One of a kind unused ticket to Michael Jordan’s debut NBA game for Chicago Bulls sells for US$468,000

The only unused ticket known to exist from Michael Jordan’s NBA debut in 1984 was expected to fetch an eye-popping price after a stub from the same game sold for $264,000 in December.

Mike Cole was told not to be surprised if his ticket went for twice that amount.

It didn’t quite reach that figure, but the experts weren’t far off and during an auction this past weekend, Cole’s ticket to the October 26, 1984, Chicago Bulls game sold for $468,000 (HK$3.65 million), according to Heritage Auctions.

The price for the Jordan ticket was believed to be a record for such a collectible, but was quickly eclipsed in the same auction when a ticket stub from Jackie Robinson’s debut game on April 15, 1947, when he broke Major League Baseball’s colour barrier, sold for $480,000.

“We were a record holder for a brief period, but I couldn’t be happier because to me Jackie Robinson was not only an incredibly accomplished athlete, as was Michael Jordan, but also an incredible pioneer,” Cole said. “I think it’s fitting that Jackie Robinson, whose contribution goes way beyond sports, has the highest valued ticket.”

Cole, who hosted a viewing party Saturday night to watch the auction live online with some friends, said he was “excited by the outcome” and now is “somewhat relieved that it’s over.”

While many people have told Cole how unbelievable it is that he got so much money, he finds himself reminding folks that “the US government is very interested in this amount as well.”