Lamine Yamal Inception Red /5 PSA 9 Sells for $761K

2023-24 Topps Inception UCC Marks Of Excellence Autographs Red #EX-LY6 Lamine Yamal Signed Rookie Card (#1/5) - PSA MINT 9, PSA/DNA GEM MT 10 - Pop 3 just closed at Goldin for $761,820 on January 4, 2026.

For an ultra-modern soccer issue, that is a serious data point – not only for Lamine Yamal, but for high-end licensed Topps FC Barcelona / Spain rookies in general. Let’s break down why this card matters and how this sale fits into the current market.

Card overview: what exactly sold?

• Player: Lamine Yamal
• Team (card): FC Barcelona / Spain prodigy (Topps UCC / UEFA club competition license)
• Year: 2023-24
• Product: 2023-24 Topps Inception UCC
• Insert / subset: Marks Of Excellence Autographs
• Parallel: Red
• Card number: #EX-LY6
• Serial numbering: 1/5 (first card in a print run of only five)
• Autograph: On-card signature
• Rookie status: Widely treated in the hobby as a key early Lamine Yamal rookie auto from a premium, licensed UEFA/Topps release
• Grading:
  • Card grade: PSA MINT 9
  • Autograph grade: PSA/DNA GEM MT 10 (perfect auto grade)
  • Population: Pop 3 (only three copies graded PSA 9; no higher grade noted in the listing)

Topps Inception UCC is a modern, premium soccer line: thick stock, artistic design, low-numbered hits, and on-card signatures. Marks Of Excellence is one of the more desirable autograph inserts in the product, and the Red parallel at /5 sits near the top of the ladder for rarity.

Why collectors care about this card

1. Lamine Yamal’s place in the game

Lamine Yamal has quickly become one of the most watched young players in world football:

• Debuted for FC Barcelona’s first team as a teenager and quickly became a regular.
• Established himself as a key attacking talent for Spain at a very young age.
• Frequently discussed in the same breath as earlier generational prospects from Barça’s La Masia system.

For modern soccer collectors, that profile matters. Ultra-modern cards (roughly 2018-forward in soccer) are highly sensitive to hype cycles, tournament performance, and club success. Yamal’s combination of age, club, and international impact has made him one of the core chase names in 2023-24 products.

2. Product and parallel: why Inception Red /5 matters

Within 2023-24 Topps Inception UCC:

• It’s a premium UEFA-licensed release with a focus on low-numbered hits.
• The Marks Of Excellence Autographs line is an on-card auto subset — generally preferred over sticker autos because the player signs directly on the card.
• The Red parallel /5 is very limited. A print run of five means:
  • There are only five copies in existence.
  • Once a few land in permanent personal collections, very few are likely to appear on the open market at any given time.

The card sold at Goldin is also serial-numbered 1/5, the first in the run. Some collectors place a modest premium on “bookend” serials (01/xx or xx/xx) or jersey numbers. That preference isn’t universal, but it can matter at the very top of the market.

3. Grading and population: PSA 9 with a perfect auto

The card carries:

• PSA MINT 9 for the card itself.
• PSA/DNA GEM MT 10 for the autograph.
• Pop 3 in this grade.

In hobby terms, the pop report (population report) is the grading company’s census: how many copies have received each grade. A pop of three at PSA 9 for a /5 card means over half the print run is already locked into top-end holders, with the rest either ungraded, with other grading companies, or still in unopened product.

For thick, premium stock cards like Inception, PSA 10s are often difficult, so a PSA 9 with a Gem Mint 10 auto is effectively a top-tier copy for most collectors.

Market context: how does $761,820 stack up?

The card realized $761,820 at Goldin on January 4, 2026.

To put that into context, we can look at:

1. Other high-end Lamine Yamal rookies and autos

   • Earlier months saw strong five- and low six-figure sales for his top cards (for example, low-numbered Topps Chrome UCL parallels and premium autos), with the very best patch autos and 1/1s testing the upper end of the market.
   • In general, flagship chromium parallels (Topps Chrome, UEFA Club Competitions) and premium low-numbered autos have been the key drivers of Yamal’s market.

2. Comparable ultra-modern soccer records

   • The top tier of ultra-modern soccer has seen seven-figure results for the very best cards of established megastars (e.g., key 1/1s or historically important rookies of players like Haaland and Mbappé).
   • For a player still in the early stages of his career, a sale in the mid-six-figure range positions this Inception Marks Of Excellence Red /5 firmly in the upper echelon of modern soccer cards.

3. This specific card and parallel

   • Public sales data for this exact card (same serial number, grade, and parallel) are limited; low-numbered, early-life chases often change hands privately or infrequently.
   • Other premium Yamal autos from 2023-24 sets have typically traded at materially lower levels, which underlines how tightly collectors focus on the absolute top 1–2% of his card catalog.

Given those comparisons, the $761,820 result looks like a premium, top-of-market outcome for a non–1/1, non–patch autograph rookie from a premium product. It reflects both Yamal’s current standing in the hobby and broader enthusiasm for scarce, graded soccer rookies.

Scarcity, risk, and how collectors might read this sale

Scarcity

• Serial rarity: Only five copies of this Red /5 exist.
• Graded scarcity: Pop 3 at PSA 9, with the remainder of the print run either ungraded or in different holders.
• Desirability layers:
  • On-card auto.
  • Premium UEFA-licensed product.
  • Early-career issue of a highly watched prospect.

When you stack all of those factors, it’s not surprising to see one of the better copies push the high end of the market.

Ultra-modern and prospect risk

Ultra-modern cards (especially of very young players) carry more uncertainty than established-legend cards. Performance swings, injuries, transfers, and international tournaments can all move prices quickly.

Rather than viewing this sale as a “true value,” many collectors will see it as:

• A data point for how far the top of the Yamal market can go when a premier copy surfaces on a big stage like Goldin.
• A reference for calibrating expectations around other high-end Yamal cards — for example, numbering tiers like /10, /25, or 1/1, as well as flagship chromium parallels.

Takeaways for collectors and small sellers

If you collect or sell modern soccer, this sale offers a few practical lessons:

1. Tier your expectations by scarcity and brand.

   • A Red /5 on-card auto from a premium product will live in a different price universe than base rookies or higher-numbered inserts.

2. Grading plus auto grade matters at the top.

   • For thick, premium stock cards, a PSA 9 with a GEM MT 10 auto is often the sweet spot that high-end buyers target.

3. Track pop reports for low-numbered cards.

   • When half (or more) of a tiny print run is already graded and locked in collections, public auction opportunities become rare.

4. Use this sale as context, not as a guarantee.

   • One big result at Goldin on January 4, 2026 doesn’t lock in the “value” of every other Lamine Yamal card. It does, however, give you a ceiling reference for one of his best non–1/1 rookies.

Final thoughts

The $761,820 sale of the 2023-24 Topps Inception UCC Marks Of Excellence Autographs Red #EX-LY6 Lamine Yamal Rookie (#1/5), graded PSA MINT 9 with a PSA/DNA GEM MT 10 autograph (Pop 3), at Goldin on January 4, 2026, marks a notable moment for modern soccer cards.

For figoca users, it’s a reminder that a small handful of ultra-scarce, well-graded, on-card autos can sit at the intersection of collecting passion and serious capital. Whether you’re buying, selling, or just tracking the market, results like this help map the upper end of what today’s soccer cards can do when all the right factors line up.