Caitlin Clark rookie card sells for more money than her WNBA rookie salary — and breaks her own record

David Suggs

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Caitlin Clark rookie card sells for more money than her WNBA rookie salary — and breaks her own record image

Caitlin Clark continues to turn records into ruins during a WNBA rookie season unlike any other.

Her latest landmark required far less exertion than she's used to. A trading card featuring Clark's likeness fetched a record-setting fee for women's basketball.

The card, a one-of-a-kind signed Panini Instant rookie card, sold Thursday night after a week of bidding. A photo of Clark on her draft night appears on the surface of the card, holding the Fever jersey she would soon make iconic.

The eye-watering price of the card beat out all other women's basketball trading cards — and even Clark's WNBA rookie salary. Here's what you need to know.

MORE: A'ja Wilson, Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese lead WNBA stats for 2024

How much did Caitlin Clark's rookie card sell for?

Clark's rookie card, a Blue Viper RC, garnered a final sale price of $84,000. The transaction represents the second-largest trading card sale in women's sports history, only eclipsed by Serena Williams, whose most expensive card sold for $266,400.

MORE: Inside the budding rivalry between Caitlin Clark and DiJonai Carrington

Friday's sale surpassed the record fee of most expensive women's basketball card, which was initially set by Clark after a one-of-one 2022 Bowman University Superfractor rookie old for $78,000 back in January.

With that sale, she moved past Mia Hamm and Naomi Osaka on the list of most expensive card sales of women athletes, as noted by Eric Whiteback (also known as "The Collectibles Guru") on X, the website formerly known as Twitter.

Clark still has a long way to go before surpassing Williams' record mark. Still, the record could come tumbling sooner rather than later; Goldin, a famed auction house for trading cards, is packaging Clark and Angel Reese's signed WNBA Draft Night cards together. The final sale of that package is expected to dwarf Clark's latest sale.

MORE: How Caitlin Clark's Fever can upset Sun in first round of WNBA playoffs

Caitlin Clark contract

The 22-year-old Fever phenom won't actually get to touch any of the funds which came from her latest card sale. Given the terms of her contract, which sees her make $76,535 as one of the 2024 WNBA Draft's top four picks, that could prove quite frustrating.

Clark shouldn't be smarting too much from missing out on the profits, though. She's accumulated millions of dollars worth of endorsement contracts, including a $28 million deal with Nike and a high-profile partnership with Gatorade.

David Suggs

David Suggs Photo

David Suggs is a content producer at The Sporting News. A long-suffering Everton, Wizards and Commanders fan, he has learned to get used to losing over the years. In his free time, he enjoys skateboarding (poorly), listening to the likes of Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye and D’Angelo, and penning short journal entries.