Professional Sports Authenticator, the grading division of PSA, has seen its backlog swell to 10.9 million submissions, a figure that underscores the continued demand for sports memorabilia authentication despite a recent slowdown.
The surge, which marks an increase from a peak of 14 million earlier in June, has forced the company to reconsider the processing speeds of its lower‑cost tiers, with the $80 service now requiring roughly double the time it once did.
Whereas the $149 Express offering still clears in about 20 to 30 business days, the $349 Super Express and the $599 Walk‑Through services have both experienced noticeable extensions, now averaging 10 to 15 and 7 to 10 days respectively.
Company executives attribute the slowdown to a combination of lingering pandemic‑era backlogs and the operational ramp‑up at a newly opened hub in Plano, Texas, which is already delivering a steady stream of graded items each day.
Strategic Outlook
In a statement released on Tuesday, PSA indicated that it plans to reopen its value‑priced tiers once the backlog falls below five million, a threshold that would allow the $25‑and‑under services to resume normal turnaround times.
Historical data shows that the backlog has fluctuated between roughly 10 million and 12.4 million since May, suggesting that the current level, while high, may be part of a broader seasonal pattern rather than an isolated spike.