Glossary

By John Buonaguidi & George Keniston

Below are some terms that are used in collecting sports memorabilia. If there are some terms you think we should have included, email us at sports@ebay.com with the term and the definition.

Mint - Just like new.
Excellent - Very strong copy, no creases, minimal edge wear.
Very good - Slightly rounded corners, minor creases, if any.
Good - Rounded corners, some creasing, but a decent copy.
Fair - Very rounded corners, serious creasing.
Poor - A rough card. Very thrashed.

Below are some terms that are used in collecting sports memorabilia.

A.L. - American League. One of the two leagues in American baseball.

ASA - A company based in Florida that grades cards under a rating system.

Ashes cricket - test series played between Australia and England

BBC - British Broadcasting Association

Bowman - Chicago-based card company that became defunct in 1955.

Calcutta Cup - Rugby Union competition

COA - Certificate of authenticity.

Exhibit cards - Black and white and sepia cards issued in vending machines from the 1920s through 1960s that are post-card size on cardboard stock.

FA - (English) Football Association

FIFA - Federation Internationale de Football Association

Fleer - Philadelphia-based gum company which still issues cards today.

"Gamer" - Alludes to a game-worn or game-used piece of equipment.

Golden Boot - Awarded to leading goalscorer in football World cup

Goudey - Prominent gum company and card issuer of 1930s.

Gum Cards - Refers to cards issued with gum in wax packs.

HOF - Hall of Famer. Used when denoting a special player.

LFC - Liverpool Football Club

LOA - Letter of Authenticity (used for autograph guarantees).

Mint - Just like new. Denotes condition of card or memorabilia.

MUFC - Manchester United Fooball Club

Premiership - The top league in English football

N.L. - National League. One of the two leagues in American baseball.

PSA - A company in Southern California that grades cards under a rating system (1 is lowest and 10 is highest).

"S.I." - Sports Illustrated magazine.

The "All Backs" - nickname for New Zealand rugby team

The "Five Nations" - Rugby tournament involving England, France, Scotland, Wales and Ireland.

The "Hammers" West Ham United Football club

The "Magpies" - nickname for Newcastle United Football club

The "Springbok" - nickname for South African rugby team

The "Spurs" - Tottenham Hotspur Football club

Tobacco Cards - Cards that were issued with tobacco. Mainly pre-1920 cards but also made in the 1950s.

Topps - Prominent gum company of the 1950s. The company still issues cards today.

UEFA Union des Associations Européennes de Football

Umpire - referee in cricket

Windies - West Indies cricket team

Wisden's Almanac - cricket rule and record book

The preceding material was written by John Buonaguidi and George Keniston. These are the opinions of the author, not the opinions of eBay, and therefore eBay does not validate the accuracy of or endorse these opinions.