For sports collectors, it doesn’t get bigger or better than the National Sports Collectors Convention. In its 45th year, The National was held in Rosemont, Illinois.

The National is the largest annual sports memorabilia trade show in the United States. Changing locations every year, The National has been held in 13 different cities across 10 states, including Rosemont 12 times.

The five-day event featured more than 100 legendary professional athletes appearing for photo and autograph opportunities as well as vendors, licensing agents, collectors and more. The attendance was expected to surpass 75,000. Most area hotels were full, with some already sold out for next year, when The National returns for an unprecedented third consecutive year.

I started by catching up with Susan Lulgjuraj, marketing director, Certified Guaranty Company. A longtime collector, Sooz is an industry expert and a great ambassador for the industry. She even appeared on a Topps card, a dream for collectors. My interview with Sooz from The National in 2017 is here.

Next, I stopped at artist Steven Walden‘s booth. Based in St. Louis, Walden specializes in area-themed pieces but isn’t limited to Cardinals, Blues and other Gateway City athletes and pop culture figures. His art featuring recently deceased Cubs legend Ryne Sandberg was an attention-grabber.

© Photo by Tony Feddeler

© Photo by Tony Feddeler

Of all the athletes, retired WNBA legend Diana Taurasi was my favorite. Having interviewed her via Zoom multiple times, I finally talked to her in person.

We spent the rest of the convention wandering around the 600 vendor booths. My friend Tony picked up older Chicago Cubs and Seattle Seahawks cards. I wasn’t looking for anything specific, but I left with a bag full of random finds.

After the last day, we dined at Barnaby’s. Although at different locations, it was a childhood favorite of both of us. Somewhat surprisingly, very little has changed at Barnaby’s, including the same awesome pizza. It was a great way to end a weekend of nostalgia.

— John Wroblewski, online writer