Scarce: fewer than 2,000,000 minted. Sells often: 104 verified sales in the last 12 months.
50 Pence - Elizabeth II 4th portrait Basketball (2011)
"Olympic Basketball 50p"
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Year | 2011 |
| Denomination | 50 Pence |
| Face value | 50p |
| Mintage | 1,748,000 |
| Mint | Royal Mint · Llantrisant |
| Series | Olympic 50p (2011) |
| Circulation | Circulating |
| Composition | Copper-nickel |
| Weight | 8.000g |
| Diameter | 27.3mm |
| Thickness | 1.78mm |
| Shape | Equilateral curve heptagon (7-sided) |
| Edge | Plain |
| Orientation | Medal alignment ↑↑ |
| Obv. artist | Ian Rank-Broadley |
| Rev. artist | Sarah Payne |
| Grade scale | UK (EF/UNC) |
Fourth crowned portrait of Queen Elizabeth II right, wearing the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland tiara, legend around.
Four basketball players against a textured background of a large basketball, London 2012 logo above, denomination below.
50 PENCE
Basketball 50p market value
Find this on eBay
AffiliateBasketball 50p price history
Daily limit reachedBasketball 50p value by grade
Realised auction prices · ⭐ Pro Expand rows for individual sale records| Grade | Latest | Median | 30d Δ | All-time range | Sales (1yr) | Total sales | Last sale | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UNC | £4.38 🔒 eBay | £4.38 | – | £3.50 – £5.45 | 3 | 3 | 02-09-2026 | |
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| BU | £4.27 🔒 eBay | £5.01 | – | £4.27 – £5.95 | 3 | 3 | 15-04-2026 | |
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| VF | £2.49 🔒 eBay | £2.49 | ▲39.5% | £0.63 – £12.78 | 98 | 98 | 12-10-2026 | |
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About the 2011 50 Pence - Elizabeth II – Basketball
The 2011 50 Pence - Elizabeth II – Basketball is a circulating 50 pence coin in the Olympic 50p (2011) series, struck in copper-nickel. It weighs 8g and measures 27.3mm across. Reverse design: Four basketball players against a textured background of a large basketball, London 2012 logo above, denomination below.
1,748,000 were struck.
Common questions
How much is the 2011 50 Pence - Elizabeth II – Basketball worth?
Verified sold prices for the 2011 50 Pence - Elizabeth II – Basketball run from £2.49 to £5.01 across 3 grades, taking the median for each grade. Condition makes the difference, so check the grade table above before pricing one.
How many Olympic Basketball 50p coins were made?
1,748,000 were struck for circulation, according to the Royal Mint's mintage figures. That puts it near the middle of the 29 London 2012 designs: thirteen have lower mintages and fifteen have higher ones.
Is the Basketball 50p rare?
It is neither scarce nor common within the series. Its 1,748,000 is about 620,000 more than the Football coin, the lowest of the 29, and it is not among the ten rarest 50p coins in circulation listed by the Royal Mint in October 2024.
Who designed the Basketball 50p?
Sarah Payne, whose entry was chosen from more than 30,000 submissions to the Royal Mint's public design competition. She entered after her grandmother saw the competition in a local paper. The obverse portrait of the Queen is by Ian Rank-Broadley.
What does the Basketball 50p show?
Four basketball players in motion, each at a different stage of play, against a background textured like the surface of a basketball. The London 2012 logo is above the players and the words 50 PENCE are below.
How do I identify the 2011 50 Pence - Elizabeth II – Basketball?
Check the weight 8g and diameter 27.3mm and the metal (copper-nickel) against the specification table on this page. The reverse design is described above.
History and design
The Basketball 50p is one of the 29 coins, one per sport, issued for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The whole series is dated 2011, and each design was picked through a competition open to the public.
The Royal Mint's figures give a circulating mintage of 1,748,000, which places the coin close to the middle of the series. Thirteen designs have lower figures and fifteen have higher ones. Its neighbours are very close: Table Tennis at 1,737,500 and Sailing at 1,749,500, only 1,500 more.
For scale, the lowest in the series is Football at 1,125,500 and the highest is Archery at 3,345,500.
The reverse was designed by Sarah Payne and selected from more than 30,000 public submissions. Four players are shown in motion, each at a different stage of play. Behind them the whole field of the coin is textured to resemble the surface of a basketball, with the London 2012 logo above and 50 PENCE below.
That background was Payne's way of naming the sport without lettering. She told the Royal Mint Museum: "I used the basketball itself as a texture for the background, showing the basketball without having to use the word basketball." She chose the sport after working through the list on the Royal Mint's website, because with basketball "I could capture the movement".
Payne heard about the competition from her grandmother, who saw it in a local paper and telephoned her. Her grandmother died before the shortlist was announced, and Payne said she was glad to have shown her the design before entrants had to keep them confidential.
The obverse carries the fourth portrait of Queen Elizabeth II by Ian Rank-Broadley, in which she wears the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland tiara. The edge is plain.
Collecting notes
No recognised varieties or mint errors are documented for this coin. Marks, discolouration and flattened detail on a circulated example are wear, not errors.
The textured background is the part to examine, since it covers most of the reverse and is what identifies the sport. Look for an example where the texture is still visible right across the field.
The 2010 proclamation also provided for the Olympic designs to be struck in gold, and Change Checker reports that one gold coin of each design was presented to its designer. These are separate from the 1,748,000 struck for circulation.
The coin was issued for general circulation and can still turn up in change. Closest to it by mintage is the Sailing 50p.
Sources
The history, design, varieties and collecting notes on this page are drawn from these sources. Prices come from recorded sales, not from them.
- 2011 Elizabeth II London Olympic Basketball 50p Coin, The Royal Mint (read 9 Oct 2026)
- Basketball fifty pence piece, The Royal Mint Museum (read 9 Oct 2026)
- Proclamation determining the specifications and designs for fifty pence coins commemorating the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, London Gazette issue 59419, 14 May 2010, The Gazette (read 9 Oct 2026)
- UK coin mintage figures (data file), The Royal Mint (read 9 Oct 2026)
- 50p Coin Designs and Specifications, The Royal Mint (read 9 Oct 2026)
- 2011 Olympic Basketball 50p (London 2012), Coin Hunter (read 9 Oct 2026)
- Do you own the rarest Olympic 50p?, Change Checker (read 9 Oct 2026)
- Making a Splash! The Royal Mint Crowns Atlantic Salmon 50p as Rarest 50p in Circulation, The Royal Mint (read 9 Oct 2026)
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