Fanatics brands Fanatics Collectibles and Topps create new trading card deals with more than 100 colleges. | Images courtesy of Topps
Fanatics Collectibles, the trading cards and collectibles division of Fanatics, and Topps, its cornerstone sports trading card brand, announce new college physical and digital trading cards deals with more than 100 of the top universities nationwide. The agreements will include both exclusive and non-exclusive co-branded trading card products, incorporating official university trademarks and featuring both current student-athletes and former athletes playing in the NFL, NBA, and MLB.
Topps secured multi-year, exclusive rights with more than 35 institutions and a majority of the Power 5 Conference schools, including Alabama, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Oregon, Penn State, Texas A&M, and others. The agreements will take effect between 2023 and 2025. The resulting products will be official trading cards products combining official university trademarks with name, image, and likeness (NIL) rights from both current student-athletes and former players. Later this year, Topps will kick off a scaled, non-exclusive program to design, manufacture, and distribute trading cards showcasing current college football and basketball student-athletes for the above schools and more than 100 additional institutions, including Oklahoma, Duke, North Carolina, Iowa and Syracuse.
Topps has separately secured NIL trading cards rights with nearly 200 student athletes across college football and basketball, including 2021 Heisman Trophy winner Bryce Young (Alabama), CFP National Champion winning QB Stetson Bennett (Georgia), Bo Nix (Oregon), Caleb Williams (USC), and highly touted incoming men’s basketball players Dereck Lively II (Duke) and Nick Smith Jr. (Arkansas). Topps has also signed several premier women’s college basketball stars, including the 2022 NCAA Women’s Basketball National Champion and Tournament Most Outstanding Player Aliyah Boston (South Carolina). These trading cards will be released under Topps’ BowmanU brand beginning this fall.
Fanatics Collectibles was launched in 2021. In January, Fanatics acquired Topps, the iconic trading cards brand that has serviced fans, collectors, and retailers for over 70 years.
College licensing agency CLC arranged the trading card licensing elements on behalf of most of the participating universities.
