Football is finally getting the jersey patch card treatment. Fanatics has signed an exclusive, long-term collectibles agreement with FIFA covering trading cards, stickers, and trading card games — starting in 2031 and rolling out under the Topps brand.
The deal spans both physical and digital formats, which tells you everything about where the collectibles market is heading. Anyone who has cracked open a Topps Chrome NBA or NFL box recently already knows what debut patches look like. Now football is next — and with players like Lamine Yamal and Endrick already on senior international duty at 16 and 17, the pipeline for genuine debut patch cards from future stars is already filling up before the ink is dry.
Why the 2034 World Cup changes the collector landscape
The timing is deliberate. The 2026 World Cup still falls under Panini's watch, and 2031 is when Fanatics takes over. That means the 2034 World Cup in Saudi Arabia becomes the launchpad — the first World Cup with Topps-branded packs, debut patches, and whatever digital integration Fanatics builds over the next decade.
For context on scale: the deal also commits Fanatics to distributing over $150 million in free collectibles to youth football programs globally across the partnership's lifetime. That's not charity optics — it's market development. Get the next generation of supporters hooked on collecting early, and you own the hobby for decades.
Fanatics Fest NYC kicks things off
The partnership launches publicly at Fanatics Fest NYC, running July 16-19, with the 2026 World Cup Final pre-match press conferences scheduled for July 17 at the Javits Center. Both finalists' coaches and players will attend, and the venue converts into a live watch party for the Final itself two days later.
It's a smart way to tie the new deal to the biggest football event of the year, even if the Topps era is still five years out. The 2026 World Cup belongs to Panini — that's the last chapter of one era. Everything from 2031 onwards is Fanatics' pitch to run.
