Trading Card Comps: Lacrosse vs. Everyone
Although the first lacrosse trading card was issued in 1878, this hobby genre has only started heating up over the past few years. But the rise has been surprisingly steep. For example, Gary Gait rookie cards that could be purchased for a dollar or two back in 2021 now command over $100. High-end graded examples go even higher.
Most of the time when collectors are discussing lacrosse cards, they are talking about the field version of the sport. Prior to this summer, the last league-wide box lacrosse card set was the STX MILL set that was issued more than 30 years ago during the 1993 season. Relatively few box lacrosse card sets have been released in the three decades since, and essentially all of them have been small sets issued by a single team or for a single event such as the 1999 NLL All-Star Game or 2000 NLL Championship Game, both of which were commemorated with 12-card sets.
However, TFL Sports, a new trading card company made its hobby debut in December 2024, when it issued sets for the men’s and women’s squads for Team Canada, Haudenosaunee and the USA that participated in the World Lacrosse Box Championships held in Utica, New York.
TFL recently opened preorders for their first NLL card set, a 123-card release that will include box lacrosse’s first pack-issued auto cards featuring legends Colin Doyle, Gary Gait, Paul Gait, Casey Powell and John Tavares.
In fact, the TFL WLBC and NLL sets contain a number of significant singles, the type that have the potential to become era-defining cards in the lacrosse genre. Here are a handful of TFL cards that compare very favorably to important cards from other sports.
1985 Topps #401 Mark McGwire & 2024 TFL WLBC Joey Spallina
Mark McGwire had a 16-year MLB career during which he blasted 583 home runs and became one of the most feared longball hitters in the game. His first appearance in a major card set was card number 401 in the 1985 Topps set that featured him as a member of the 1984 U.S. Olympic Baseball Team. Like McGwire, Joey Spallina’s first appearance on a trading card shows him as a member of Team USA. But unlike the McGwire issue that was likely printed in the millions, only 500 copies of Spallina’s base card were issued and the parallel versions are even more rare.
1989 UD #1 Ken Griffey Jr. & 2025 TFL NLL #1 Dyson Williams
In 1989, a brand new card company called Upper Deck issued its first league-wide baseball card set. UD wanted to select an iconic player for card #1 in their checklist, and they created a rookie card of Ken Griffey Jr., a blue-chip prospect and son of iconic former MLB star, Ken Griffey Sr. The 1989 UD Ken Griffey Jr. became one of the most iconic cards of the era.
In 2025, a brand new card company called TFL issued its first league-wide lacrosse card set. TFL wanted to select an iconic player for card #1 in their checklist, and they created a rookie card of Dyson Williams, a blue-chip prospect and son of iconic former National Lacrosse League star, Shawn Williams. The 2025 TFL Dyson Williams has the potential to become one of the most iconic cards of the era.
1997 UD Legends #AL-9 Johnny Unitas & 2025 TFL NLL #LA-2 Gary Gait Legend Auto
The term GOAT gets tossed around a lot these days, but only a handful of people truly deserve that title. Back in their days, Johnny Unitas and Gary Gait certainly fit the bill. Upper Deck issued Unitas’s first pack-issued auto card in their groundbreaking 1997 UD Legends set. TFL is now following a similar path by releasing the first pack-issued autograph card not only for Gait, but for all of box lacrosse.
2005-06 SP Authentic #190 Alex Ovechkin Future Watch Auto /999 & 2025 TFL NLL #LA-5 John Tavares Legend Auto
Looking for the first auto cards of the greatest goal-scorers in history? Then look no further than the 2005-06 SP Authentic #190 Alex Ovechkin Future Watch Auto and the 2025 TFL NLL John Tavares Legend Auto. These are genre-defining cards in hockey and box lacrosse. What are their main differences? The Ovechkin was released early in his career while the Tavares card is coming fresh off the Buffalo Bandits’ third-consecutive league championship under his leadership. Also, the Ovechkin card was numbered to 999, while only 25 of the Tavares cards will be produced.
1992 Topps #1 Larry Bird & 2025 TFL NLL #96 Local Legend Dane Dobbie
Dane Dobbie and Larry Bird are both guys who simply got the job done at very high levels in their respective sports. Legendary trash talkers who backed their words with their play, both men won league championships, MVP awards and frustrated opponents to no end. The 1992 Topps #1 is the final card issued during Bird’s illustrious career. With Dobbie recently stepping away from the playing floor and moving into the front office, the TFL NLL #96 Local Legend will be Dobbie’s final playing-days card.