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The Best Sneakers and Sports Memorabilia to Gift this Holiday Season
Looking for the perfect gift this holiday season? Sotheby’s has got you covered with the hottest streetwear and sports memorabilia.
F rom game-worn jerseys to the hottest luxury collaborations, sports memorabilia and streetwear are among the hottest categories at Sotheby’s. This holiday season, two specialists, Brendan Hawkes and Eric LiBassi, offer their advice on some of the coolest items available for immediate purchase.
Game-Worn Gifts for the Sports Fan
“There’s no better way to commemorate your fandom than through something that one of your favorite players actually wore – no one else can own that piece from that moment. On our marketplace we have everything from jerseys to sneakers, but game-worn memorabilia has become exceptionally popular over the last five years.” —Brendan Hawkes
Sneakers with a Story
“In 2021, we sold Michael Jordan’s game-worn Air Ships for over $1 million at auction. Ever since, there’s been a massive boom in sneakers with that kind of heritage. Nike also makes a lot of custom stuff for athletes, like LeBron James and Kobe Bryant, which eventually led to bespoke kicks for other cultural figures, like Eminem and Travis Scott. The most coveted examples were made exclusively for the partner, are signed by them – or both.” —Eric LiBassi
The Biggest Collaborations
“Streetwear collaborations began in earnest around 2003 with Nike and Supreme. Possibly Nike’s most iconic collaboration was with Virgil Abloh and Louis Vuitton – those AF1s are still really desirable today. People like Abloh, Pharrell Williams and Bape really sparked this crossover between streetwear and luxury, so that now you’ve got Louis Vuitton making skateboards and Dior collaborating with Stussy.” —Eric LiBassi
Classic Streetwear Style
“Supreme was and is the godfather of streetwear. A lot of their good, early stuff from the 2000s and 2010s is coming around again – it’s the golden age of streetwear.” —Eric LiBassi
