Every four years during the UEFA Euros, there is something soccer fans young and old around the world have in common. Sure, they cheer on different national teams and players in one of the biggest sporting events on the planet, but with that comes the shared experience of the Panini sticker book. As these tournaments progress, fans scramble to buy, trade, and collect every player of every team, so that by the time that title game is played, their collections are complete.
For the last 42 years, Panini has been the official rights holder for these sticker books and stickers for the Euros.
Until now.
Today, Fanatics-owned Topps has announced that it will become UEFA’s new and official licensed partner from 2022 to 2028, providing exclusive stickers, trading cards, and collectibles connected to UEFA Euro 2024 in Germany as well as upcoming events like Euro 2028, the UEFA Nations League Finals, and the UEFA Women’s Euro 2025.
Fanatics already runs the official fan retail shops at major UEFA tournaments. In January, Fanatics paid a reported $500 million to acquire Topps, the most recognizable brand name in the trading cards business, and adding a crown jewel brand to its burgeoning Fanatics Collectibles division, which includes trading cards rights for Major League Baseball, MLB Players Association, the National Football League Players Association, and the National Basketball Association.
Topps teased its new Euros deal on Monday with a cryptic Instagram video of famed soccer manager Jose Mourinho appearing to talk on the phone about an impending player deal. Mourinho, who has won titles in multiple leagues, including the Champions League, is the face of Topps’s move into international football collectibles. In a spot created by Germany-based ad agency Jung von Matt Sports, the legendary coach exudes his famed lack of humility.
It’s a logical move for Fanatics Collectibles, given the ambitions of its CEO, Michael Rubin, who is aiming to turn the company into the planet’s “leading digital sports platform.” Adding collectibles rights for the second most popular event in the world’s most popular sport only further illustrates that ambition, and the company’s willingness and drive to achieve it.
(18)
