Filed under: NFL, Upper Deck | Tags: football cards, NFL, NFL Properties, Players Inc, Upper Deck, Upper Deck football
Thursday afternoon Update: The NFL declined to comment on its decision.
Upper Deck announced Wednesday evening that it will no longer be licensed to produce NFL trading cards, ending weeks of speculation about what the beleaguered manufacturer’s status for the future might be.
Filed under: Beckett Media, MLB, NBA, NFL, NHL | Tags: MLB Properties, NBA, NFL Properties, NFL Trading Cards, NHL, Panini America, Players Inc, sports card licensing, Topps, Upper Deck
Topps is out of football!
Topps is out of football?
Topps is out of football.
Wow! I didn’t see that coming. Topps without a football license? That just seems . . . odd. After all, the New York-based trading card giant has produced at least one football product a year since 1955. For those counting at home, that’s 55 consecutive seasons.
Look, it’s all the rage these days for licensing entities to trim manufacturers from the mix in the name of bettering a battered business (see the NHL and Upper Deck, MLB Properties and Topps, the NBA and Panini, the CLC and UD, etc.); and the fact that Players Inc was planning to reduce the number of football players had been rumored for months. So the finality of that Monday-afternoon announcement surprised no one.
It was the cut player’s identity that seemed so shocking.
Filed under: Beckett Media, Donruss, MLB, NBA, NFL, Panini, Pro Sports, Topps, TriStar, Upper Deck | Tags: CLC, MLB, MLB Properties, NBA, NFL, Panini America, Players Inc, Sports licensing, Topps, Upper Deck
The trading card landscape has changed dramatically in 2009 as business decisions, legal challenges and the struggling economy have altered what collectors will find on store shelves.
Here’s a look at some of the notable events of the year so far …
January 27: The NBA selects Panini as its sole licensee of basketball cards beginning this fall.
January 27: MLB sues Donruss over unauthorized trademark use in its 2008 baseball sets.
March 13: Panini buys Donruss and forms Panini America.
Filed under: Beckett Media, NFL, Panini, Topps, Upper Deck | Tags: NFL Properties, NFL Trading Cards, Panini, Players Inc, Sports licensing, Topps, Upper Deck
Players Inc, the marketing and licensing arm of the NFL Players Association, confirmed on Monday afternoon that it will not renew Topps’ trading card license for 2010.
The move to reduce football manufacturers has been rumored for months and will take place officially when Players Inc’s current agreements with Panini, Topps and Upper Deck expire at the end of February.
Multiple attempts to contact NFL Properties regarding its plans for 2010 and beyond have so far been unsuccessful.
Players Inc’s decision to move forward with just Panini and Upper Deck comes after months of thorough investigation and evaluation of a current football card marketplace still reeling from the troubled economy. The move also represents the latest bombshell in a continued streamlining of the overall sports collectibles industry that has seemingly seen a life’s worth of monumental licensing changes in 2009 alone.
Topps officials were not immediately available for comment. Just three months ago, Topps secured a Major League Baseball Properties exclusive beginning next season.
Stay tuned to Beckett.com for additional details on this breaking story.
— Tracy Hackler
The Beckett Blog 