Well, today you usually get a football team sticker or a decorated piece of paper with a hole in it, labeled as a "pencil topper". Back in the day (like, way back in the day, when my grandparents were kids), you'd get stuff like baseball cards, toy rings, and plastic figurines. I've never gotten anything neat since I'm a young'un, but even I've seen the quality of the stickers get somehow worse.
What kind of prizes we talkin about?
Well, today you usually get a football team sticker or a decorated piece of paper with a hole in it, labeled as a "pencil topper". Back in the day (like, way back in the day, when my grandparents were kids), you'd get stuff like baseball cards, toy rings, and plastic figurines. I've never gotten anything neat since I'm a young'un, but even I've seen the quality of the stickers get somehow worse.
People far and wide lament over this:
http://theoatmeal.com/comics/cracker_jack
http://www.chowhound.com/food-news/88705/cracker-jack-prizes-now-lame/