Dodger Stadium hosted the LA Card Show on Saturday, Sept. 12, for the second consecutive year, and the highly anticipated event improved on nearly everything from its debut.
In 2025, Dodger Stadium hosted LA Card Show with around 350 vendors, who were there selling collectibles, including sports and TCG cards, pop culture items, figures, and far more.
This year, the number of vendors nearly doubled, with just shy of 700 at Dodger Stadium and around 4,200 more on the wait-list hoping to get in for future shows, LA Card Show founder Adam Derry told DodgerBlue.com.
In addition to the increased number of vendors, the event sought to make full use of its historic site to provide attendees with a truly unique experience.
“It’s so cool. It is not lost on any of us who are part of LACS,” Derry said about being able to host the event at Dodger Stadium. “It is such an honor to be here, and it’s how we treat it. We want to make it really honorable for the fans, too, and for the attendees. So that’s why we put in so much effort, love, and life.
“We’re not passive owners of this idea. We are in it. You’re going to see us lugging, working, sweating, and moving because we’re all part of this one symbiotic being, where both sides of the table are the same people. So we’re going to provide the table and the environment, and let’s do it all together.”
Those who attended were able to go on the field to throw in the Dodgers’ bullpen and take photos in the dugout and on the field.
“Yeah, it was just really like, what can we do? How can we get more baseball? How can we get our hands on it?” Derry said. “And since you can’t really run onto the field and only the warning track, we really just wanted to make that thing special.
“When you think about it, pitching in Ohtani’s bullpen, it’s crazy. It’s really crazy. And I went down there and watched a bunch of people throwing, these are moments you can never imagine you’re doing until you make it, and people are getting a taste of that.”
In addition, new and exclusive food items were being sold, including specialty nachos called the “LA Card-chos” served in a baseball-glove bowl and a breakfast Dodger Dog.
“Culinary is a huge part of this,” Derry said. “Food is a story. Let’s tell that story and celebrate the food of Dodger Stadium. And so we were able to activate almost three times as many food and drinks, and people are loving it. That variety is super dope.”
While the core of the event focuses on cards and collectibles, it’s also important for LACS to blend in Los Angeles culture and storytelling to make it a day anyone can enjoy, even those who aren’t into card collecting.
In addition, Shawn Green and Robert Horry were there to meet fans and sign autographs, and Westside Gun had a special performance. There was also a watch party on DodgerVision for fans to watch the game at Dodger Stadium as the Los Angeles Dodgers faced the Miami Marlins.
“Oh, it’s everything,” Derry said. “I mean, I used that analogy before of a melting pot, but everything that we do is alchemy. We want to bring in all these flavors and ingredients, like making this big LA gumbo. So yeah, that’s something that we really get excited about.”
Derry also added that it was special to see such a diverse group of people attending the event, with people of different ages, genders, ethnicities, and backgrounds coming together.
“It’s wild,” he said. “It’s really cool how we’ve been able to tap into the whole family.”
For the second straight year, Pokémon dominated the event, and it was nearly impossible to turn to a new area without seeing a unique card or merchandise from the extremely popular anime.
“I would say this show right now is probably about 50/50 sports to TCG, and that’s just where the industry’s going, where the hobby is going, and collecting beyond sports, but now we’re seeing how they work together,” Derry said. “So most of, a lot of these vendors. collect both sides of it.
“TCG is grabbing these kids who maybe didn’t think about being a sports fan. And sports fans are grabbing people who are becoming TCG and manga fans, and everything in between. It’s cool. We’ve celebrated that from the beginning, though. The mix, let’s bring them all together.”
But even with the number of vendors focused on Pokémon, there was still something for everyone. Whether it was vintage clothing, specialty food items, sports cards and other TCGs and collectible cards, figures, stickers, and everything else.
“It’s a lot, but at the end of the day, L.A.’s story is that,” Derry said. “It’s mostly transplants coming and bringing their best hope for the future into something creative in this city, and so that’s why we celebrate fashion, food, music, and then cards, collectibles, and everything in between.”
LACS looking ahead to third card show at Dodger Stadium
With the second LACS now complete, the focus is on making it even better for the next time they do it.
They’ve already expanded to hold events at the LA Convention Center and the Intuit Dome since their last Dodger Stadium show, but the plans remain to be back at Chavez Ravine for years to come.
“I mean, already, this morning, I’m like, ‘Ooh, I could do that next time,’ and ‘Oh, what’s that space?’ Derry said.
“No doubt, there’s more and more ahead, and the partnership with the Dodgers and us has been so powerful, so good. They’re really into what we’re doing.
“They could do any version of this they want to do, and they parted with us. They saw our vision, and it’s paying off.
“So I think we have a huge future ahead together, and I can’t wait. I can’t wait to finish the second, but I can’t wait for the third, fourth, fifth. Let’s do it.”
Their second show has already doubled in size since their first, and they had more special guests, activations, and things for fans to participate in. So how do they make it even better next time?
“I would say that almost every one of my shows, I’ve been asked that question. Like, how do you top this? And I would say that we topped last Dodger Stadium, this Dodger Stadium,” Derry said.
“So it just takes a lot of effort, continuing to bring quality programming that really matters. You’re going to see more and more talent. It’s not just that you got Shawn Green and Robert Horry; we got Westside Gun, we got Large Professor. It’s a really cool eclectic mix of all sides of the culture.
“So what we’re going to continue to do with that is just expand that profile, and then just continue to lean into the community to make sure that we’re creating an event that they really get excited about.”
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