Revisiting the Custom Trading Pin Craze of the 2024 Olympics

5-minute read

TV cameras captured amazing footage from inside the Olympics games this summer, but there’s a historic tradition just outside the stadium gates that not everyone could see.

Pin trading!

The pin trading craze at the 2024 Olympics is just the latest example of a generational tradition that goes as far back as the 1896 games in Athens. Host cities and event sponsors are well known for creating custom lapel pins to promote their brands, commemorate the games, and, of course, to trade! But they’re not alone. It’s becoming more common for athletes and spectators to get involved as well.

Simone Biles has her own lapel pin to trade with other athletes - a gold, heart-shaped pin with her signature stamped into the center - as do Ilona Maher, Anastasija Samoilova, and countless others. In fact, there were almost 17,000 TikTok posts containing the hashtag #pintrading, and a quick scroll will show you the incredible variety of pin traders and pin designs from this year’s games. 

While it’s fun to see the athletes trading pins and celebrating the competition with their peers, the amazing Olympic pin trading tradition is accessible to just about everyone! Outside the athletes’ village and all around the stadiums were spectators wearing lanyards adorned with their pin collections, or else carrying pin boards and binders full to the brim with countless Olympic pins from past to present. 

Pin trading is a simple and fun way to connect with people from all around the world, which is why the tradition has been growing in popularity for so many years. These days, The Olympics organizers set up tents dedicated to pin trading, but the fun extended all around the city. If you were carrying pins on your shirt, hat, or lanyard, odds are that someone would stop you to chat about potential trades. All it takes to get involved is a quick greeting and before you know it, you’re swapping pins and taking home a small piece of Olympic history.

Not many think about it as they swap different designs, but the pins actually preserve years of Olympic history, which is why some are considered collector’s items. Senna Williams - a former Olympian herself - is an avid pin collector, and she says that a few pins she will never part with come from countries that don’t even exist anymore. Not only did she get to compete against those countries in Sydney, Australia back in 2000, she can carry unique mementos from the experience that few Olympians can share.

If you’re ready to join the fun yourself, whether it’s for baseball trading pins or just collectible pins for a special event, we’re here to help! Our team has over 20 years of experience, and is excited to help you create a unique trading pin design for any occasion - and if you need custom lanyards for a pin trading event, we have those too!

Trading pins come in all the shapes and sizes you can imagine, so there are endless possibilities when bringing your ideas to life. All you need to do is send us a sketch, or a couple of your ideas written down, and we’ll get started on a fee design and pricing quote.