You Must Catch Everything! Logan Paul Sells Pokémon Card for $16.4 Million
How much would you pay for the rarest Pokémon card?
On Feb. 16, YouTube creator turned WWE personality Logan Paul sold a 1998 Pokémon Pikachu Illustrator card, covered in a custom diamond necklace, for $16,492,000 at a Goldin’s online auction. Bidding for one-of-a-kind card and device began on Feb. 15 for $13.3 million.
Solari Capital founder AJ Scaramucci was the lucky buyer, according to Goldin’s press release. Paul had promised to deliver the card to the winner, but Scaramucci surprised the auctioneer as he was already at headquarters in person. Sales and releases were able to close all within the same day.
The sale broke the Guinness World Record for the most expensive Pokémon card sold at auction, the second time Paul and this card have broken a world record. Paul first bought the card in Dubai for $5,275,000 in 2021, setting a Guinness World Record for the most expensive Pokémon card sold privately, according to Guinness news.
Paul then wore the card, inside a custom diamond necklace, in his WWE debut at WrestleMania 38 in 2022. The card made another in-ring appearance in 2025, when Goldin’s CEO Ken Goldin wore something to coincide with the Jake Paul vs. This card also appeared in Season 3 of the Netflix series “King of Collectibles: The Goldin Touch.”
Pikachu Illustrator card in ‘absolutely perfect’ condition
The Pokémon Pikachu Illustrator card is categorized as a Professional Sports Authenticator as a Gem Mint 10, which is given as “almost perfect” cards. Of the 53 examples of the Pokémon Pikachu Illustrator card listed by PSA, Paul’s is the only one to receive a Gem Mint 10 grade, according to Goldin’s website.
The jewelry alone is worth $75,000
Apart from the availability of the Pokémon card, the accessory card stored inside is also worth a lot of money. Created by Suny the Jeweler, the necklace is made of solid pure Italian gold and is set with approximately 35 carats of natural diamonds, according to Goldin’s website. The Pokéball pendant on the necklace, which sits above the card, is made of approximately 6.5 carats of natural diamonds and the holder itself is a 10 carat Italian yellow gold chain, with approximately 27.5 carats of baguette diamonds. Oxford Diamonds valued the necklace at $75,000, Goldin’s website said.
Several other records were broken at the Pokémon auction
Paul’s Pikachu Illustrator wasn’t the only collectible Pokémon card sold. The special card was part of a wider Pokémon and TCG Auction hosted by Goldin, in collaboration with Paul. According to a Goldin press release, the auction featured 300 items and several other records were broken, including:
- Best Selling Charizard of All Time: 1999 Pokémon Base Set 1st Edition Holo #4 Charizard for $954,808.
- Best Selling Uncut Sheet of All Time: 1996 Pokemon Japanese Base Set Holo Uncut Sheet (64 cards) for $613,801.
- Best-Selling Pokémon Box of All Time: 1999 Pokémon Base Set 1st Edition Factory-Sealed Booster Box (36 card sets) for $496,000.
Greta Cross is a national trends reporter for USA TODAY. Story idea? Email him at [email protected].
This article first appeared on USA TODAY: Gotta Catch ‘Em All! Logan Paul sells a Pokémon card for $16.4 million
Reporting by Greta Cross, USA TODAY / USA TODAY
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