September 2021 Sports Card Releases

September means football! And as we get some of the first mainstream NFL-jersey among the September Sports Card Releases, we’re also getting a basketball cards release. And don’t forget baseball—this month has a bit of everything.

Here are the Cardlines’ September notable releases. And please note, all these dates are subject to change slightly based on the manufacturer.

Noteworthy September Sports Card Releases

2021 Panini Black Football (September 3)

Panini Black is a high-end product where you’re paying nearly $100 per card. The five-card hobby boxes are preordering for $450, and each box follows a similar structure: 1 rookie patch autograph, 1 additional auto, 1 memorabilia, 1 parallel, and 1 base. Panini boasts that this product features more rookies and more inserts than ever before, and it introduced new short prints in White Night, Regulators, and ForceField sets. The on-card autos in this NFL-jersey product will be nice, too.

Panini black football is a high-end, high-reward product (picture taken from Panini).

2021 WNBA Prizm Basketball (September 8)

Prizm WNBA cards make their second annual appearance this September, and last year’s release can be seen as nothing but a success. With the previous year’s Sabrina Ionescu rookies demanding a premium price, there could be more of the same this season. The 2021 WNBA Prizm is constructed similarly to the NBA counterpart: 2 autographs, 22 Prizms, and 10 inserts in the 144-card box. This year’s set also includes the Color Blast SSP, which could bring some significant value. And, just basic math here: there are fewer WNBA teams, so your odds of pulling the card you want—whatever that may be—are higher than in most products. Preorder boxes for $325 right here.

2021 Donruss Football (September 8)

This is it! Donruss Football is the first primary NFL-jersey product to release to hobby and retail, and you know what they say: availability is the best ability! While it’s cheesy, the fact that these classic-feeling cards will be assessable to all collectors makes them a much more popular product, and this will be the first “mainstream” football release of 2021. Hobby boxes are preordering for $350, and they should be a fun rip of 18 packs of 10 cards. Each box will contain 1 auto, 1 memorabilia, 18 rated rookies, 12 parallels, and 42 inserts. Rated Rookies are some of the most popular, so here’s a great chance to get some at an affordable price (at least, compared to Black’s $100/card pricing).

Donruss football has the coveted pro uniform rookies. (pictures taken from Panini).

2020-21 Mosaic Basketball (September 17)

Mosaic is releasing in mid-September, well after the NBA season has wound down, but that doesn’t mean it will be any less popular. The opti-chrome cards in this set are favorites among modern collectors, and it’s a great step-brother to Prizm and Optic. This year’s set has improved the design of last year, and the boxes feature 1 autograph, 5 silvers, 15 Mosaics, and 20 inserts. The autograph and inserts checklist is simple, but there’s often beauty in that.

2020-21 Donruss Optic Basketball (September 17)

September 17—if no more delays occur—is poised to be a massive day for basketball collectors, with both Optic and Mosaic scheduled to drop. Optic basketball is a familiar product for any collector because it is one of the most popular products for both basketball and football every year. It’s easy to see why: the chromium cards come with many eye-catching parallels to chase while the rookie cards look simple, timeless, and classic. Optic hobby boxes contain 20 packs of 4 cards with one autograph, so it’s also a great product to open if you like products that allow for a lot of ripping. That said, this box will set you back $750.00 for the 80 cards. Optic should also hit retail shelves… if you’re lucky enough to find them. Here’s our full review.

2021 Bowman Chrome Baseball (September 17)

Bowman Chrome is one of the biggest baseball releases of the year, so this is yet another addition to a huge September 17 for collectors. The prospects hit Bowman before any product, and the Chrome stock and colorful refractors fuel this set’s appeal. There’s a 250-card set filled with top prospects, rookies, and veterans. Each hobby box of 60 cards contains 2 chrome autographs for a very reasonable $200. This year, Bowman chrome is also releasing a LITE box, which, ironically, costs more than the hobby box. It includes exclusive Black & White Mini-Diamond Parallels.

Topps Chrome hobby boxes come with 2 autos (get a hobby box from Amazon).

2021 Panini Chronicles Draft Picks Collegiate Basketball (September 29)

This is the debut of the Chronicles Draft Picks. Still, you know what to expect: a compilation of some of Panini’s most popular brands packaged together for a historical road trip full of tons of rookies in their college uniform. This is the first look we’ll get at Cade Cunningham, Jalen Green, and the new wave of NBA rookies. Each box will contain 2 packs of 24 cards (a bit odd), and every box should have 2 autographs, 2 memorabilia, and 8 opti-chrome cards per box on average. Thus, there are 13 sets—or brands—represented in Chronicles Draft Picks Basketball.

2020-21 Panini Obsidian Basketball (September 29)

Only Panini can release a significant product from 2020-21 and 2021-22 basketball on the same day. Obsidian makes a return with this one-pack, 7-card product. Each box will contain 2 autographs and 2 inserts/parallels, and the most noteworthy are the Rookie Jersey Autographs and Rookie Ink feature autographs from top rookies in 2020-21 draft classes. Here’s a fun challenge: try to pull a Melo and Cunningham rookie on the same day. Learn more about the product, including its pricing, here.

Obsidian basketball has great RPA’s (picture taken from Panini).

2021 Bowman Sterling Baseball (September 29)

Bowman Sterling is a classic and iconic set of higher-end baseball cards. It’s one of the best ways to land big-ticket autographs of the stars of tomorrow (and today). Each box contains 5 packs of 6 cards and a total of 5 autographs—many of which are on-card. The boxes are available for $300 as a preorder.

Bottomline On September Sports Card Releases

Whether you are a basketball, baseball, or football fan, there is plenty to get excited about with this month’s releases. Stay tuned for our overview of releases every month.