Chicago Sports Spectacular

About This Event

A trading-card and memorabilia show with genuinely broad appeal beyond hardcore collectors — 400-plus exhibitors covering vintage and modern sports cards, Pokémon, and other trading card games, plus 60-plus autograph and photo-op guests from sports and pop culture. A cheap Friday sneak-peek option exists for anyone who just wants to browse before the weekend crowds.

This is one of the country's oldest surviving card shows, built decades ago by promoter George Johnson as the Sun-Times Show — a direct link back to Chicago's own deep card-show history, which included legendary local promoters and a regular circuit run out of a suburban Holiday Inn long before this scale of show existed. It's grown into a genuine twice-a-year fixture (March and November) at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center, now pulling in over 350 vendors rather than a handful of folding tables.

Worth knowing: pricing varies by day — $15 Friday, $20 Saturday and Sunday, $10 for kids 10 and under — and hours vary by day too, so check chicagosportsspectacular.com for the exact schedule.