Issue #23 | June 20, 2026
Comped
The Numbers
–Baseball flat on midseason doldrums
–Basketball 16 week streak…will offseason break it?
–Football really establishing positive momentum
–Soccer Lionel Messi is good at futbol
–Pokemon 23 consecutive weeks of gains
–One Piece wishes it were Pokemon
–S&P 500 back to bullish✅
–Gold concerning recent weeks
–Bitcoin looks like last week was a dead cat bounce
Another week in the “overwhelmingly bullish macroeconomic market” bucket.
One Piece, which was once hailed as the next Pokemon, continues to show its youth as a market with its whipsaw weeks.
Basketball is a market I’ll have a close eye on in the coming weeks. Coming out of the post-Covid bear market, the basketball market has been the slowest of the major sports to recover. It will be interesting to see which force wins out now as short term seasonality downward pressure collides with long term recovery upward pressure…In nature this forms a tornado, but I don’t know if that analogy has any place here…
The News
This isn’t your father’s USA team (or is it???)
The USA is so back, y’all. After dismantling Paraguay 4-1 in the opener, the US World Cup team gave their Down Under groupmates a proper thrashing, 2-0. Further, the Aussies played a nasty game, garnering no less than 7 yellow cards (often for reckless and dangerous fouls).
Many of us have forgotten what it’s like to feel real hope for American chances at a strong showing on the most international of stages, but this time feels different. It’s not just me saying that: The FIFA power rankings have USA 4 spots up to 13th.
A big part of the fresh perspective when watching this team is thanks to now having a world class coach who has the lads playing team-first football. Can America channel the magic of 24 years ago to reach the quarterfinals again?
In the card-specific world, we have a new TCG sprinting head on towards us in 2027. Bandai has announced a new Naruto TCG, with more details to come at the end of July 2026.
I will 100% be on board this train from the first stop (and I didn’t even watch the anime). I expect the energy around this market to be electric, and how often do you get to participate in the first boxes to market?!?
Shoutout Alberto for the tip.
The Framework
For my TCG fam
I feel I’ve left my TCG fam hanging, and in honor of the Naruto announcement, check out the ROI for a 1999 1st Edition Charizard. In the past 12 years, it’s returned 95.8x your money.
For context, the wealth-generating S&P 500 has returned 4x your money.
I hope your parents didn’t think Pokemon was evil and go for Beanie Babies instead.
U-S-A, U-S-A, U-S-A
Us
Keep Building,
DISCLAIMER: This newsletter is for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, investment, or legal advice. The content reflects the author’s personal opinions and analysis and should not be construed as a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any assets. Sports cards and collectibles are speculative investments with significant risk of loss. Past performance is not indicative of future results. The author may hold positions in assets discussed in this newsletter. Readers should conduct their own research and consult with qualified financial, tax, and legal professionals before making any investment decisions. By reading this newsletter, you acknowledge and accept these terms.