The OCon Expo (formerly known as O Comic Con) returns to the Mid-America Center for its 10th anniversary edition Friday through Sunday, July 17-19, 2026, taking over the full convention center floor in Council Bluffs just across the Missouri River from downtown Omaha. Billed as the Omaha-Council Bluffs area's largest and longest-running comic convention and pop-culture expo, OCon has grown from a small indie comics meetup into a full three-day weekend that packs trading card dealers, comics longboxes, anime importers, video-game retailers, cosplay competitions, celebrity guests, professional wrestlers, and an artist alley several hundred booths deep into one of the region's most-anticipated summer weekends.
The trading card and collectibles footprint is one of the show's strongest sections. Sports card dealers bring binders, monster boxes, and locked showcase cases of MLB, NBA, NFL, NHL, UFC, boxing, MMA, soccer, and college football — vintage Topps and Bowman from the 1950s and 60s, 1970s and 80s set-builders, junk-wax 1990s, and modern Panini Prizm, Donruss Optic, Select, Mosaic, Topps Chrome, Bowman Draft, and premium Topps Dynasty, National Treasures, and Flawless slabs. TCG tables stock Pokemon singles and sealed from vintage WOTC Base through modern Scarlet & Violet, plus Magic: The Gathering, Yu-Gi-Oh!, One Piece TCG, Disney Lorcana, Dragon Ball Z Fusion World, Star Wars Unlimited, Flesh and Blood, and Riftbound. Graded PSA, BGS, SGC, and CGC slab dealers anchor the back wall, comic long-box diggers cover the middle, and Funko Pop, statue, and anime figure dealers fill in the perimeter.
Hours typically run Friday afternoon through Sunday evening, with operator-published hours of approximately 4:00 PM to 9:00 PM Friday, 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM Saturday, and 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM Sunday — verify exact times on theoconexpo.com closer to the show. Three-day weekend passes, single-day tickets, and family bundles are sold through the OCon website and at the door; VIP packages with priority entry, exclusive swag, and reserved photo-op times are offered at a premium tier. Children 10 and under typically enter free with a paid adult — confirm policy at point of purchase. Cosplay is strongly encouraged and the Saturday cosplay contest is one of the biggest in the Midwest.
The Mid-America Center sits at 1 Arena Way, Council Bluffs, IA 51501, a five-minute drive from downtown Omaha across the Missouri River and directly off I-29/I-80. The convention center is climate-controlled, ADA-accessible, and laid out with wide aisles and clear sight lines from the main entrance. Free on-site parking covers the entire arena lot. The nearby Hilton Garden Inn, Holiday Inn Express, and the Horseshoe and Ameristar casinos offer convenient overnight stays for out-of-town vendors and weekend collectors, and the Council Bluffs riverfront has plenty of restaurants — Vinny's, 360 Steakhouse, Barley's Bar & Grill, and a strip of fast-casual spots along South 24th Street.
OCon Expo fits casual collectors, families, cosplayers, comic readers, anime fans, retro gamers, and serious trading card buyers all under one roof. For the best experience, buy a three-day pass to spread out your hunting, arrive Friday afternoon for first dibs on freshly-stocked dealer cases (most dealers do not restock between days), and bring cash plus Venmo and Zelle backups. Pack penny sleeves, top loaders, and a slab case. Build a list of cosplay photo ops and panel times in advance. Follow @OComicCon and @OConExpo on Facebook and Instagram, watch theoconexpo.com for guest announcements and panel schedules, and check unleashcb.com for parking, hotel block, and local-dining details.