Latest news with #AndreasGustafsson
USA Today
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Topps announces UFC debut patches to be placed in one-of-one trading cards
Topps announces UFC debut patches to be placed in one-of-one trading cards Topps Debut patches are coming to the UFC. The sports card trading company recently introduced the Debut patch, which has rapidly become a hit with collectors. Debuting athletes wear a specially designed patch on their uniform, jersey, or outfit, which will later be placed into a one-of-one trading card. Collectors will then have the opportunity to pull the ultra-rare card from a pack in a future card set release. Topps and UFC officially announced that the first fighters to wear the debut patches will be Michael Aswell and Andreas Gustafsson, who compete on the preliminary bouts of UFC on ESPN 68 at UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The patches will be placed on the right sleeve of their walkout jersey. The patches will be put into a card, signed by the fighter, and included in a 2026 Topps UFC product. The program began in Major League Baseball and became an immediate success as the must-have chase card for debuting players. Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes's debut patch card became a major hunt in the collecting community, as many parties offered bounties for the card. Even the Pirates organization itself created an enticing package for the collector who was lucky enough to pull the card. The card was pulled by an 11-year-old and eventually sold at auction for $1.11 million. Topps brought the program to UFC's TKO Group partner, WWE, for Raw and SmackDown debuts. They also created WrestleMania patches, which were spotted on ring gear during the two-day event in Las Vegas last month.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Topps introduces Debut Patch card for UFC
Topps is expanding its popular event-worn autograph cards to the UFC. This weekend's fight will mark the first time a Debut Patch will be used for the UFC when Andreas Gustafsson enters the Octagon for UFC Fight Night on May 31, broadening the program. The patch will be worn on Gustafsson's right sleeve of his walk-out jersey and then will be removed after the bout. From there, the patch will go to Topps' facilities in Dallas and get made into a 1-of-1 patch card, which will later be signed by the fighter. This process follows the similar ones in the other sports that have included the Debut and Event Patch Cards. It hasn't been determined what UFC product the debut patch card will appear yet, but expect the newest UFC fighters to get the same treatment until that time. Topps started the Debut Patch Auto card program with MLB in 2023 to showcase a rookie's first game. It has since expanded to MLS (2024) rookies and WWE (2025), but for WrestleMania. With the NBA (late 2025) and NFL (2026) on the horizon for Topps, it's likely to expand to nearly all of the major sports over the next two years. Collectors have been enjoying the program as well, giving them a certified chase for a unique card they can place at a specific moment in time. The secondary market prices of the cards haven't hurt, either. On March 21, the Paul Skenes MLB Rookie Debut Patch Autograph sold for $1.2 million and was purchased by Dicks' Sporting Goods, which recently displayed the card in one of its stores. While other baseball Debut Patch Cards haven't realized seven figures, others have hit six figures like Jackson Holliday's, which sold for $198,000 in March. If the UFC patch program existed since the beginning of the sport, you would have seen cards for the fighters like Ronda Rousey, Anderson Silva or Khabib Nurmagomedov. Those would have seen impressive prices from their first fights. The addition of the UFC to Topps' Debut Patch program marks another step in the expansion of event-worn autograph cards across major sports. As more leagues and athletes are included, these cards continue to offer all types of collectors a unique way to feel closer to the sport.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Topps introduces Debut Patch card for UFC
Topps is expanding its popular event-worn autograph cards to the UFC. This weekend's fight will mark the first time a Debut Patch will be used for the UFC when Andreas Gustafsson enters the Octagon for UFC Fight Night on May 31, broadening the program. The patch will be worn on Gustafsson's right sleeve of his walk-out jersey and then will be removed after the bout. From there, the patch will go to Topps' facilities in Dallas and get made into a 1-of-1 patch card, which will later be signed by the fighter. This process follows the similar ones in the other sports that have included the Debut and Event Patch Cards. It hasn't been determined what UFC product the debut patch card will appear yet, but expect the newest UFC fighters to get the same treatment until that time. Topps started the Debut Patch Auto card program with MLB in 2023 to showcase a rookie's first game. It has since expanded to MLS (2024) rookies and WWE (2025), but for WrestleMania. With the NBA (late 2025) and NFL (2026) on the horizon for Topps, it's likely to expand to nearly all of the major sports over the next two years. Collectors have been enjoying the program as well, giving them a certified chase for a unique card they can place at a specific moment in time. The secondary market prices of the cards haven't hurt, either. On March 21, the Paul Skenes MLB Rookie Debut Patch Autograph sold for $1.2 million and was purchased by Dicks' Sporting Goods, which recently displayed the card in one of its stores. While other baseball Debut Patch Cards haven't realized seven figures, others have hit six figures like Jackson Holliday's, which sold for $198,000 in March. If the UFC patch program existed since the beginning of the sport, you would have seen cards for the fighters like Ronda Rousey, Anderson Silva or Khabib Nurmagomedov. Those would have seen impressive prices from their first fights. The addition of the UFC to Topps' Debut Patch program marks another step in the expansion of event-worn autograph cards across major sports. As more leagues and athletes are included, these cards continue to offer all types of collectors a unique way to feel closer to the sport.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
UFC fighters to be featured in Topps' Debut Patch program
Topps will expand its popular Rookie Patch Autograph program into its fourth league this weekend with the new UFC Debut Patch. The first patch in the program will be worn by Andreas Gustafsson for ESPN FN 189: Erin Blanchfield vs. Maycee Barber on Saturday. Gustafsson will face Trevin Giles in a Catch Weight fight. According to Fanatics, fighters will wear the debut patches on the right sleeve of their walkout jerseys before the fight. Patches will be removed after the fight and transported to Topps' Dallas-area facility where they will be placed into one-of-one trading cards. Each card will later be autographed by the fighter. Topps didn't immediately announce which product UFC debut patches will appear in. The addition of UFC is the latest expansion to the debut patch program, which first launched as part of 2023 Topps Chrome Update Baseball. The program was later added to MLS in 2024 and WWE earlier this year. Fanatics Collectibles and UFC agreed to a new exclusive deal for trading cards in early 2024. Topps previously made cards for the company from 2009 to 2020. Since its launch, the debut patch program has proven to be one of Topps' most successful innovations since being acquired by Fanatics in 2022. To date, eight Rookie Debut Patch Autographs have sold for $25,000 or more, according to public records logged by Card Ladder. The most expensive sale from the program came earlier this year when the Paul Skenes 1/1 sold for $1.11 million in Fanatics Collect's March Premier Auction. It was later announced the card was acquired by national retailer Dick's Sporting Goods, which placed the Skenes RDPA on display in a Pittsburgh-area store. Ben Burrows is a reporter and editor for cllct, the premier company for collectible culture. He was previously the Collectibles Editor at Sports Illustrated. You can follow him on X and Instagram @benmburrows.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Topps introduces Debut Patch card for UFC
Andreas Gustafsson of Sweden reacts after being awarded a UFC contract during Dana White's Contender Series. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC) Topps is expanding its popular event-worn autograph cards to the UFC. This weekend's fight will mark the first time a Debut Patch will be used for the UFC when Andreas Gustafsson enters the Octagon for UFC Fight Night on May 31, broadening the program. Advertisement The patch will be worn on Gustafsson's right sleeve of his walk-out jersey and then will be removed after the bout. From there, the patch will go to Topps' facilities in Dallas and get made into a 1-of-1 patch card, which will later be signed by the fighter. This process follows the similar ones in the other sports that have included the Debut and Event Patch Cards. It hasn't been determined what UFC product the debut patch card will appear yet, but expect the newest UFC fighters to get the same treatment until that time. Topps started the Debut Patch Auto card program with MLB in 2023 to showcase a rookie's first game. It has since expanded to MLS (2024) rookies and WWE (2025), but for WrestleMania. (Topps) With the NBA (late 2025) and NFL (2026) on the horizon for Topps, it's likely to expand to nearly all of the major sports over the next two years. Advertisement Collectors have been enjoying the program as well, giving them a certified chase for a unique card they can place at a specific moment in time. The secondary market prices of the cards haven't hurt, either. On March 21, the Paul Skenes MLB Rookie Debut Patch Autograph sold for $1.2 million and was purchased by Dicks' Sporting Goods, which recently displayed the card in one of its stores. While other baseball Debut Patch Cards haven't realized seven figures, others have hit six figures like Jackson Holliday's, which sold for $198,000 in March. If the UFC patch program existed since the beginning of the sport, you would have seen cards for the fighters like Ronda Rousey, Anderson Silva or Khabib Nurmagomedov. Those would have seen impressive prices from their first fights. The addition of the UFC to Topps' Debut Patch program marks another step in the expansion of event-worn autograph cards across major sports. As more leagues and athletes are included, these cards continue to offer all types of collectors a unique way to feel closer to the sport.
