Things You'll Need:
- Stamps
- Paper
- Envelopes
- Pen or pencil
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Step 1
Determine what materials you want to send off to get signed. Sports cards are easy and inexpensive items both to obtain and to mail. You only need a first-class stamp to mail a sports card or index card in a letter. Photos or magazine covers will require 9-by-12-inch envelopes with a piece of cardboard to prevent bending, as well as more postage. Check current U.S. Postal Service rates. Items like balls and jerseys can be expensive to mail and probably should be avoided.
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Step 2
Find an address for the star to whom you wish to send the request. You can send requests to current sports stars at their team's headquarters, the addresses of which you can find on their websites. There are a number of websites online that list addresses for current and former athletes. The best of these is stararchive.com, which lists addresses and autograph request success rates, but costs a few dollars a month.
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Step 3
Write a letter to the star. You should know his career accomplishments and note some of them in your letter. You should explain why you are a fan and how much it would mean for you to receive his signature on your item. Don't just send requests to random athletes. Send them to athletes you actually admire so that your true fandom will come out in the letter.
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Step 4
Prepare a self-addressed stamped envelope. Athletes aren't going to pay to send your item back to you so you must include a SASE along with your letter and item in the envelope you mail to her.
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Step 5
After preparing the envelope, mail it and don't get discouraged. You will get some requests back in a week or two, but some could take much longer. It's not unheard of for autograph seekers to get their memorabilia returned to them signed years later.
