COA vs. LOA vs. Third-Party Authentication: What Collectors Should Know

One of the more confusing parts of collecting signed sports memorabilia is that a lot of different things can be described as "authenticated."

A jersey might come with a COA.

Another might have an LOA.

A puck may have a numbered hologram that can be looked up online.

Something else may have been witnessed when it was signed.

Then there are pieces with a certificate from the seller but no way to verify anything beyond what is printed on the paper.

Those are not necessarily the same thing.

After collecting sports memorabilia for more than 30 years, I have learned to look beyond the words "Certificate of Authenticity" and ask a more important question:

What actually connects this documentation to this particular item?

That is where authentication starts to become much easier to understand.

What Is a COA?

COA stands for Certificate of Authenticity.

At its simplest, a COA is a document stating that an item or autograph is represented as authentic.

But there is an important distinction collectors need to understand:

A COA is a type of document. It is not a standard of authentication.

Almost anyone can produce a piece of paper and call it a Certificate of Authenticity.

That does not mean COAs are useless. Far from it.

A good COA can be an important part of the record behind a collectible. What matters is who issued it, how the item was authenticated, and whether the certificate can be reliably connected back to the actual piece.

For example, I would pay attention to things such as:

• Who issued the COA?
• Is the issuer identifiable?
• Is there a certification or serial number?
• Does that number correspond to the item?
• Is there a matching hologram or sticker?
• Can the certification be verified independently?
• Does the document describe the specific item?
• Is there information about how the autograph was obtained or authenticated?

The words "Certificate of Authenticity" at the top of the page aren't the important part.

The evidence behind it is.

What Is an LOA?

LOA stands for Letter of Authenticity.

Collectors will often encounter LOAs with higher-value autographs, vintage material, game-used memorabilia or pieces that have gone through a more detailed authentication process.

An LOA is usually a more detailed written document explaining the authentication opinion or supporting information behind a particular item.

Depending on the issuer, it may include:

• a description of the item
• photographs
• authentication findings
• certification information
• an opinion regarding the autograph
• provenance information
• details about equipment characteristics or use
• other supporting observations

That additional detail can be extremely valuable.

But I would not automatically assume that something is stronger evidence simply because the document says "LOA" instead of "COA."

Again, the issuer and the process matter.

A detailed letter from an established authentication company with a traceable certification record is very different from a generic letter created by an unknown seller.

The name of the document tells you what it is.

It does not, by itself, tell you how much confidence to place in it.

COA vs. LOA: Is One Better?

I don't think collectors should approach this as:

LOA = good. COA = less good.

It is more nuanced than that.

I would rather have a clearly traceable COA from a reputable authentication source than an impressive-looking LOA from someone I know nothing about.

When evaluating either document, I care about four things:

1. 1Who issued it? — The credibility of the organization or individual behind the document matters.
2. 2How was the item authenticated? — Was the autograph witnessed, examined after the fact, based on known provenance, or evaluated using some other process?
3. 3Can the record be verified? — A certification number that can be matched to an independent record is much more useful than a certificate with no traceability.
4. 4Can I connect the document to my exact item? — If you own several signed jerseys from the same player, a folder of loose COAs isn't much help once you no longer know which certificate belongs to which jersey.

Authentication needs to stay connected to the collectible.

What Does Third-Party Authentication Mean?

Third-party authentication generally means that someone other than the buyer and seller has evaluated or authenticated the autograph or collectible.

For autographed memorabilia, collectors commonly encounter independent authentication companies that examine signatures and issue certification information based on their evaluation.

The resulting item may receive:

• a certification number
• a tamper-evident sticker or hologram
• a database record
• a COA
• an LOA
• or some combination of these

This is another reason the terminology becomes confusing.

A COA and third-party authentication aren't necessarily competing things.

A third-party authenticator may actually be the organization that issued the COA or LOA.

For me, the useful distinction is not:

"Does it have a COA?"

It is:

"Who authenticated this, what was their process, and can I trace their authentication back to this item?"

That tells me considerably more.

Witnessed Signings Are Different

Another term collectors will see is witnessed.

A witnessed autograph has a different evidence trail because an authorized representative was present when the athlete signed the item.

That is different from someone examining an autograph months or years later and giving an opinion about whether the signature is authentic.

Both can form legitimate parts of the memorabilia market, but they represent different types of evidence.

If I were documenting a witnessed autograph, I would want to preserve that distinction.

I would record:

• the authentication provider
• the certification number
• that the signature was witnessed, if applicable
• the signing date or event if known
• any corresponding hologram or sticker
• the supporting certificate
• photographs or receipts connected with the signing if available

Five or ten years later, those details may be much harder to reconstruct.

Authentication and Provenance Are Not the Same Thing

This distinction is especially important with memorabilia.

Authentication is evidence supporting what an item or autograph is.

Provenance is the history behind where the item came from and, potentially, how ownership moved over time.

The two can support each other, but they are not interchangeable.

Imagine a signed jersey purchased directly at a charity auction.

You might have:

• the jersey
• a third-party autograph certification
• the charity auction receipt
• the original auction listing
• photographs from the event
• correspondence related to the purchase

The authentication may support the signature.

The auction documentation helps preserve the provenance.

Together, those records tell a much better story than a COA sitting by itself in a drawer.

The same idea becomes even more important with game-used memorabilia, where provenance can include team documentation, auction history, equipment tags, photo matching, letters from previous owners or other evidence.

Good documentation doesn't turn an uncertain claim into a fact.

It preserves the evidence that actually exists.

The Piece of Paper Isn't the Collectible

This is where collectors can run into problems.

You buy an authenticated signed puck and put it in your display case.

The COA goes into a drawer.

Three years later, you buy another puck from the same player.

Then another.

Eventually you have several certificates and several pieces of memorabilia.

Which one goes with which?

This sounds like a small problem until it happens.

A certificate is most useful when its relationship to the physical collectible remains clear.

That is why I like preserving item-level evidence rather than simply recording:

Authentication: Yes

That isn't enough information.

I want to know exactly what supports the authentication of that particular piece.

What I Would Photograph and Save

For authenticated signed memorabilia, I would try to preserve the following whenever it is available.

A Simple Authentication Record

If I acquired a signed jersey today, I would want its authentication record to answer something like this:

That doesn't take very long to capture when the jersey is sitting in front of you and the paperwork is still in your hand.

Trying to reconstruct it several years later is a different story.

What If an Item Has No Authentication?

Not every autograph in a collection is going to have third-party authentication.

Collectors may have pieces signed in person years ago, family memorabilia, older purchases or items acquired before they paid much attention to documentation.

I don't think the answer is to pretend those records don't exist.

Document what you actually know.

If you personally obtained an autograph, record when and where you got it if you remember.

If you have photographs from the signing, keep them with the item.

If you bought it from another collector, record that.

If the history is uncertain, say that.

An accurate record that says:

"Purchased from another collector in approximately 2008. No third-party authentication."

is much more useful than creating certainty that does not exist.

You can always have an item evaluated later if that becomes important.

The important thing is not to let assumptions quietly turn into facts over time.

Authentication Should Travel With the Item

I think one of the biggest opportunities in collection management is preserving the connection between an item and its evidence.

Collectors spend years building that evidence.

Then the collectible gets sold, gifted or passed down and the context disappears.

The next owner gets the jersey.

Maybe they get the COA.

But they may not get the receipt, original listing, provenance notes, acquisition history or the explanation of why those documents matter.

Ideally, the record should stay connected to the collectible for as long as possible.

That is especially valuable for pieces with meaningful provenance.

The Question I Would Ask Before Buying

When I look at authenticated memorabilia now, I try not to focus on whether a seller can show me a certificate.

I ask:

Can I understand the evidence behind this item, and can I trace that evidence back to this exact piece?

That one question covers a lot.

Who authenticated it?

Was it witnessed?

What does the certification number tell me?

Can I verify it?

Does the paperwork match the item?

What provenance exists?

What am I relying on because I can document it, and what am I relying on because someone simply told me?

That's a much stronger way to evaluate authentication than looking for the letters COA on a piece of paper.

Keep the Evidence With the Collectible

Authentication isn't one field.

For important memorabilia, it is a collection of evidence surrounding the item.

The signature.

The certification.

The hologram.

The COA or LOA.

The receipt.

The provenance.

The photographs.

The story of where the piece came from.

The more of that information you preserve while you have it, the less someone has to guess later.

That's the approach I've taken with Relic Roster.

Instead of treating authentication as a simple yes/no field, collectors can keep authentication details, certification numbers, documentation, provenance and photographs connected to the individual collectible.

Because years from now, the piece of information you need probably won't be:

"Did this have a COA?"

It will be:

"What exactly supports what I believe about this item?"

That's the record worth keeping.

Related Reading

• How to Catalog Sports Memorabilia: A Step-by-Step Guide
• Sports Memorabilia Inventory Software: What Collectors Should Actually Track