Labor Day weekend opens with Magic: The Gathering Casual Commander at CJ Sports and Collectibles on Friday, September 4, 2026, tables open 11:00 AM to 8:00 PM Mountain Time inside Cottonwood Mall on Albuquerque's northwest side. A holiday-weekend Friday is one of the better times to visit — people are off work, nobody is rushing home, and pods that start at four o'clock often keep going until the store closes. It also lands on the opening weekend of college football and the run-up to the NFL season, which means the sports card counter is busy too.
The Commander format needs no elaborate setup here. Bring a hundred-card singleton deck led by a legendary creature, find three other players, and play. There is no entry list, no round clock, and no prize structure, which changes the tone completely from a tournament night — games run longer, players actually explain their lines, and newer people get taught rather than punished. Preconstructed decks straight off the shelf are welcome and common. Upgraded precons, budget lists, tribal builds, and heavily tuned personal decks all show up, and a quick honest conversation about power level before shuffling keeps pods balanced. If you walk in with nothing, staff will sell you a precon and you can be at a table in minutes.
What makes this stop worthwhile even if you do not play is the store's other half. CJ Sports and Collectibles is a full sports card shop — MLB, NBA, NFL, and NHL, vintage and modern, raw singles, sealed wax, PSA and BGS graded slabs, autographs, and memorabilia, plus box breaks the shop runs regularly. Early September is prime football card season, and this is a good weekend to see what fresh product has landed. On the game side, the shop carries Magic, Pokémon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, One Piece, and Riftbound singles and sealed.
The address is 10000 Coors Bypass NW, Suite C-204, inside Cottonwood Mall, Albuquerque, NM 87114 — right off the Coors Bypass in the far northwest metro, quick from Rio Rancho, Corrales, Ventana Ranch, and Paradise Hills. Mall parking is free and there is far more of it than the store will ever need. Being inside the mall also means climate control, clean restrooms, and a food court a short walk from the tables, which is genuinely useful on a nine-hour play day. Store hours are 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM Monday through Saturday, 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM Sunday. Call 505-832-7499.
Good fits for this session: families, teens, first-time Commander players, lapsed Magic players easing back in, and anyone with a free holiday-weekend afternoon. Bring your deck, sleeves, dice, a playmat, and a way to pay for singles. Show up mid-afternoon for the widest choice of pods, or after dinner for a smaller and more relaxed group. State your deck's power level plainly when you sit down — it is the fastest route to a game everyone enjoys. Entry cost is not published on the shop's event calendar; phone ahead if you need confirmation. Schedule updates go out on Instagram at @cjsportsabq and Facebook at CJSports33.
