In a world where once only the most celebrated sports heroes graced trading cards, a fantastical invasion has taken place. Imagine a landscape dominated not by consistently goal-scoring soccer players or touchdown-celebrating quarterbacks, but by electrifying creatures and whimsical trainers. Welcome to 2025, a year when Pokémon cards have not only surged in popularity but have entirely transformed the card grading industry.
According to newly released statistics from GemRate, Pokémon cards have muscled their way into the hearts — and collections — of millions, leaving sports cards trailing in their dust. The numbers are staggering: 97 out of the top 100 most-graded cards at PSA, one of the leading companies in card grading, hail from the Pokémon franchise. This isn’t just a trend — it’s a full-scale coup d’état.
The first half of 2025 saw a monumental swell in demand for graded Pokémon and TCG (Trading Card Game) cards. These colorful little rectangles of nostalgia and wonder accounted for an astonishing 59% of all graded submissions among the four biggest authenticators in the business. Between January and June alone, grading companies handled 7.2 million TCG and non-sports cards. That’s right, millions of cards, each handled with the characteristic white-glove treatment of the grading process.
For perspective, this represents a 70% increase compared to the same period last year, during 2024, while sports card submissions shifted gears into reverse, receding by 9% and ending totaling just 5.1 million submissions.
The card ruling the roost in terms of sheer grading numbers is the Japanese Iono’s Wattrel Battle Partners Promo No. 232, with a jaw-dropping 45,600 copies submitted. However, the franchise’s heartthrob, Pikachu, continues to charm collectors worldwide. In an unlikely twist, the “Pikachu with Grey Felt Hat” card from the collaboration with the Van Gogh Museum has become a star — 84,000 of them have been graded to date, and despite the profusion, immaculate PSA 10 examples are hotly contested, with sales peaking at over $900.
In sharp contrast, sports cards are noticeably conspicuous by their absence among the top spots — a mere trio cracked PSA’s top 100. Rookie star Jayden Daniels appears twice, once in a Panini Prizm (#347) and another from a Donruss set (#389). Caitlin Clark’s WNBA ROY card is the only other contender, highlighting the shifting sands in the collectible world.
Breaking down the waves of enthusiasm further, June reflected a carnivalesque atmosphere for card graders. TCG and non-sports cards made up 63% of all submissions, with PSA sifting through 911,000 contributions in this category alone, eclipsing the collective sports card total, which registered a relatively modest 743,000 across the competition.
Among the trove of companies surfing this Pokémon tsunami, CGC Cards has been particularly buoyant. Nearing its annual record already, CGC has processed 2.18 million cards this year, with TCG and non-sports comprising a hefty portion. Beckett, once a stalwart, now lags, seeing its output waver into fourth place as Pokémon mania captivates the market, accounting for 214,000 of the 366,000 cards it has graded this year.
PSA’s rise has been further bolstered by a key partnership with GameStop, initiated last October. This savvy alliance has yielded over a million submissions, further fueling the insatiable craving for grading these coveted cards.
On the consumer front, Pokémon’s magnetism has sparked frantic buying sprees, leading to rapid sellouts and stringent buying limits at retailers. Fans don’t just crave the thrill of the hunt for their favorite Meditite or Snorlax; they relish the chase for collecting pristine, grade-worthy specimens.
The fervor surrounding Pokémon cards, tethered to the nostalgia of the ’90s and early 2000s but supercharged by today’s passion for tangible pop culture collectibles, shows no sign of abating. With Pokémon bearing its lightning bolt tail and fiery mane at the helm, the trading card universe has officially evolved, and for now, this new ecosystem appears thoroughly enchanted by what this collectible craze brings.
