11 May 2026
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Logan Paul recently sold The Pokemon Iluustrator Card for a record breaking amount at auction, but where did the card come from? Here is everything we know about the Pokemon card sale and its origins.
Logan Paul, YouTuber and internet personality announced at the end of last year that his Pokémon Illustrator card was expected to go up for auction early 2026.
Paul purchased what is widely regarded as one of the most high-profile collectibles in existence back in 2022. He paid a staggering $5.28 million for the card, a purchase that earned him a Guinness World Record for the most expensive Pokémon trading card ever sold.
The trading card itself has been graded PSA 10 and is one of only 53 examples to receive a perfect grade from PSA.
Paul has famously taken to wearing the Pokémon card as part of a custom diamond and crystal necklace, using it as a symbolic statement piece. But where did this legendary card originally come from?
The History of the Illustrator Card
In November 1997, a contest was announced in the Japanese magazine CoroCoro Comic. The competition invited readers to design and draw their own Pokémon cards and submit them to the magazine.
Twenty contestants were awarded an Excellence Prize, with each winner receiving what would later become the now illustrious and incredibly rare Pokémon Illustrator card.
Due to its extreme scarcity, immense value, and prestigious pedigree, this Pikachu Illustrator represents one of the most significant public offerings of a Pokémon card in the history of the hobby and a potentially once-in-a-lifetime sale.
Suggested article: What Makes a Pokemon Card Valuable Today?
The $16.5M Trading Card Sale
In February 2026, Logan Paul sold the ultra-rare trading card with Goldin Auctions for $16.5 million (£12 million).
The winning bidder was AJ Scaramucci, son of financer and former White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci.
AJ said it was the first acquisition of a planned “planetary treasure hunt.”
The whole auction was livestreamed on Paul’s YouTube with Paul saying the auction result was “absolutely insane.”
Scaramucci then shocked everyone when he said he is on a quest to begin “collecting the uncollectable”, including a T-Rex dinosaur fossil and the Declaration of Independence.
Photo from: Goldin Auctions
In the sale Paul included the diamond necklace he used to wear it during his WWE debut at WrestleMania 38 in 2022. He presented Scaramucci with the card by hanging it around his neck.
As the Pokemon Illustrator card changed hands once again, the record-breaking sale highlights just how far trading cards have evolved from childhood collectables to serious cultural artefacts.
This has set a new benchmark for what the hobby can achieve at its very highest level, I wonder what comes next.
Keep an eye out at Collectors Club if you love all things trading cards! There is loads more to come!