Free shipping on all orders

TeamsPartners
Snapshot
Pro ShopTeamsClubs/Organizations
  1. Home
  2. /
  3. Custom Cards
  4. /
  5. custom plastic medals

Custom Plastic Medals vs. Trading Cards That Teams Keep

Custom plastic medals end up in junk drawers. Custom trading cards end up framed on bedroom walls.

View Templates
60 sec
Design Time
3-5 days
Shipping
2-3
Day Shipping
Custom sports trading cards displayed as team awards instead of custom plastic medals on a table

Every season, coaches and team organizers search for custom plastic medals to hand out at banquets and end-of-season celebrations. It's a familiar move — medals feel official, they photograph well at the ceremony, and they're easy to order in bulk. But here's what actually happens: within a few weeks, those medals are tangled in a drawer or lost in a backpack. They don't carry a photo. They don't tell a story. They don't remind a kid of the exact moment they played their best game. Plastic medals are forgotten. Fast.

Snapshot builds premium custom sports trading cards that give every athlete something genuinely worth keeping. You upload a photo — any photo from practice, gameday, or the championship moment — and we print it on professional card stock using pro sports-card templates that look like the real thing. Single cards, packs, and oversized MEGA poster cards ship free anywhere in the USA, directly to your door, in two to three business days. Made in Des Moines, Iowa, by people who care about getting the details right.

Here's exactly how the process works — and why teams are making the switch.

Related Topics

Order Prime Sports Team PhotographyOrder Vinyl Sports BannersOrder Custom Trading Cards PrintingOrder Sports BannerOrder Sports Card PackagingOrder Sports Card ManufacturerOrder Custom Sports Flags
The Snapshot Team|Custom sports card specialists — printing premium cards since 2024Last reviewed: May 1, 2026

We ship custom cards to teams in all 50 states every week, from small rec leagues ordering a single pack to travel clubs placing full-roster orders ahead of their banquet night.

Custom Plastic Medals vs. Snapshot Trading Cards

FeatureSnapshotAlternative
Personalized Photo
Production Time
Setup Fees
Minimum Order
Shipping Cost
Included Protective Case
Made in USA

Your Team Order Checklist: Everything You Need Before You Order

  • ✓Collect one clear, well-lit photo per athlete — action shots or portrait-style both work
  • ✓Confirm the athlete's name spelling, jersey number, and position for each card
  • ✓Decide between single cards, packs, or MEGA poster cards based on your event type
  • ✓Verify your delivery address and confirm it's a location someone will be to receive the package
  • ✓Order at least four to five business days before your banquet or event date for comfortable buffer
  • ✓Check that your photo files are clear and in focus before uploading — sharper images print sharper
  • ✓Decide if you want different templates per player or a consistent look across the full roster
  • ✓Confirm whether you want all cards shipped to one address or separate addresses per family

Mistakes Teams Make When Ordering Awards (And How to Avoid Them)

Waiting too long to order

Snapshot ships in two to three business days, but don't cut it closer than four to five days before your event. Give yourself a buffer in case you need to make a correction to a card.

Using low-resolution or blurry photos

The final card print quality is directly tied to the source photo. Take five minutes to find the sharpest, best-lit image available before you upload. A well-lit phone photo beats a blurry DSLR shot every time.

Ordering medals or plaques because 'that's what we've always done'

Tradition isn't a strategy. Ask athletes what they actually keep from past seasons. Photo keepsakes consistently outlast hardware in terms of how long they stay visible in someone's room or home.

Forgetting to double-check name spellings

Misspelled names on a personalized award are painful — especially for an athlete or their family. Review every name carefully before submitting. A few extra minutes at checkout saves a lot of frustration after delivery.

What You Actually Get Instead of Custom Plastic Medals

Custom plastic medals check a box. Custom trading cards from Snapshot do something more — they become a piece of the season that athletes hold onto for years.

A Real Photo on Every Card

Medals are generic by design. Trading cards are specific by design. Your athlete's actual face, actual number, actual team name — printed sharp on professional card stock. That specificity is what makes someone keep it. Generic hardware gets forgotten. Personalized keepsakes get passed around at family gatherings.

Free Magnetic Case Included

Every single card ships with a free magnetic case. That's not a throwaway detail — it signals that this card is worth protecting. Parents notice it. Kids notice it. It communicates value the moment someone opens the package, without you having to say a word about quality.

Fast, Reliable Turnaround

Banquets get scheduled, seasons end quickly, and nobody wants to chase down a delayed shipment. Snapshot ships in two to three business days from Des Moines, Iowa. You order on Tuesday, cards arrive by Friday. That timeline works for last-minute banquets, end-of-season parties, and coaches who remembered awards at the eleventh hour.

Options That Fit Every Budget

Single cards start at $17.99. Pack options run up to $49.99. The MEGA poster card — an 11-by-15-inch oversized collectible — is also $49.99 and makes an exceptional gift for standout players or seniors. Free shipping across the entire USA means the price you see is the price you pay.

Which Teams Are Ordering Instead of Custom Plastic Medals?

Teams at every level — youth rec leagues, travel clubs, high school varsity, adult recreational leagues — have started replacing standard plastic awards with Snapshot cards. Here's how different groups are using them.

Youth Rec Leagues and Community Sports

Rec league directors order team packs at the end of the season instead of the usual bag of plastic medals that parents politely accept and quietly discard. With Snapshot, every kid in the league gets a card with their own photo. It's inexpensive enough to do for an entire division, and parents genuinely keep them. Some families have started collecting a card from every season their kid plays.

Travel and Club Teams

Travel coaches use MEGA poster cards for senior sendoffs and award nights. The 11-by-15-inch format is big enough to mat and frame — which is exactly what families do with them. Club directors also use single card packs as team gifts during tournaments, handing them out in the locker room after a big win. It's a moment players remember.

School and Booster Club Orders

High school booster clubs and athletic departments use Snapshot cards for banquet night awards, senior recognition events, and spirit weeks. A card pack for the varsity roster is a concrete keepsake that holds more meaning than a participation certificate. Coaches have also used single cards as recruiting tools — a sharp-looking card of an athlete in full uniform makes a strong impression.

Why Teams Nationwide Choose Snapshot Over Plastic Awards

Snapshot ships custom cards to teams in all 50 states every week — from small-town rec leagues in rural Iowa to competitive travel clubs on both coasts. Our free magnetic case inclusion isn't an accident; it came directly from feedback that athletes and parents wanted something that felt premium from the moment they opened the box. The two-to-three-day production window isn't a marketing claim — it's a production standard our Des Moines team maintains order after order, season after season.

Frequently Asked Questions

What photo formats and quality do I need to upload?
Standard smartphone photos work well for most cards. The sharper and better-lit the original image, the crisper the final printed card will look — so action shots taken in good lighting will always outperform blurry or low-resolution images. You don't need a professional photographer's files. A well-lit photo taken courtside or on a field with a recent smartphone is usually more than sufficient. If you're working with photos taken at an indoor gym, try to use images where the athlete is well-lit and in focus. Our templates are designed to make good photos look great.
What's included with each card order?
Every single card ordered from Snapshot includes a free magnetic case — the same style collectors use to protect valuable cards. That's included automatically with every single card purchase at no extra cost. Card packs come packaged together. The MEGA 11-by-15-inch poster card is a standalone product that ships flat and protected. All orders include free standard shipping anywhere in the USA. There are no handling fees, no packaging surcharges, and no surprise charges added at checkout. The price listed is the price you pay.
Is the MEGA poster card appropriate as a senior gift or banquet centerpiece?
It's genuinely one of the best uses for the MEGA card. At 11 by 15 inches, it's large enough to mat and frame — which is exactly what most families end up doing. High school coaches have used MEGA cards for senior night recognition, presenting them at half-time ceremonies or banquet dinners. Club coaches use them as end-of-season gifts for standout players. Because it uses the same pro sports-card template format as our standard cards, it looks like an oversized version of something from an actual card collection — not a generic certificate or plaque.
Do Snapshot cards work for non-traditional sports and activities?
Absolutely. The card templates aren't limited to football, baseball, or basketball. Teams and groups from martial arts, swim clubs, cheerleading, dance, esports, rodeo, lacrosse, and dozens of other activities have used Snapshot cards successfully. Any sport or activity where you have a photo of an athlete in action or in uniform can work. The sport name and position fields on the template are fully customizable, so you're not forced to pick from a predetermined list. If your team competes in it, we can put it on a card.
How does Snapshot compare to ordering custom plastic medals from a standard awards vendor?
Standard awards vendors typically require minimum order quantities, charge setup fees for custom engraving or artwork, and have production lead times of one to two weeks or more. Custom plastic medals from those vendors are also generic — they carry a sport icon and maybe a name, but they don't carry a photo or tell a personal story. Snapshot has no minimums, no setup fees, two-to-three-day production, free shipping, and every card includes the athlete's actual photo. The per-unit cost is comparable to mid-range medals once you factor in engraving and shipping costs from traditional vendors.
Where are Snapshot cards made?
Every card is produced in Des Moines, Iowa, USA. We're not outsourcing production overseas or routing orders through a third-party fulfillment center with variable quality controls. Our team handles printing and quality review in-house. That's part of why we can confidently stand behind a two-to-three-day ship window — we control the production process from start to finish. Supporting a USA-based operation also matters to a lot of the coaches and league administrators we work with, especially for youth sports organizations that prioritize buying American-made products when possible.

Example Card Designs

See what's possible with our templates

Chrome card designGold chrome cardAura card designModern chrome cardPaint splatter cardSilver chrome card
View All Templates →
Premium sports trading card in free magnetic case shipped from Snapshot in Des Moines Iowa

Which Teams Are Ordering Instead of Custom Plastic Medals?

Done With Custom Plastic Medals? Build Your Team Cards Today.

Upload your photos, pick a template, and we'll print and ship premium trading cards your athletes will actually keep. Free shipping across the USA. Every single card includes a free magnetic case. Two to three business days from Des Moines to your door.

No credit card required  |  Instant preview  |  Pro-quality designs

Explore More Card Options

Discover more custom trading card options for every sport and occasion

Order Metal Medals

Create custom cards →

Order Medals For Sale

Create custom cards →

Order Prime Sports Team Photography

Create custom cards →

Order Vinyl Sports Banners

Create custom cards →

Order Custom Trading Cards Printing

Create custom cards →

Order Sports Banner

Create custom cards →

More Related Resources

Order Sports Card PackagingOrder Sports Card ManufacturerOrder Custom Sports FlagsOrder Sports Photography Order Form Template
View All Card Options →
Snapshot Custom Sports Cards
Your Original Rookie Card

Products

  • Sports Card
  • Templates
  • All Cards
  • Compare
  • Card Builder

Company

  • About
  • Careers
  • Blog

Support

  • FAQ
  • Contact
  • Resources

Browse by Sport

All Cards·Baseball·Football·Basketball·Soccer·Hockey·Softball·Lacrosse·Volleyball·Wrestling·Tennis·Golf
Designed & printed in the USA
(515) 672-1257

© 2026 Snapshot, LLC

Terms•Privacy•SMS Terms
Snapshot Custom Sports Cards - Create personalized trading cards online
Your Original Rookie Card

Products

  • Custom Sports Card
  • Custom Trading Cards
  • Templates
  • Browse All Cards
  • Compare to Competitors
  • Teams & Partnerships
  • Card Builder

Company

  • About
  • Careers
  • Blog

Support

  • FAQ
  • Contact
  • All Resources

Browse Cards by Sport

All CardsBaseballFootballBasketballSoccerHockeySoftballLacrosseVolleyballWrestlingTennisGolfSwimmingTrack & FieldGymnasticsCheerleadingView All →
Des Moines, IA - Wilmington, NC. Designed and printed in the USA.
(515) 672-1257

© 2026 Snapshot, LLC. All rights reserved.

Terms of Service•Privacy Policy•SMS Terms