In the marvelous world of trading cards, a seismic shift has cracked the landscape open like a pack of first editions—Pokémon cards have charged past sports cards to reign as undisputed champions in the realm of third-party grading in 2025. In a world where nostalgia meets investment potential, and where every cardboard square holds not just a picture but a story, Pokémon cards have emerged as the darling of collectors and investors alike.
Data fresh from GemRate, the market whisperer of all things graded, reveals an astonishing monopoly: 97 out of the top 100 most-graded cards at PSA belong to the Pokémon franchise. Let’s just say, if trading cards were a zoo, Pokémon would be the rampaging Pikachu in the room, and sports cards would be the faint whiff of popcorn from last season’s game. Non-sports and TCG cards now account for 59% of all graded submissions across the major authenticators, clearly marking an evolution in collector preferences that rivals the very metamorphosis of a Magikarp into a Gyarados.
From January through June 2025, an eye-watering 7.2 million TCG and non-sports cards were graded, exhibiting a colossal 70% surge compared to last year’s numbers. Meanwhile, sports card submissions tell a tale of decline with just 5.1 million submissions—a 9% decrease that must have them wondering if they used a master ball to capture this trend.
Leading the charge in this collecting craze is not some new hotshot rookie destined for a big league hall of fame, but a familiar electrical rodent: Pikachu. With over 345,000 graded examples this year alone, the franchise mascot has not just stolen but outright hugged the spotlight. Among Pikachu’s many forms, the “Pikachu with Grey Felt Hat” card has emerged as a cultural icon, birthed from a whimsical collaboration with the Van Gogh Museum. This card, despite its abundant population of 84,000 copies, still commands a princely sum of over $900 for those rare PSA 10 graded specimens.
On the sports front, struggle thy name is vintage parallels. Only three sports cards have managed to infiltrate PSA’s top 100: rookie wonders and momentous milestones from the 2024 Panini Prizm and Donruss sets edge their way into the countdown but fail to spark the kind of frenzy that Pokémon now enjoys.
By the dog days of June, an already pronounced shift was undeniable. With TCG and non-sports cards chewing through 63% of the submission pie, PSA stood tall, having graded 911,000 cards in these categories, a feat that puts their competition in the dust with a mere 743,000 sports submissions across the big four graders.
In an especially Pokémonian twist of fate, CGC Cards has swooped into the forefront of this cardboard revolution, driven largely by Pikachu’s posse. Nearly matching the blinkered output from 2024, CGC boasts grading 2.18 million cards thus far in 2025, with over 1.8 million dedicated to TCG and non-sports wonders.
In a world of thriving partnerships and cross-promotions, PSA’s strategic alliance with GameStop is akin to a Blastoise with a water cannon—a surefire impact weapon. Launched in October, the collaboration has already netted over 1 million grading submissions, further stoking the flames of an unyielding Pokémon frenzy.
Meanwhile, Beckett, once a titanic force in grading prestige, has seen its stocks tumble to humble fourth place. Of its 366,000 graded cards this year, around 214,000 were Pokémon or TCG cards, indicating a significant shift even within its customer base.
The ripple effect of this Pokémon pandemonium has shaken retail shelves. Shelves swept clean, queues that stretch beyond the horizon, and limit-per-customer provisions stretched to their limits are now the retail norm. Just as a Charizard first edition has transcended its inky origins to become a symbol of a new gilded age, so too, has the Pokémon franchise captured the collective imagination, refusing to loosen a grip that only seems to tighten as the months roll by.
Collectors and speculators alike flood arenas with wallets wide and eyes wilder still, yearning not just for the chase, but for the story that each card tells, for the nostalgia it kindles, and the possibilities it hints at. Pokemon cards, with their Technicolor aura and the charisma to pivot economies, continue their historic march, heralding a new era where Pokémon dominates not just playrooms, but portfolio rooms too.
