The future of footy cards?

The world of trading cards has gone digital, with hundreds of thousands of dollars now being paid for sporting highlights using blockchain technology.

A LeBron James slam-dunk sold for a whopping $519,122.

The buyer didn't get the ball or the shirt - or shoes the basketball legend was wearing at the time - but rather a digital token attached to the moment.

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It is the new world of trading cards that has collectors buying highlights in a different format.

Founder of Four Point Collectibles Sandor Earl said the digital revolution had changed the way collectors buy and sell memorabilia.

"You can think of any moment in sports and you can apply the same theory ... and it's endless to think about 'I actually own this moment'," he said.

The digital trading cards are called NFTs, or Non-Fungible Tokens - and it's a way of using blockchain technology to assign a unique code to an investment asset.

In this case, part of a game officially licenced by the sporting code.

It sells virtual packets of moments - if a buyer gets a rare one in their packet, they can sell it for a big profit.

"You could have a player come out and score 30 points, and all of a sudden then the next day his card is worth 300 per cent more," Mr Earl said.

Mr Earl is a recently-retired NRL player and now buys and sells physical trading cards for a living - but he's heading for the digital ones, too.

"There's no scratches, you can't break it, you can't rip it," he said.

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Sporting codes all over the world are now selling these moments to fans.

CEO of Sport Moments Jacob Osborne said the online movement was evolving across all sporting codes.

"You've got premier league clubs, major league baseball, even the UFC have announced that they're going to be doing NFT platforms," he said.

Mr Osborne is aiming to bring the market to Australia with the Sport Moments start-up.

"We're creating a platform specifically built for Australian sporting codes," he said.

"That creates NFTs and brings a new layer of engagement to Australian sporting fans."

It would be reasonable to think the new memorabilia would have the man behind AFL footy cards - and their 100 years history - worried, but that isn't the case.

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In fact, by June, fans had already cleared every one of his shelves.

"We can't believe we've already sold out mid-season," David Miller from Team Zone said.

Mr Miller is now working with Sport Moments to bring NFT trading cards to Australian sport.

"This is where we think the future will be," he said.

When that future will come, and whether or not the AFL, NRL or Big Bash could allow classic moments to sell for thousands is yet to be seen.

But for people with their own highlight reel, the idea is worth more than a try.

"To have that ... and know that moment, or that piece of history is mine, would be so cool," Mr Earl said.