Topps relationship with MLB to end as league signs exclusive deal with Fanatics

Charlie Prior is a hobbyist sports card collector, seller and trader. He collected as a kid but since December has gotten back in the game. These are some of his baseball cards that are being sorted.

Charlie Prior is a hobbyist sports card collector, seller and trader. He collected as a kid but since December has gotten back in the game. These are some of his baseball cards that are being sorted.

Major League Baseball’s 70-year relationship with Topps will end soon as the league and Major League Baseball Players Association have agreed to give exclusive rights to producing licensed baseball cards to Fanatics.

The deal with MLB won’t start until 2026, with the MLBPA deal beginning after at least the 2022 season.

According to a memo obtained by the Wall Street Journal and ESPN, the deal is worth more than 10 times what any previous deal with the union has made.

Action Network reports that MLB let Topps try to match the offer, but the company was unable to do so.

Topps first released MLB cards in 1952, and has been synonymous with the industry for decades. Topps has had an exclusive agreement with MLB since 2009.

–Field Level Media

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