In July 1909, the American Tobacco Company began the first ad campaign for the T206 set, in the Sporting Life weekly publication. The campaign consisted of two advertisements that prominently featured cards from the T206 set.

 

The first ad appeared in the July 3 issue and ran four consecutive weeks, with subsequent ads running every other week. The first ad ran a total of five times. The second ad initially ran the third week of August and a total of three times. The last ad ran in the Sept. 18 issue.

 

Of note: The first ad featured the line "FIRST SERIES - 150 SUBJECTS." This line alludes to ATC's plan from the start for the set to be at least two series. Also, it is important to note that the second ad includes the image of Honus Wagner.