The intersection of art, sports and collecting | Full Panel from Fanatics Fest NYC 2026

We having fun here at Fanatics Fest so far. And the cool part of this is just the chance to kind of catch your breath a little bit as you go around look at all the games. You look at all the cards and you see Gron Go fall into a raising canes cream sauce. You get the chance to kind of listen to some of the great people that make this event move. And it is my pleasure to bring out some outstanding people that are dominating their sport or their field. guys that are champions, guys that put this thing, the whole thing together, and guys that understand that when you collect pieces of art, they mean a lot more than a piece of cardboard. Anybody that collects cards understands that it's not just a piece of cardboard. It represents something to you emotionally. And that's what art is all about. When you look at something, you understand and appreciate art. And with that and this discussion and understanding this panel, it is my pleasure to introduce one of the great modern artists of our time. He has collaborated with Kanye West and created artwork for the 2010 album entitled My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Well known for book and album covers, known for his unique paintings and prints. Ladies and gentlemen, George Condo.

I mean, do I need to go through a introduction for our next guest? Because I think we all know him.

He's a seven-time Super Bowl champion. He won the Fanatics games last year. The number one player. Believes he's going to win this weekend as well. First player in NFL history to win a Super Bowl or NFL championship in three different decades. Ladies and gentlemen, the GOAT that is Tom Brady.

All right, listen. You know, you know Tom's got seven rings, but the guy who's got the current ring and is really the king of New York. The number one pick of the 2015 NBA draft. Seven seasons, averaging 20 and 10. loves the card space like Tom and George. And he's an NBA champ, a current reigning NBA champ, Carl Anthony Towns.

The next guy doesn't need a ring because every day he wakes up as a champion. And he's the reason why we're here. This came from his big, beautiful mind, year three of Fanatics Fest, and it's only getting bigger and better. The founder and CEO of Fanatics, Michael Rubin.

So this is really cool because I mentioned it briefly about how artwork plays such a big role and how we see things visually, what it means and then the idea that you could blend it and connect to collecting small pieces of art, right? And George, your affiliation with this is is so great in understanding, I think, for our audience that when they carry something, there's an emotional attachment to that piece of art. There's a memory, there's a connection that you have maybe to an athlete, to a specific game, to a specific moment. I want to go down the line and start with you, Michael. How does greatness show up for you? Whether it's day to day, whether it's what you're doing down the road, whether it's what you're planning down the road.

Well, I've been very for first of all, thank you for having me up here and great to be with you guys. Everyone here at Fanatics Fest who's showing out. This whole event is for you guys to have all these athletes come out, all these incredible games, food places to go for kids, for everybody, for all the teams. We all look forward to being here because it's not often that we get to be up here this close with you guys. So, I hope you get the ability to see us. We would sit out in that crowd at one point. If Fanatics Fest was going on when I was a lot of you teenagers your age, my ass would have been in those seats, too. So, the fact that I get to be up here is really an honor. And a lot of the reason why I'm here is because I was very fortunate to find something that I love, the sport of football. And with myself and with all the teammates that I played with over a long period of time, we found a deep love for the game, a deep commitment to what we were doing and we wanted to win for each other. So so much about what I think greatness is and I was able to be around so many great players is they truly and businessmen and entrepreneurs and what and artists and what they do is you're always redefining yourself. You're always finding new ways to be a little bit better. We all started sitting in this crowd. I was 13. I was 14. I was 15. I was not some, you know, crazy prodigy athlete at 15. I had to improve. I had to improve my skill set. I had to be a better son. I had to be a better athlete. I had to be better in school. I went to college. I tried to be a little bit better. We won our first Super Bowl in 2001. I was not a finished product. I still had a long way to go. And I try to continue to adapt my game to learn from other people, realizing that the competition is always coming for you. There's competition every day in life. That's the beautiful part about life. If you find something you love to do and you're committed to it, that's amazing. But there's a lot of other people who are committed to it, too. So, a lot of times you got to go above and beyond what other people aren't willing to do if you want to be great. If you want to be good, you could do what everyone else does. If you want to be great, you better work a little harder. You better be a little more disciplined. You better be a little more committed to their your goals. And all of your actions and your priorities should reflect those goals. And George has done that. He continues to redefine himself. the guy to my far right, Michael. There's very few people in my life that I've ever met that continue to wake up every day. And Fanatics has done amazing things since the day it got started. But where it's at and where is it going is the only place that Michael thinks about. He's continuing to think about how do we make this experience better for the fans, the teams, the leagues, the spectators every single day. And Cat just won his first ring, but I already know he's thinking about the next one. And it's going to be a lot harder for him. He doesn't know this yet, but to get number two is a lot harder than getting number one. But guess what? To get number two is even more gratifying than getting number one. And that's what it's all about.

No pressure, Cat on what you got in front of you. And the idea of getting to that mountain for the first first time, what was that like for you? that experience that again seven years in the league figuring it out, finding your way and then coming to New York and then changing everything in your career.

I mean, it was the it was the highest honor I've ever had to be able to play in front of these fans, be able to have their love and their support and most importantly their respect and stepping on that court and finding a way to get that championship is is something that can't be explained. But just like he said is the feeling was short-lived. I know the fans keep coming up to me and telling me, 'Congrats, champ.' and keep saying the word champ and everything, but in my mind, I'm only thinking about the next one. So, that's all that's been on my mind. That's all that I could think about. Um, even when I saw Tom earlier in this month, I told him, I asked him right away, how do you get that next one? That's all I could ask about was the next one. How do I get that next one? You know, we had that moment after the game. We celebrated the trophy, the champagne. It was awesome. But, uh, even for me, the work was not done. As soon as the ch we landed back in New York, the next day I was back in the gym. I was already working out, getting ready for the next season because that's the most important thing now in my mind.

Well said. And the first three guys are artists in their own right, whether it's on the football field, you know, the basketball field or court, I should say, sorry, or in the business world. George, for you, you're a true artist and everything is a blank canvas. What does that mean to you? The greatness of art and pursuing that on a daily basis.

Thank you. Thanks, Michael, for having this whole thing going on, Cat, Tom, all the fans out there. Greatness for me, it's about longevity, which is what you guys were just talking about. It's about influence. It's about influencing kids to get up and work hard to do what they got to do to make it. It's about, you know, how you can be influential in the future to kids, inspirational and future artists to realize like you work every day really hard at what you do. You build your craft. You make it alive. You know, the idea of art is that it stays alive when you're done painting it. And it's just got to vibrate. It's just got to be like alive on the wall. And that's what greatness is. If your work is not alive and kicking, then it's like it's not that exciting. These guys are alive and kicking when they get out there and they know how to do it, man. And it's inspirational to me, you know? I look at that kind of energy. I look at that kind of determination. And I think that's what painting is for me. And this determination, it's about longevity. It's about legacy. It's about keeping your stuff alive for the future generations.

Well said, too. And you talk about the idea of longevity. Tom understands that. And you got to reinvent yourself too along the way, right? In that process. This worked here. This doesn't work here. I'm going to reinvent myself. Kat, you did that as well, especially during this playoff run, right, Michael? You do that on a daily basis for you. George, as an artist, reinventing yourself each and every day. Um, how do you appreciate that? The idea that where you were to where you are right now in that process?

Well, you know, I've been doing it since I was a kid like these guys and like it was my passion, you know, and like the thing is is you can never get stuck in a pattern. You always have to break free. You always have to redefine yourself with every painting. You redefine yourself. You challenge yourself. Like I don't have opponents. I have colors that are fighting against other colors and I got to win the win the game on every painting and, you know, you just keep it alive. You know that's the way to do it.

Tom, the appreciation of art for you, especially when we look at what I love about both you guys being a part of this panel is your love for trading cards and Card Vault Bodega. Shout out to both of them. you guys going into it all in and understanding the passion that many people in this crowd have and that connection to holding something that goes much farther than people on the outside realize, right? What does that art connect mean to you when you think about trading cards, Tom?

I had one of the coolest experiences of my life today. And I was a card collector since I was 8 years old. There was a hobby shop in San Monteo in San Francisco Bay area where I grew up. It was called What's on Second? And whenever I had my paper out and I made $2.50 for the month, I would take my money and I'd go down to what's on second and I would buy packs of cards. So by the time I was 8 years old, now I'm 48. I've been collecting ever since. And today I walk behind one of the rooms back here and my favorite baseball player growing up and the guy that I collected more than anybody else was Don Mattingley. and I had a chance to see Don Mattingley and that brings up so much nostalgic memories for me as a kid because that's where I fell in love with sports. I love sports, but one way that I connected with all these athletes that I love, the teams I love, the leagues that I love was through trading cards. And now to be involved in a hobby and to see how Fanatics continues to transform the industry. Talk about innovation. You know, bringing someone like George and his creativity into the mix and how he can reinvision trading cards through this incredible artistic mind that he has is something that nobody outside of Michael would think about. And it's all about creating something that's unique, something that's new, something that's been innovative. And I'm just so thrilled to be part of it. A lot of these young kids out there, you're going to collect cards. Well, you're going to get some of these cards, too, in these packs, and it's going to open your eyes up to the art world, which I didn't even experience till I was in my 40s. So, you're getting to learn at a younger age because his genius, Michael's genius, sports, how we all collaborate and work together to bring something really special for the fans to me is the coolest thing about it.

there's like I I they're crazy. And I mean, what did you think when you saw the card?

I was stunned. I'm I never in my trading card career and just being a fan, I would have never thought we would have one of the greatest artists in our generation, if not the greatest, actually take time out of his day to make art for trading cards. And like you said, it's true. It would only come from the mad mind of Michael, that we would think of this and be at this position. So, um, I've been blessed to, uh, have the insight to actually have seen the cards. And I'm going to tell you right now, I'm personally going to be chasing every single one of them. So, I'm really excited.

I'm in on the mix, too. Just so you know.

I And by the way, for the product, it's going to be coming in eventually in the fall. Only 19 cards. They're one of one, not reproduced because when you look I looked at the cards.

I mean, they are small art pieces. You can see the paintbrush drying on these cards. It's gorgeous. And with that, it sets up perfectly. Let's roll the video and let the audience get a chance to see some of these pieces of artwork. These masterpieces, George.

Yeah. Keep in mind, they're the craziest cards you've ever seen.

Again, 19 cards.

And I got two of them in my hand right now.

Goosebumps, bro.

This is a reveal. I was not expecting this.

George, these are literally masterpieces, one of ones. And on the back, you've got stats on them and your autograph. When you thought about designing these for Tom and Cat, what was going through your mind for each individual?

I wasn't thinking when I was a kid, you know, I used to go to bed at night. I'd spent every penny I had for my pen, my paper route. I would I would collect baseball and football cards and I just look at them at night and think, this was my introduction, believe it or not, to the visual language was looking at sports cards. And now I'm actually painting them. I'm painting these guys. They're like, you know, when you grow up your kid, you like got superheroes in, you know, Superman. Superman right here, you know, and like [laughter] Yeah. And I'm so psyched about it. I'm so psyched to bring this to the audience and to make the craziest cards that ever exist because there's a million photographs of them in action playing, you know, illustrations, but I wanted to do something that was original, something that was like that same kind of feeling as when you got to get out there, you got to make moves. like the moves he had to make with the Falcons, you know, it's like sitting there, I don't know, 23 points behind going like, we got to make some moves here. Same thing with the Knicks on that last game. It was insane, you know, and you're a painter. You got to make those kind of moves. You got to win the card and you guys got to win the game.

Incredible. So, I'm psyched, man.

But security has to stop me. I may leave with those two cards and the Messi card.

I can't tell you how how proud I am to have been able to paint that card. You know, Messi is another hero and it's like he's the best in the business. he's the goat of the soccer leagues, you know, and um so it's like just doing that card knowing that I'm painting these cards, you know, my in I I tell you the the reality is my introduction to visual language was literally through trading cards, looking at these things and then it translated somehow into my love for painting and my love of imagery and you know doing these guys and also I want to make them laugh you know I want to make them look at these cards. Put a smile on their face, you know, and I, you know, make it more than just your average everyday thing.

George, it's working though, seeing the smile on Tom and Cat's face. What's your first reaction when you saw the car? I noticed a small detail. It says seven times, 7X immediately there.

Very cool. And I've I've obviously been a big fan of George as well. I've actually been to his studio here in New York. I'm blown away by what I've seen there. And I always just think it's so cool. And you said something earlier, Ken, we're all artists on our own way. And I think the point I obviously can't do any of that. That's like 0% by my skill set is that. But we all kind of in our own way see things like an artist. You know, I always feel like a quarterback goes on the field and he is a blank canvas of what he wants to create. And the offensive coordinator gets to create what he wants to create. And everyone does a little bit different. And if you're a copycat, I think people see through that pretty quick. You steal other people's ideas. If you can really form your own opinion, your own judgment, your own point of view and see things the way you want to see it, how you can create it, you know, that pulls out kind of the creativity in all of us. And I think it's so cool for an artist like George after all these years, you know, has an incredible genius in his brain. He sees this just white canvas and what is he going to do with it and what is he going to show the world and how can he express what's in his mind? But to see it come out on a trading card, which is what's been a part of my life for four decades, absolutely blows my mind. So, these are going to be insane when they hit the market.

I know one person who has it, but he's not here right now.

So, who was your favorite one that you did? Putting you on the spot. And don't say all of them.

Yeah. I mean, you know, I I I gotta say Cat and Tom, those two cards. I'm not just saying it because they're here, you know, but I did love making those two cards. And I love doing the one of Cap because when they won, you know, with all the confetti, the blue and orange, put it all around it. And it was kind of like a George Serat, you know, with the pointalism, which is a thing in art. And Tom's is like a crazy cubis type composition. He's wearing a Tampa Bay and a Patriots outfit at the same time. And I love doing Messi because and also I love Beckham. The Beckham card was insane and that was really cool. And I love doing Serena.

Yeah. Jaylen Brunson, I think, too.

Yeah, I did a Jayen.

So I'm sure that'll be a hot card. Cat, what was your reaction as you stare at it multiple times?

I mean, I just can't believe that one of the best artists to ever touch a paintbrush painted me and especially on my biggest moment. So, in my career. So, I'm honored. I'm blessed. I think this is going to be one of those trading cards you talk about for a long time. And I I keep getting if I could take a step back, I keep we keep talking about the athletes. We keep talking about Messi with me and Tom Brady up here. So, I don't know where that's going, [laughter] but we keep talking about the athletes. We have even got to the entertainers that are also in this in this launch as well with you. And we have obviously

Jay-Z, right? You have a Jes.

I mean, I did Steph Curry. I did LeBron, Serena Williams. I mean, I think all of New York wants that JB once.

I think, by the way, of the 19 people you did, I believe 10 are in the building for Fanatics Fest.

Why not?

All right, let's go. For the Knicks fans, you win again. We get another George Condo card.

Yeah, I think Tops needs to come out with a Knicks commemorative Topps edition. You know what I'm trying to say? Yeah, I think the fans here in New York would love that, too.

A round of applause for these guys. Thank you. Thank you. They're great artists. That is George Tom Brady, Carl Anthony Towns, Michael Rubin. Thank you so much. Thank you so much, guys. Everyone, thank you everybody.

Let's go.

John, right?

To John. To John, right?

Yes.

Hey, what's up, man? I know, John. I'm not going to be able to be there tomorrow, but my offer still stands. I'm looking for that 101 Wrestlemania patch. And I know I said 60K before, but I'm going to up the bounty a little bit more. I think it's only right when the greatest of all time is going to wrestle. And this is his last Wrestlemania patch. So, 100K is on the line. I'm still down to put 100K to get that card. So, let me know.