Even after decades away from the game, Joe Montana's presence in the football card market hasn’t faded. His 1981 Topps rookie card, long considered a staple in the hobby, continues to draw interest from collectors—especially in higher grades.
Montana, often celebrated as the original "GOAT" of the NFL, helped define professional football in the 1980s. His cool demeanor under pressure and clutch performances in Super Bowls cemented his legacy with the 49ers. The rookie card, showing Montana in a clean dropback pose, remains one of the most recognizable cards from the era.
Over the past three months, PSA 10 copies of the card have seen a nearly 17% rise, with the most recent sale landing at $48,800. That’s a massive jump from a 2005 auction, where the same grade sold for just over $4,000. With only 115 PSA 10s in existence, scarcity continues to drive those numbers up.
In the PSA 9 tier, sales have hovered just above the $2,000 mark—an 11% increase since early spring. That’s a big leap from where things stood in 2010, when you could grab one for about $300. The PSA 9 population is over 2,100, but demand has held firm thanks to Montana’s continued relevance in sports conversations.
PSA 8s, which are far more common with a population close to 10,000, still trade consistently in the $300–$400 range. The average recent sale sits at $329, although these have dipped about 5% over the past few months.
Montana’s career might be long over, but the impact he made on football—and on the collecting world—is clearly still being felt. Whether for nostalgia or investment, his rookie card continues to be one of the hobby’s most enduring and sought-after pieces.