest lying around the house. Those have been have been known to go for over 100,000 dollars. Move over retirement! 

Rare Money or Coins

This one is kind of simple because we see coin commercials all the time on television. Old money that is no longer in circulation could be worth a lot of money. For example if you have a US quarter that was printed in 1960 the starting price is worth $3-5 dollars. Sometimes you will see companies and restaurants offer free ice cream for coins like this. Let’s be honest though if someone is offering you free ice cream for a special kind of coin, it’s probably worth looking into.

Patches and Pins

If your parents went through a hippie stage or punk stage then there is a good chance that they have some patches or pins lying around the house from “the good ole days.” Take a look at them and see if they are salvageable. If they are near mint condition or better then there is a good chance that they can bring in a pretty penny or two. Odds are it would be worth more than what your parents paid for it. Or you could see if you have any old pins for trading that you might have gotten from Disneyland or other amusement parks. There are a lot of collectors out there that are willing to top notch for something simple like that. However, if you are interested in just getting some fun looking pins or customizable ones you can always check out cheappins.com for more information.

There are many ways to go about selling some of your collectibles or seeing if they are worth anything. You can take a picture of the item then upload it to Google images to see if there are any other results that look similar to it. You can also check out EBay or Amazon for some ideas on what they are going for. Who knows what you can find lying around your house.