A Rochester-based card breaking company, We The Hobby, recently made headlines after pulling a 1-of-1 autographed Cooper Flagg card. Early estimates put the value of the card at around $1 million — an incredible hit by any standard.
For the person who won it, this is the ultimate dream scenario. You go from buying into a box break… to owning something that could instantly change your financial picture.
But after the excitement fades, reality sets in fast.
What do you actually do with a $1,000,000 card?
The “Great Problem” Nobody Thinks About
At first glance, it feels simple:
“I just won a million dollars.”
But you didn’t win cash — you won a physical asset worth a million dollars. And that comes with decisions most people never expect to face.
Do you:
- Put it on a bookshelf at home?
- Lock it in a safe?
- Store it in a bank vault?
- Insure it?
- Sell it immediately?
Most people wouldn’t leave a $1,000,000 bill sitting out in their house — and a card with that value deserves the same level of thought and protection.
Is a Bank Safe Deposit Box Enough?
A common instinct is to put something this valuable in a bank safe deposit box. From a security standpoint, that makes sense.
But here’s the catch most people don’t realize:
Banks do not insure the contents of safe deposit boxes.
If something catastrophic happens — fire, flood, theft, or damage — the bank is generally not responsible for the value of what was inside. The box protects access, but it doesn’t protect your financial loss.
So while a safe deposit box can be part of the solution, it’s not the whole answer.
Why Homeowners Insurance Falls Short
Another common assumption is that a homeowner’s insurance policy will cover a card like this.
Unfortunately, that’s not how most policies work.
Typical homeowners policies have very low limits for collectibles, often in the range of:
- $1,000–$2,500 total for trading cards and memorabilia
That’s not a typo — the entire collection, not per item.
A $1,000,000 card is far outside the bounds of what a homeowners policy is designed to cover. Even scheduling the item (when allowed) often comes with limitations and exclusions that don’t make sense at this level of value.
The Real Cost of Insuring a $1M Card
To properly protect something like a 1-of-1 Cooper Flagg card, you’re typically looking at a specialty collectibles insurance policy.
As a general rule of thumb:
- Collectibles insurance often runs around 1% of the item’s value per year
So for a $1,000,000 card:
- Annual insurance cost ≈ $10,000
That’s when the math gets interesting.
You didn’t receive $1,000,000 in cash — but now you’re staring at a $10,000 per year expense just to protect the asset. Add in grading fees, storage costs, and potential transaction fees down the road, and the decision becomes much more complex.
Hold It… or Sell It?
This is where personal strategy comes into play.
Some collectors may believe strongly in Cooper Flagg’s long-term upside and see this card as something that could be worth significantly more in the future. If you believe it could one day be a $5M, $10M, or even higher-value card, holding and insuring it might make sense.
Others may look at the ongoing costs and risk and decide:
- Take the win
- Sell the card
- Turn a paper asset into real liquidity
Neither decision is wrong — but both should be intentional, not emotional.
The Bigger Lesson
This story is a great reminder that high-value collectibles aren’t just hobbies — they’re financial assets.
Once values reach six or seven figures:
- Storage matters
- Insurance matters
- Risk management matters
The biggest mistake isn’t paying too much for insurance — it’s not realizing you needed it at all until something goes wrong.
Final Thought
Pulling a $1,000,000 sports card is an incredible moment — a once-in-a-lifetime hit for most collectors.
But the real win comes from understanding what you have, how to protect it, and how to make smart decisions once the spotlight fades.
Because sometimes, the hardest part of winning… is knowing what to do next.
