Upper Deck Selling $25K Air Jordans Signed by Michael Jordan

Instead of rolling out another NFT into an increasingly crowded and confusing digital media memorabilia marketplace, Upper Deck just released a tangible piece of sports history you can hold in your hands (and maybe put on your feet if you are a size 13).

Starting today, Upper Deck will begin selling a series of Air Jordan sneakers signed by Michael Jordan himself; the first is a pair of Air Jordan 11 Retro “Bred” 2019s going for $25,000. Featuring premium black patent leather on the base of the upper shoe, ballistic mesh on the white midsole, a carbon fiber midfoot and a red translucent sole, the limited-edition shoes come with Jordan’s authenticated autograph in silver paint pen and a matching certificate of authenticity.

“MJ is the most valuable and collectible athlete in the world,” Upper Deck President Jason Masherah tells InsideHook. “He’s truly unique as an athlete and has the ability to connect with multiple generations of sports fans from all walks of life. The shoes themselves are extremely collectible along with the fact that Upper Deck hasn’t issued many MJ autographed shoes over the years, which makes the combination very limited and very valuable.”

An Upper Deck exclusive spokesman for over 30 years, Jordan wore the first iteration of these shoes on April 26, 1996, during a playoff run that led to his fourth NBA Championship and 1996 NBA Finals MVP trophy.

Meant to appeal to shoe collectors, memorabilia collectors and MJ fans, the pricey sneaks could also be viewed as an investment. “Any collectible, whether physical or digital, is only as valuable as someone is willing to pay for it,” Masherah says. “Upper Deck Authenticated Michael Jordan items have appreciated consistently over the past 10 years. We do not expect that trend to stop.”

But make sure you are buying the real deal.

“The collectible market is very hot and when the market heats up, it gives rise to more bad actors like forgers,” Masherah says. “If you are buying a Michael Jordan autographed item, make sure it has an Upper Deck Authenticated hologram and Certificate of Authenticity with a corresponding hologram and you can verify the authenticity at Upperdeck.com.”