A Few New Developments In The World Of Soccer Cards

Firstly from Oz we have the first trading cards featuring the A-League since 2009-10, I believe. Also of note, several socceroos likely to compete in Brazil are featured in the product. This collection comes to us from Sports Entertainment Products of Australia.

In America, it has been revealed that Topps' 2014 MLS set will feature Mexican national team players, including Man Utd striker Javier "Chicharito" Hernández and La Liga star Gio dos Santos, among others. The inaugural 2013 Topps MLS product was a complete flop as far as secondary market value goes so hopefully Topps have the sense to include Chicharito auto's since his Futera sigs (some of which look to be typical Futera fake garbage) sell quite well. I would think collectors would pay more for a Chicharto auto from a relatively reputable card-maker in Topps, although with soccer collectors you just never know.

There are also updates to Topps' Premier Gold and Bundesliga Chrome sets. The checklists have been revealed and are both listed below:

2013-14 Topps Premier Gold:
Base Set
1 Laurent Koscielny
2 Jack Wilshere
3 Santi Cazorla
4 Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
5 Theo Walcott
6 Bradley Guzan
7 Matthew Lowton
8 Andreas Weimann
9 Gabriel Agbonlahor
10 Christian Benteke
11 Mark Hudson
12 Peter Whittingham
13 Don Cowie
14 Craig Bellamy
15 Fraizer Campbell
16 David Luiz
17 Frank Lampard
18 Eden Hazard
19 Juan Mata
20 Fernando Torres
21 Julian Speroni
22 Danny Gabbidon
23 Mile Jedinak
24 Yannick Bolasie
25 Joel Ward
26 Tim Howard
27 Phil Jagielka
28 Leighton Baines
29 James McCarthy
30 Kevin Mirallas
31 Maarten Stekelenburg
32 Sascha Riether
33 Fernando Amorebieta
34 Bryan Ruiz
35 Dimitar Berbatov
36 James Chester
37 Curtis Davies
38 Ahmed Elmohamady
39 Robert Koren
40 Robbie Brady
41 Glen Johnson
42 Jose Enrique
43 Philippe Coutinho
44 Steven Gerrard
45 Luis Suarez
46 Joe Hart
47 Vincent Kompany
48 David Silva
49 Yaya Toure
50 Sergio Aguero
51 Rio Ferdinand
52 Nemanja Vidic
53 Michael Carrick
54 Wayne Rooney
55 Robin Van Persie
56 Fabricio Coloccini
57 Davide Santon
58 Hatem Ben Arfa
59 Yohan Cabaye
60 Papiss Cisse
61 John Ruddy
62 Sébastien Bassong
63 Wes Hoolahan
64 Robert Snodgrass
65 Ricky Van Wolfswinkel
66 Luke Shaw
67 Morgan Schneiderlin
68 Gaston Ramirez
69 Jay Rodriguez
70 Rickie Lambert
71 Asmir Begovic
72 Geoff Cameron
73 Ryan Shawcross
74 Charlie Adam
75 Peter Crouch
76 John O'Shea
77 Erik Lamela
78 Adam Johnson
79 Keiren Westwood
80 Steven Fletcher
81 Michel Vorm
82 Ashley Williams
83 Wayne Routledge
84 Jonathan De Guzman
85 Michu
86 Hugo Lloris
87 Jan Vertonghen
88 Lee Cattermole
89 David de Gea
90 Shinji Kagawa
91 Ben Foster
92 Jonas Olsson
93 James Morrison
94 Claudio Yacob
95 Shane Long
96 Jussi Jaaskelainen
97 Joey O'Brien
98 Mohamed Diame
99 Kevin Nolan
100 Andy Carroll
101 Wojciech Szczesny
102 Mesut Ozil
103 Mikel Arteta
104 Olivier Giroud
105 Lukas Podolski
106 Ron Vlaar
107 Antonio Luna
108 Karim El Ahmadi
109 Fabian Delph
110 Leandro Bacuna
111 David Marshall
112 Steven Caulker
113 Gary Medel
114 Aron Gunnarsson
115 Andreas Cornelius
116 Petr Cech
117 Willian
118 John Terry
119 Ashley Cole
120 Oscar
121 Jason Puncheon
122 Kagisho Dikgacoi
123 Marouane Chamakh
124 Kevin Phillips
125 Dwight Gayle
126 Leon Osman
127 Steven Pienaar
128 Gareth Barry
129 Romelu Lukaku
130 Nikica Jelavic
131 Brede Hangeland
132 Scott Parker
133 Adel Taarabt
134 Damien Duff
135 Darren Bent
136 Maynor Figueroa
137 Tom Huddlestone
138 Yannick Sagbo
139 Jake Livermore
140 Allan McGregor
141 Simon Mignolet
142 Lucas Leiva
143 Jordan Henderson
144 Daniel Agger
145 Daniel Sturridge
146 Pablo Zabaleta
147 Jesus Navas
148 Fernandinho
149 Alvaro Negredo
150 Stevan Jovetic
151 Marouane Fellaini
152 Ryan Giggs
153 Danny Welbeck
154 Tim Krul
155 Mathieu Debuchy
156 Jonas Gutierrez
157 Cheick Tiote
158 Loic Remy
159 Martin Olsson
160 Russell Martin
161 Anthony Pilkington
162 Gary Hooper
163 Nathan Redmond
164 Artur Boruc
165 Dani Osvaldo
166 Victor Wanyama
167 Dejan Lovren
168 Adam Lallana
169 Robert Huth
170 Matthew Etherington
171 Steven N'Zonzi
172 Erik Pieters
173 Jonathan Walters
174 Emanuele Giaccherini
175 Craig Gardner
176 Jack Colback
177 Modibo Diakité
178 Jozy Altidore
179 Angel Rangel
180 Chico Flores
181 Jonjo Shelvey
182 Wilfried Bony
183 Pablo Hernandez
184 Kyle Walker
185 Michael Dawson
186 Paulinho
187 Aaron Lennon
188 Roberto Soldado
189 Sandro
190 Jermain Defoe
191 Liam Ridgewell
192 Stephane Sessegnon
193 Youssouf Mulumbu
194 Chris Brunt
195 Nicolas Anelka
196 James Collins
197 Stewart Downing
198 Mark Noble
199 Matt Jarvis
200 Joe Cole
Dual Autographs Set Checklist
9 cards
DA-AH Aaron Hughes
Darren Bent
DA-ASY Ashley Young
Marouane Fellaini
DA-BG Brad Guzan
Tim Howard
DA-CB Christian Benteke
Peter Crouch
DA-CBE Christian Benteke
Marouane Fellaini
DA-CK Darren Bent
Christian Benteke
DA-MA Mikel Arteta
Jack Wilshere
DA-PJ Tim Howard
Phil Jagielka
DA-SS Scott Sinclair
George Thorne
Triple Autographs Set Checklist
4 cards
TA-AT Aleksandar Tonev
Andreas Weimann
Christian Benteke
TA-AW Aleksandar Tonev
Andreas Weimann
Brad Guzan
TA-BG Christian Benteke
Andreas Weimann
Brad Guzan
TA-CB Brad Guzan
Christian Benteke
Aleksandar Tonev
Quad Autographs Set Checklist
3 cards
QA-AT Scott Sinclair
Yannick Bolasie
Aleksandar Tonev
Jordan Henderson
QA-AW Andreas Weimann
Aleksandar Tonev
Christian Benteke
Brad Guzan
QA-CB Peter Crouch
Fraizer Campbell
Christian Benteke
Darren Bent
Autographed Relics Set Checklist
17 cards
PAR-AC Ashley Cole
PAR-AH Aaron Hughes
PAR-AT Aleksandar Tonev
PAR-AW Andreas Weimann
PAR-AY Ashley Young
PAR-BD Ben Davies
PAR-BG Brad Guzan
PAR-CB Christian Benteke
PAR-GT George Thorne
PAR-JC James Collins
PAR-JHE Jordan Henderson
PAR-JHO Jonny Howson
PAR-JW Jack Wilshere
PAR-MA Mikel Arteta
PAR-PC Peter Crouch
PAR-PM Paul McShane
PAR-YB Yannick Bolasie
Future Stars Set Checklist
20 cards
PARALLEL CARDS: Green (#/99), Orange (#/11), Platinum (1/1), Premiere Gold (1/1), Printing Plates (1/1)
FS-AK Alexander Kacaniklic
FS-AO Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
FS-AT Andros Townsend
FS-BD Ben Davies
FS-DG Dwight Gayle
FS-DR Danny Rose
FS-FB Fabio Borini
FS-JS Jonjo Shelvey
FS-KD Kevin De Bruyne
FS-LS Luke Shaw
FS-ML Matthew Lowton
FS-MN Matija Nastastic
FS-MY Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa
FS-NC Nathaniel Clyne
FS-RB Ross Barkley
FS-RM Ravel Morrison
FS-RS Raheem Sterling
FS-SC Steven Caulker
FS-SS Scott Sinclair
FS-WZ Wilfried Zaha
Future Stars Autographs Set Checklist
PARALLEL CARDS: Gold (#/50), Orange (#/25), Platinum (1/1), Printing Plates (1/1)
**
Hot Shots Set Checklist
25 cards
PARALLEL CARDS: Green (#/99), Orange (#/11), Platinum (1/1), Premiere Gold (1/1), Printing Plates (1/1)
HS-AC Andy Carroll
HS-CB Christian Benteke
HS-DB Dimitar Berbatov
HS-DBE Darren Bent
HS-DS Daniel Sturridge
HS-FC Fraizer Campbell
HS-FT Fernando Torres
HS-GA Gabriel Agbonlahor
HS-JA Jozy Altidore
HS-JD Jermain Defoe
HS-LS Luis Suarez
HS-MC Marouane Chamakh
HS-PC Peter Crouch
HS-PCI Papiss Cisse
HS-PO Dani Osvaldo
HS-RB Robbie Brady
HS-RL Rickie Lambert
HS-RLU Romelu Lukaku
HS-RS Roberto Soldado
HS-RV Robin Van Persie
HS-RVW Ricky van Wolfswinkel
HS-SA Sergio Aguero
HS-SF Steven Fletcher
HS-SL Shane Long
HS-TW Theo Walcott
International Icons Autographs Set Checklist
PARALLEL CARDS: Gold (#/50), Orange (#/25), Platinum (1/1), Printing Plates (1/1)
**
Matchwinners Autographs Set Checklist
PARALLEL CARDS: Gold (#/50), Orange (#/25), Platinum (1/1), Printing Plates (1/1)
**
Midfield Maestros Set Checklist
PARALLEL CARDS: Green (#/99), Orange (#/11), Platinum (1/1), Premiere Gold (1/1), Printing Plates (1/1)
MM-AG Aron Gunnarsson
MM-AJ Adam Johnson
MM-AP Anthony Pilkington
MM-DG Darron Gibson
MM-DS David Silva
MM-EH Eden Hazard
MM-FL Frank Lampard
MM-GR Gaston Ramirez
MM-JM Juan Mata
MM-JW Jack Wilshere
MM-KN Kevin Nolan
MM-M Michu
MM-MC Michael Carrick
MM-NR Nathan Redmond
MM-PW Peter Whittingham
MM-RK Robert Koren
MM-S Sandro
MM-SC Santi Cazorla
MM-SG Steven Gerrard
MM-SK Shinji Kagawa
MM-SP Scott Parker
MM-TH Tom Huddlestone
MM-YB Yannick Bolasie
MM-YC Yohan Cabaye
MM-YM Youssuf Mulumbu
Relics Set Checklist
24 cards
PARALLEL CARDS: Orange (#/11), Gold (#/5), Platinum (1/1)
JR-AC Ashley Cole
JR-AH Aaron Hughes
JR-AT Aleksandar Tonev
JR-AW Andreas Weimann
JR-AY Ashley Young
JR-BD Ben Davies
JR-BG Brad Guzan
JR-CB Christian Benteke
JR-CW Connor Wickham
JR-GT George Thorne
JR-JC James Collins
JR-JHA Joe Hart
JR-JHE Jordan Henderson
JR-JHO Jonny Howson
JR-JW Jack Wilshere
JR-MA Mikel Arteta
JR-MF Marouane Fellaini
JR-PC Peter Crouch
JR-PJ Phil Jagielka
JR-PM Paul McShane
JR-SS Scott Sinclair
JR-TH Tim Howard
JR-TK Tim Krul
JR-YB Yannick Bolasie
Jumbo Relics Set Checklist
6 cards
Serial Numbered #/99
PARALLEL CARDS: Orange (#/11), Gold (#/5), Platinum (1/1)
JBR-AT Aleksandar Tonev
JBR-AW Andreas Weimann
JBR-BG Brad Guzan
JBR-CB Christian Benteke
JBR-JHA Joe Hart
JBR-SG Steven Gerrard
Dual Relics Set Checklist
8 cards
Serial Numbered #/49
PARALLEL CARDS: Orange (#/11), Gold (#/5), Platinum (1/1)
DR-ARA Jack Wilshere
Aaron Ramsey
DR-ASY Marouane Fellaini
Ashley Young
DR-CB Peter Crouch
Christian Benteke
DR-CBE Marouane Fellaini
Christian Benteke
DR-MA Mikel Arteta
Jack Wilshere
DR-SS George Thorne
Scott Sinclair
DR-PJ Phil Jagielka
Tim Howard
DR-JH Tim Howard
Joe Hart
Triple Relics Set Checklist
5 cards
Serial Numbered #/20
TR-AT Aleksandar Tonev
Andreas Weimann
Christian Benteke
TR-AW Aleksandar Tonev
Brad Guzan
Andreas Weimann
TR-BG Christian Benteke
Brad Guzan
Andreas Weimann
TR-CB Christian Benteke
Aleksandar Tonev
Brad Guzan
TR-JH Joe Hart
Tim Howard
Brad Guzan
Quad Relics Set Checklist
2 cards
Serial Numbered #/11
QA-AT Scott Sinclair
Yannick Bolasie
Jordan Henderson
Aleksandar Tonev
QA-AW Aleksandar Tonev
Brad Guzan
Christian Benteke
Andreas Weimann
Shot-Stoppers Set Checklist
10 cards
PARALLEL CARDS: Green (#/99), Orange (#/11), Platinum (1/1), Premiere Gold (1/1), Printing Plates (1/1)
SS-AB Asmir Begovic
SS-BF Ben Foster
SS-BG Bradley Guzan
SS-JH Joe Hart
SS-JJ Jussi Jaaskelainen
SS-JR John Ruddy
SS-JS Julian Speroni
SS-MS Maarten Stekelenburg
SS-MV Michel Vorm
SS-TH Tim Howard
Star Players Autographs Set Checklist
34 cards
PARALLEL CARDS: Gold (#/50), Orange (#/25), Platinum (1/1), Printing Plates (1/1)
SP-AC Ashley Cole
SP-AH Aaron Hughes
SP-AT Aleksandar Tonev
SP-AW Andreas Weimann
SP-AY Ashley Young
SP-BD Ben Davies
SP-BG Brad Guzan
SP-CB Christian Benteke
SP-CR Cristiano Ronaldo
SP-CW Connor Wickham
SP-DB Darren Bent
SP-FC Fraizer Campbell
SP-FL Frank Lampard
SP-GB Gareth Bale
SP-GT George Thorne
SP-GZ Gianfranco Zola
SP-JB John Barnes
SP-JC James Collins
SP-JH Joe Hart
SP-JHE Jordan Henderson
SP-JHO Jonny Howson
SP-JW Jack Wilshere
SP-KW Kyle Walker
SP-MA Mikel Arteta
SP-MF Marouane Fellaini
SP-P Pelé
SP-PC Peter Crouch
SP-PJ Phil Jagielka
SP-PM Paul McShane
SP-SG Steven Gerrard
SP-SS Scott Sinclair
SP-TK Tim Krul
SP-TW Tim Howard
SP-YB Yannick Bolasie
Tough Tacklers Set Checklist
20 cards
PARALLEL CARDS: Green (#/99), Orange (#/11), Platinum (1/1), Premiere Gold (1/1), Printing Plates (1/1)
TT-AW Ashley Williams
TT-CD Curtis Davies
TT-DG Danny Gabbidon
TT-DS Davide Santon
TT-EP Erik Pieters
TT-FC Fabricio Coloccini
TT-GJ Glen Johnson
TT-JC James Chester
TT-JCO James Collins
TT-JO Jonas Olsson TT-LB Leighton Baines
TT-MD Modibo Diakite
TT-MH Mark Hudson
TT-RF Rio Ferdinand
TT-RH Robert Huth
TT-RS Ryan Shawcross
TT-RV Ron Vlaar
TT-SB Sebastien Bassong
TT-TV Thomas Vermaelen
TT-VK Vincent Kompany
Kick App Promo Set Checklist

2013-14 Topps Bundesliga Chrome:
Star Spieler (Foil)
Card # - Club - Player
001 FC Augsburg Alexander Manninger
002 FC Augsburg Jan-Ingwer Callsen-Bracker
003 FC Augsburg Marcel de Jong
004 FC Augsburg Matthias Ostrzolek
005 FC Augsburg Paul Verhaegh
006 FC Augsburg Daniel Baier
007 FC Augsburg Tobias Werner
008 FC Augsburg Jan Morávek
009 FC Augsburg André Hahn
010 FC Augsburg Halil Altintop
011 FC Augsburg Sascha Mölders

012 Hertha BSC Thomas Kraft
013 Hertha BSC Sebastian Langkamp
014 Hertha BSC John Anthony Brooks
015 Hertha BSC Fabian Lustenberger
016 Hertha BSC Hajime Hosogai
017 Hertha BSC Nico Schulz
018 Hertha BSC Änis Ben-Hatira
019 Hertha BSC Ronny
020 Hertha BSC Alexander Baumjohann
021 Hertha BSC Adrian Ramos
022 Hertha BSC Sami Allagui

023 Eintracht Braunschweig Daniel Davari
024 Eintracht Braunschweig Ermin Bicakcic
025 Eintracht Braunschweig Ken Reichel
026 Eintracht Braunschweig Marcel Correia
027 Eintracht Braunschweig Deniz Dogan
028 Eintracht Braunschweig Omar Elabdellaoui
029 Eintracht Braunschweig Karim Bellarabi
030 Eintracht Braunschweig Marco Caligiuri
031 Eintracht Braunschweig Mirko Boland
032 Eintracht Braunschweig Dennis Kruppke
033 Eintracht Braunschweig Domi Kumbela

034 SV Werder Bremen Sebastian Mielitz
035 SV Werder Bremen Santiago Garcia
036 SV Werder Bremen Assani Lukimya
037 SV Werder Bremen Luca Caldirola
038 SV Werder Bremen Clemens Fritz
039 SV Werder Bremen Mehmet Ekici
040 SV Werder Bremen Cedrick Makiadi
041 SV Werder Bremen Zlatko Junuzovic
042 SV Werder Bremen Aaron Hunt
043 SV Werder Bremen Eljero Elia
044 SV Werder Bremen Nils Petersen

045 Borussia Dortmund Roman Weidenfeller
046 Borussia Dortmund Neven Subotic
047 Borussia Dortmund Mats Hummels
048 Borussia Dortmund Marcel Schmelzer
049 Borussia Dortmund Lukasz Piszczek
050 Borussia Dortmund Kevin Großkreutz
051 Borussia Dortmund Sebastian Kehl
052 Borussia Dortmund Nuri Sahin
053 Borussia Dortmund Henrikh Mkhitaryan
054 Borussia Dortmund Sven Bender
055 Borussia Dortmund Ilkay Gündogan
056 Borussia Dortmund Jakub Blaszczykowski
057 Borussia Dortmund Marco Reus
058 Borussia Dortmund Robert Lewandowski
059 Borussia Dortmund Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang

060 Eintracht Frankfurt Kevin Trapp
061 Eintracht Frankfurt Carlos Zambrano
062 Eintracht Frankfurt Sebastian Jung
063 Eintracht Frankfurt Marco Russ
064 Eintracht Frankfurt Sebastian Rode
065 Eintracht Frankfurt Pirmin Schwegler
066 Eintracht Frankfurt Alexander Meier
067 Eintracht Frankfurt Takashi Inui
068 Eintracht Frankfurt Stefan Aigner
069 Eintracht Frankfurt Jan Rosenthal
070 Eintracht Frankfurt Vaclav Kadlec

071 Sport-Club Freiburg Oliver Baumann
072 Sport-Club Freiburg Fallou Diagne
073 Sport-Club Freiburg Matthias Ginter
074 Sport-Club Freiburg Oliver Sorg
075 Sport-Club Freiburg Christopher Jullien
076 Sport-Club Freiburg Karim Guédé
077 Sport-Club Freiburg Gelson Fernandes
078 Sport-Club Freiburg Jonathan Schmid
079 Sport-Club Freiburg Julian Schuster
080 Sport-Club Freiburg Admir Mehmedi
081 Sport-Club Freiburg Mike Hanke

082 Hamburger SV René Adler
083 Hamburger SV Heiko Westermann
084 Hamburger SV Johan Djourou
085 Hamburger SV Marcell Jansen
086 Hamburger SV Dennis Diekmeier
087 Hamburger SV Hakan Çalhanoğlu
088 Hamburger SV Milan Badelj
089 Hamburger SV Rafael van der Vaart
090 Hamburger SV Tolgay Arslan
091 Hamburger SV Maximilian Beister
092 Hamburger SV Pierre-Michel Lasogga

093 Hannover 96 Ron-Robert Zieler
094 Hannover 96 Marcelo
095 Hannover 96 Sebastien Pocognoli
096 Hannover 96 Steven Cherundolo
097 Hannover 96 Salif Sané
098 Hannover 96 Lars Stindl
099 Hannover 96 Szabolcs Huszti
100 Hannover 96 Leonardo Bittencourt
101 Hannover 96 Leon Andreasen
102 Hannover 96 Mame Diouf
103 Hannover 96 Artur Sobiech

104 1899 Hoffenheim Koen Casteels
105 1899 Hoffenheim David Abraham
106 1899 Hoffenheim Jannik Vestergaard
107 1899 Hoffenheim Andreas Beck
108 1899 Hoffenheim Sebastian Rudy
109 1899 Hoffenheim Eugen Polanski
110 1899 Hoffenheim Sejad Salihovic
111 1899 Hoffenheim Roberto Firmino
112 1899 Hoffenheim Tarik Elyounoussi
113 1899 Hoffenheim Kevin Volland
114 1899 Hoffenheim Anthony Modeste

115 Bayer 04 Leverkusen Bernd Leno
116 Bayer 04 Leverkusen Philipp Wollscheid
117 Bayer 04 Leverkusen Ömer Toprak
118 Bayer 04 Leverkusen Emir Spahic
119 Bayer 04 Leverkusen Sebastian Boenisch
120 Bayer 04 Leverkusen Giulio Donati
121 Bayer 04 Leverkusen Roberto Hilbert
122 Bayer 04 Leverkusen Simon Rolfes
123 Bayer 04 Leverkusen Lars Bender
124 Bayer 04 Leverkusen Gonzalo Castro
125 Bayer 04 Leverkusen Sidney Sam
126 Bayer 04 Leverkusen Stefan Reinartz
127 Bayer 04 Leverkusen Robbie Kruse
128 Bayer 04 Leverkusen Heung Min Son
129 Bayer 04 Leverkusen Stefan Kießling

130 1. FSV Mainz 05 Heinz Müller
131 1. FSV Mainz 05 Nikolce Noveski
132 1. FSV Mainz 05 Bo Svensson
133 1. FSV Mainz 05 Zdenek Pospech
134 1. FSV Mainz 05 Joo-Ho Park
135 1. FSV Mainz 05 Niki Zimling
136 1. FSV Mainz 05 Johannes Geis
137 1. FSV Mainz 05 Nicolai Müller
138 1. FSV Mainz 05 Christoph Moritz
139 1. FSV Mainz 05 Shinji Okazaki
140 1. FSV Mainz 05 Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting

141 Borussia Mönchengladbach Marc-André ter Stegen
142 Borussia Mönchengladbach Alvaro DomÍnguez
143 Borussia Mönchengladbach Martin Stranzl
144 Borussia Mönchengladbach Tony Jantschke
145 Borussia Mönchengladbach Filip Daems
146 Borussia Mönchengladbach Christoph Kramer
147 Borussia Mönchengladbach Granit Xhaka
148 Borussia Mönchengladbach Patrick Herrmann
149 Borussia Mönchengladbach Juan Arango
150 Borussia Mönchengladbach Raffael
151 Borussia Mönchengladbach Max Kruse

152 FC Bayern München Manuel Neuer
153 FC Bayern München Philipp Lahm
154 FC Bayern München Dante
155 FC Bayern München Jérôme Boateng
156 FC Bayern München David Alaba
157 FC Bayern München Toni Kroos
158 FC Bayern München Javi Martínez
159 FC Bayern München Xherdan Shaqiri
160 FC Bayern München Thiago
161 FC Bayern München Bastian Schweinsteiger
162 FC Bayern München Mario Götze
163 FC Bayern München Arjen Robben
164 FC Bayern München Franck Ribéry
165 FC Bayern München Mario Mandžukić
166 FC Bayern München Thomas Müller

167 1. FC Nürnberg Raphael Schäfer
168 1. FC Nürnberg Per Nilsson
169 1. FC Nürnberg Emanuel Pogatetz
170 1. FC Nürnberg Javier Pinola
171 1. FC Nürnberg Timothy Chandler
172 1. FC Nürnberg Makoto Hasebe
173 1. FC Nürnberg Niklas Stark
174 1. FC Nürnberg Mike Frantz
175 1. FC Nürnberg Hiroshi Kiyotake
176 1. FC Nürnberg Josip Drmic
177 1. FC Nürnberg Daniel Ginczek

178 FC Schalke 04 Timo Hildebrand
179 FC Schalke 04 Benedikt Höwedes
180 FC Schalke 04 Joel Matip
181 FC Schalke 04 Atsuto Uchida
182 FC Schalke 04 Dennis Aogo
183 FC Schalke 04 Marco Höger
184 FC Schalke 04 Max Meyer
185 FC Schalke 05 Christian Clemens
186 FC Schalke 04 Roman Neustädter
187 FC Schalke 04 Jermaine Jones
188 FC Schalke 04 Julian Draxler
189 FC Schalke 04 Kevin-Prince Boateng
190 FC Schalke 04 Adam Szalai
191 FC Schalke 04 Jefferson Farfan
192 FC Schalke 04 Klaas-Jan Huntelaar

193 VfB Stuttgart Sven Ulreich
194 VfB Stuttgart Daniel Schwaab
195 VfB Stuttgart Georg Niedermeier
196 VfB Stuttgart Antonio Rüdiger
197 VfB Stuttgart Alexandru Maxim
198 VfB Stuttgart Timo Werner
199 VfB Stuttgart William Kvist
200 VfB Stuttgart Christian Gentner
201 VfB Stuttgart Martin Harnik
202 VfB Stuttgart Cacau
203 VfB Stuttgart Vedad Ibisevic

204 VfL Wolfsburg Diego Benaglio
205 VfL Wolfsburg Naldo
206 VfL Wolfsburg Timm Klose
207 VfL Wolfsburg Marcel Schäfer
208 VfL Wolfsburg Robin Knoche
209 VfL Wolfsburg Luiz Gustavo
210 VfL Wolfsburg Diego
211 VfL Wolfsburg Ja-Cheol Koo
212 VfL Wolfsburg Ivan Perišić
213 VfL Wolfsburg Vieirinha
214 VfL Wolfsburg Ivica Olić

Club Badges
Card # - Club
215 FC Augsburg
216 Hertha BSC
217 Eintracht Braunschweig
218 SV Werder Bremen
219 Borussia Dortmund
220 Eintracht Frankfurt
221 Sport-Club Freiburg
222 Hamburger SV
223 Hannover 96
224 1899 Hoffenheim
225 Bayer 04 Leverkusen
226 1. FSV Mainz 05
227 Borussia Mönchengladbach
228 FC Bayern München
229 1. FC Nürnberg
230 FC Schalke 04
231 VfB Stuttgart
232 VfL Wolfsburg

Feature Cards (Foil)
Card # - Subject
233 Meisterschale Puzzle MOST BUNDESLIGA APPEARANCES
234 Meisterschale Puzzle MOST BUNDESLIGA GOALS
235 Meisterschale Puzzle YOUNGEST BUNDESLIGA PLAYERS
236 Meisterschale Puzzle YOUNGEST BUNDESLIGA GOALSCORERS
237 Meisterschale Puzzle OLDEST BUNDESLIGA GOALSCORERS
238 Meisterschale Puzzle MOST BUNDESLIGA CLEANSHEETS
239 Meisterschale Puzzle MOST BUNDESLIGA TITLES WON (TEAM)
240 Meisterschale Puzzle MOST BUNDESLIGA TITLES WON (PLAYERS)
241 Meisterschale Puzzle MOST BUNDESLIGA TITLES WON (MANAGERS)
242 Bundesliga Logo

Autograph Cards (Based on the images I've seen the autos are, unfortunately, on a sticker rather than hard signed on the card.)
Club - Player
FC Augsburg - Tobias Werner
Hertha BSC - Thomas Kraft
Eintracht Braunschweig - Karim Bellarabi
SV Werder Bremen - Clemens Fritz
Borussia Dortmund - TBA
Eintracht Frankfurt - Alexander Meier
Sport-Club Freiburg - Mike Hanke
Hamburger SV - Rafael van der Vaart
Hannover 96 - Mamé Diouf
1899 Hoffenheim - Koen Casteels
Bayer 04 Leverkusen - Lars Bender
1. FSV Mainz 05 - Shinji Okazaki
Borussia Mönchengladbach - Marc-André ter Stegen
1. FC Nürnberg - Per Nilsson
VfB Stuttgart - Christian Gentner
VfL Wolfsburg - Diego Benaglio

Jersey Cards
Club - Player
FC Augsburg - Alexander Manninger
Hertha BSC - Ronny
Eintracht Braunschweig - Domi Kumbela
SV Werder Bremen - Nils Petersen
Borussia Dortmund - TBA
Eintracht Frankfurt - Kevin Trapp
Sport-Club Freiburg - Admir Mehmedi
Hamburger SV - Marcell Jansen
Hannover 96 - Ron-Robert Zieler
1899 Hoffenheim - Andreas Beck
Bayer 04 Leverkusen - Heung Min-Son
1. FSV Mainz 05 - Nicolai Müller
Borussia Mönchengladbach - Max Kruse
FC Bayern München - TBA
FC Bayern München - TBA
1. FC Nürnberg - Javier Pínola
FC Schalke 04 - Benedikt Höwedes
FC Schalke 04 - Julian Draxler
VfB Stuttgart - Vedad Ibisevic
VfL Wolfsburg - Naldo

2013-14 Topps Bundesliga Chrome

Just as I'm starting to lose interest in soccer cards mainly due to lack of creativity from card makers with shitty card games seemingly flooding the market, Topps and Panini are beginning to release attractive, higher end collections aimed at adult collectors rather than kids. This time it's the Bundesliga's turn to get the premium trading card treatment. Here's a translation of the sell sheet and the info revealed so far.

Date of Sale: 18 December (Same release date as Topps Premier Gold)
6 Cards per Pack
36 Packs per Bo,
8 Boxes per Case
Starter 19,99€ / Booster 3,99€

Translation: "Bundesliga Chrome is the brand new premium trading card series
collection of the Bundesliga – Something like this has never been seen before.
In this high-end collection there are over 250 cards of all 18 Bundesliga
clubs – including limited and very high valued signed sards and memorabilia
cards of each club.

With original game worn jerseys or goalie gloves

This brings the reality to the collector"

2013-14 Topps Premier Gold Autograph List Continues To Grow

t bears mentioning that the following list comes from a non official source. In any case, the list has now grown to 40 different player's autographs for the set with there being at least 1 player for every current Premier League team.

Among the most notable of the newly revealed signers are Liverpool great John Barnes, Man Utd legend Eric Cantona, the recently departed Gareth Bale and the expected confirmation of Robin van Persie who was already in another recent Topps product, 2013 Allen and Ginter.

The full list:
Mikel Arteta - Arsenal
Aaron Ramsey - Arsenal
Jack Wilshere - Arsenal

Christian Benteke - Aston Villa
Brad Guzan - Aston Villa
Aleksandar Tonev - Aston Villa
Andreas Weimann - Aston Villa

Pelé - Brazil

Frazer Campbell - Cardiff City

Gary Cahill - Chelsea
Ashley Cole - Chelsea
Gianfranco Zola - Chelsea

Yannick Bolasie - Crystal Palace

Leighton Baines - Everton
Tim Howard - Everton
Phil Jagielka - Everton

Aaron Hughes - Fulham

Paul McShane - Hull City

John Barnes - Liverpool
Jordan Henderson - Liverpool
Victor Moses - Liverpool

Joe Hart - Manchester City

Eric Cantona - Manchester United
Cristiano Ronaldo - Manchester United
Kagawa Shinji - Manchester United
Antonio Valencia - Manchester United
Robin van Persie - Manchester United
Ashley Young - Manchester United

Steven Taylor - Newcastle United

Jonny Howson - Norwich City

Adam Lallana - Southampton
Rickie Lambert - Southampton

Peter Crouch - Stoke City

Connor Wickham - Sunderland

Ben Davies - Swansea City

Gareth Bale - Tottenham Hotspur
Kyle Walker - Tottenham Hotspur

Scott Sinclair - West Bromwich Albion
George Thorne - West Bromwich Albion

James Collins - West Ham United

2014 Panini World Cup Prizm

Just came accross this very exciting news from Beckett via a post on FootballCardsForum, the full Beckett article is at the following link: 2014 Panini Prizm World Cup

Normally Panini Group and Topps Europe release horrendous bottom of the barrel trading card games (Adrenalyn XL and Match Attax) but finally it looks like Panini America with this Prizm World Cup and Topps USA with their upcoming EPL Premier Gold product are finally putting their soccer collectibles licenses to good use with premium collections.

I'll be sure to keep posted on the latest details. I for one can't wait for the finished products.

1997-98 Panini Foot Cards - Checklist

Product Breakdown:

Product: 1998 Panini Foot Cards
Theme: Ligue 1 and France National Team
Season/Year: 1997-98
Manufacturer: Panini

Total Cards: 200 - 162 Ligue 1 player cards, 18 Ligue 1 club badge cards, 18 France national team player cards and 2 checklists.

Special Inserts:

Autograph Cards: No
Memorabilia Cards: No
Parallels: No

Configuration:

Official Binder: ¿Unknown?
Pack: 8 cards
Box: 30 packs
Case: Unknown boxes

Additional Info:

The first Thierry Henry card appears in this set. Card #104, he is pictured with AS Monaco.

Images:

The checklist doubles as a tradelist/wantlist of my cards from this product.

Checklist:

The checklist doubles as a tradelist/wantlist of my cards from this product.
-Black is what I have in my PC set.
-Blue is what I have available to trade.
-Red is what I need for my set.

1993-94 Panini Bundesliga Fußball Action Cards - Checklist

Product Breakdown:

Product: 1993-94 Panini Bundesliga Action Cards
Theme: Bundesliga and Germany National Team
Season/Year: 1993-94
Manufacturer: Panini

Total Cards: 200 - 162 Ligue 1 player cards, 18 Ligue 1 club badge cards, 18 France national team player cards and 2 checklists.

Special Inserts:

Autograph Cards: No
Memorabilia Cards: No
Parallels: No

Configuration:

Official Binder: ¿Unknown?
Pack: 8 cards
Box: 30 packs
Case: Unknown boxes

Additional Info:

The first Thierry Henry card appears in this set. Card #104, he is pictured with AS Monaco.

Images:

The checklist doubles as a tradelist/wantlist of my cards from this product.

Checklist:

The checklist doubles as a tradelist/wantlist of my cards from this product.
-Black is what I have in my PC set.
-Blue is what I have available to trade.
-Red is what I need for my set.

Upcoming Topps Premier Gold Product Starts To Take Shape

Little by little more details begin to emerge about the exciting and promising 2013-14 Topps Premier Gold. Both Dave and Adams and Blowout have the product available on pre-sale with the 18th of December stated for release. Some of the signers for this product were also recently revealed with Pelé, Cristiano Ronaldo and Gianfranco Zola being the biggest names confirmed so far.
The biggest name in fact, Pelé, never even played in the Premier League or old First Division as it would've been called in his day. Not that I'm complaining at his inclusion. The rest of the names confirmed so far are excellent footballers in some cases but obviously not up to par with the aforementioned legends.

Mikel Arteta - Arsenal
Jack Wilshere - Arsenal
Christian Benteke - Aston Villa
Ashley Cole - Chelsea
Leighton Baines - Everton
Tim Howard – Everton
Ashley Young -Manchester United
Kyle Walker – Tottenham Hotspur


As the list above makes clear, there's a vast majority of current top players yet to sign on to the product but there's a good chance for at least two superstars in Thierry Henry and Robin van Persie.to be in the product as their signatures already feature in 2013 Topps MLS (albeit a redemption auto) and 2013 Topps Allen & Ginter respectively.
Gareth Bale for his part also signed some 100 cards for the abysmal 2011-12 Topps EPL Match Attax so I would think his sig should be obtainable for this product as well. Even if he makes his World record transfer to Real Madrid and thus leaves the Premier League, Bale has definitely earned a place in the 'International Icon' autograph subset. After all Cristiano no longer plays in the Premiership but will nonetheless be a part of the collection so I see no reason will Bale shouldn't be as well. Can't wait for some more info on this set...

Big PC Mailday!

Originally posted on 30 June 2012.

Just picked up this sweet Rafa Márquez autographed jersey. A few of these cards had popped up on eBay before but I had missed out on them so I pounced at the chance to finally pick this one up. This card's also the last of Marquez's 3 different certified autos I had yet to add to my collection. There is one minor error - The back of the card states: "We hope you enjoy this piece of hockey history" - Massive fail!

Still an awesome card though.

Topps To Release A High-End Premier League Card Product... Finally!

It's about time a card company releases a proper high-end trading card collection as Topps is set to do with 2013-14 Topps Premier Gold. Many soccer collectors have been asking for this kind of soccer product for quite a while and fortunately Topps was listening. The few details released thus far can be read at Beckett's original article: First Look: 2013-14 Topps Premier Gold English Premier League Soccer Cards

Better start saving those pennies.

Cashing In On Spain's Historic Dominance

Originally posted on 7 July 2012.

Little less than a week ago Spain were crowned 2012 European champions in impressive fashion after defeating Italy with a resounding 4-0 scoreline. After their latest conquest there's now even talk of this Spain team being the greatest national side of all time and at the center of Spain's historic success has been the UEFA Player of the Tournament, 'Don' Andrés Iniesta.

Recently I came accross this auction for an extremely scarce Iniesta Panini autograph. This is one of only two certified autos he has out there, mind you I'm not counting any dubious Futera autos he may have. Apparently the card ended up selling for ¥74,500 (see below) which at the current conversion rate from yen to dollars, comes out to nearly $1,000 USD!

2013 Topps MLS Hits The Streets

Topps' first ever Major League Soccer trading card product has gone live with the initial offerings surfacing on the bay in the form singles, team sets and blaster boxes. The few autographed singles listed as of the writing of this entry seem to show that the autos are on a sticker which is not an improvement over Upper Deck so far. A couple of the autos do have an attractive refractor look to them and apparently there are 3 autographs in each hobby box, only 1 in Upper Deck's hobby boxes.

Other than that though the autograph checklist is the weakest in several years. None of the biggest names currently in the league have signed cards in this product, including Thierry Henry and Landon Donovan. For this reason as well as the $90+ price per box, I'll be staying away from this product until it's available for under $50 (at most) which I suspect it will be soon enough.

Update: It appears the final checklist indicates there are in fact Henry autographs to be found in the product, albeit via redemptions. In fact pretty much all the big names in the league have an auto save for Donovan. The full checklist can be found here: 2013 Topps MLS checklist.

Cristiano Ronaldo Signs For SportKings

Apparently C. Ronaldo has signed for card maker, SportKings Trading Cards. His hard-signed (read on-card) autographs will feature in SK's upcoming Series F product. All of CR7's Upper Deck autos were signed on a sticker. Therefore this marks the first time his certified, on-card, signature will appear on a trading card. To be honest I'm not a fan of the design of SportKings cards, seeing as how they're not licensed they tend to be rather ugly looking but on the plus side I'm confident in their authenticity since this company has a solid record unlike other shady manufacturers out there...

You can read further details straight from the horse's mouth - Dr. Brian Price, president of the Sportkings brand - by clicking here.

Beware Of Fake Autographs On eBay

Originally posted on 18 June 2012.

Check out this horrible, 2010 Upper Deck World of Sports fake David Beckham auto I came across on eBay. There's so many things wrong with this shitty attempt at Beckham's signature that it's not even funny. First of all the signature is nowhere near a genuine Becks sig, see below for the authentic UD Man Utd example.

Second of all notice how the "World of Sports" lettering is red on these un-signed base cards pictured below of Beckham and Thierry Henry. There were autographed parallels of these base cards but those had a guarantee of authenticity on the back and the visible difference of "World of Sports" text in blue, as can be seen further down.

The actual certified parallel autos from this set have the aforementioned blue lettering and the sticker auto such as Pablo Mastroeni and Beckham himself who does have an autographed parallel although it does not actually feature his signature on the sticker but rather that of former MLSer Luciano Emílio. See this link for more info on that particular error auto.

Sadly it appears some bidders have fallen for the fast one this unscrupulous seller (ondeckcrds) is trying to pull.

2002 Panini World Cup (Japanese Edition) 5 Box Break

Originally posted on 22 May 2012.

I recently picked up several boxes of this older Panini World Cup collection and as you can see from this side of the box picture (click on the image to enlarge) this is the more rare and complete Japanese version of the product which has a deeper checklist than it's counterpart released in Europe and around the rest of the World.

Also of particular interest is that this Japanese set had product exclusive autograph cards of 12 different players with a print run of 100 each, see checklist below.
A1 Ronaldo - Brazil /100
A2 Lilian Thuram - France /100
A3 Igor Tudor - Croatia /100
A4 Gianluigi Buffon - Italy /100
A5 Paolo Maldini - Italy /100
A6 Francesco Totti - Italy /100
A7 Christian Vieri - Italy /100
A8 Nakata Hidetoshi - Japan /100
A9 Ono Shinji - Japan /100
A10 Yanagisawa Atsushi - Japan /100
A11 Rui Costa - Portugal /100
A12 Álvaro Recoba - Uruguay /100

- Check this thread over on FCF (Football Cards Forum) for the complete collection checklist. -

So I busted 5 of these boxes over the last 3 days hopeful of pulling an auto but realizing that with only 1,200 signed cards to be found it was probably going to be quite unlikely. I'm guessing the majority have already been pulled and are now tucked away in collector's private collections. With that in mind I would settle for completing as much of the rest of the master set which includes two other chase card sets to collect, 'Flag Player' foil inserts and 'Japan National Team Players' special cards.
Now on to the results:

Box 1 - From this first box the "hits" I pulled were a F12 Augustine "Jay-Jay" Okocha, F13 José Luis Chilavert and J1, J2, J3 & J23 Japanese player inserts.

Box 2 - This box produced F1 Émile, F19 Álvaro Recoba, F20 Earnie Stewart, J5, J7, J11 and J12.

Box 3 - From this one I got F4 Jon Dahl Tomasson, F5 Oliver Kahn, F6 Zinedine Zidane, J7, J11 and J12. Curiously all of the 'J' inserts in this box were duplicates from the last box, poor collation...

Box 4 - This box was definitely the most productive. To my pleasant surprise it was quite loaded with some packs even contaning 2 hits! Which were F8 Francesco Totti, F9 Nakata Hidetoshi, F10 Hong Myung-Bo, F11 Juan Francisco Palencia, J18, J19, J20, J21 and J22.

Box 5 - Unfortunately in this box all of the hits, save for one 'J' insert, were dupes that I had pulled in earlier boxes. F5 Kahn, F6 Zidane, J7, J9, J11 and J12.

Update - I ended up opening up a 6th box in hopes of getting closer to completing the inserts sets but alas no luck. All of the hits were dupes, in fact this box #6 was almost the same as box #4. As for the hits, F9 Nakata, F10 Hong, F11 Palencia, J20, J21 and J22.

Here are the scans of the hits from the entire bust. Notice at the bottom the Roberto Baggio and Eto'o base cards, these were probably the biggest names to be entirely omitted from the European release that were included in this Japanese edition.
Hope yous all enjoyed the pics and break, overall I have to say it was very enjoyable for me. It's a solid product and I'd like Panini to make more like it.

2012 Topps USA Olympic Team

Originally posted on 17 May 2012.

A little over two weeks ago Topps launched it's 2012 London Olympics trading card collection which focuses on US hopefuls, among them a few soccer players. The women's autograph lineup consists of Alex Morgan, Hope Solo and Abby Wambach. Juan Agudelo is the sole men's inclusion in the entire checklist which is actually surprising considering the US national team failed to qualify for the tournament.

The women's autos are selling very well as expected with Alex Morgan's autos being white hot but I personally would've liked to have seen Topps go beyond the US athletes and obtain the signatures of some of the top footballers expected to be part of the games, the likes of Neymar, Thiago Silva, Luis Suárez, Cavani, "Chicharito" Hernández, Bale, Mata, etc. It also bears mentioning that Panini has also released an Olympic product, which focuses on the British contingent. Unfortunately though, it's the typical Panini "Adrenalyn" garbage, not even worth a further mention.

Another Great Mailday Batch - With 1 Exception

Originally posted on 27 March 2012.

I got these purchases from eBay in the mail recently and was absolutely stoked with the first two, both of them will be going straight into my PC. First up this Thierry Henry 2011 Upper Deck SP Game-Used jersey card. IMO the card has a solid design and I got it for a bargain price so I'm definitely thrilled about that.

Next up I got a Rafa Márquez certified auto from the 2012 UD World of Sports product. I'm especially happy about picking this one up since it's my first certified Márquez auto.

Lastly I picked up this 2009 UD MLS Cuauhtémoc Blanco jersey. Sadly the card was mailed in a plain non padded envelope without a toploader and arrived damaged, significantly creased. It also had quite a bit of chipping on the side edges. It was "reinforced" with a piece of cardboard but obviously that wasn't enough protection, check out the 3 creases around the jersey window cutout to see what I mean. Not happy at all with this shit so I will no doubt be looking to be reimbursed by the seller for this dud.

2013 Futera Unique Brings With It More Questionable Autos

Different product, different year, but still the same shit with this fucking company. Check out the Chicharito signature below, now I'm familiar with his auto and this one just doesn't look right. As usual Futera does NOT guarantee the authenticity of any of their signatures, let alone this one. That says a lot in and of itself...

Since I have zero interest in purchasing Futera autographs, I haven't bothered to look at many other autos from this year's Futera release but once again there's no shortage of controversy over the authenticity of their product. Check out this thread over on FootballCardsForum.com to see what I mean.

I might pick up a base set for myself but that'll be it. I'll save my money and avoid their shitty autos like the plague.

2013 Topps MLS Preview

Earlier today I came across news of Topps releasing a 2013 MLS soccer product. This will be Topps' first ever incursion into the realm of MLS cards, although Topps does have a track record of English football cards with their 'Footballer' cards from the 70's and early 80's. These were some of the the first ever football trading cards as Panini only produced sticker albums at the time. News of this upcoming product came as a bit of a surprise to me since Upper Deck had been the sole manufacturer of MLS sets from the first UD MLS collection back in 1997 to last year's 2012 UD MLS.

After having a look at the product info, preliminary checklist and the images (all posted below) that have been released thus far, I'm thinking the autograph checklist looks extremely weak. No big names at all, namely Thierry Henry and Landon Donovan who each had autos in the 2012 UD product. No autos from Alessandro Nesta, Juninho Pernambucano, Tim Cahill, Marco Di Vaio or Robbie Keane either who are pretty much the most recognizable names in the league.

While we're speaking of recognizable names, with the possible exception of Maradona, Pelé has the most name recognition of anyone out there and Topps did secure his signature... but for 2 fucking baseball products, 'Five Star' and 'Allen and Ginter'. To add insult to injury 'O Rei' is featured in his NY Cosmos uniform rather than the more famous, representative and appealing Brazil or Santos kits. You would think the logical thing to do would be to incorporate Pelé into 2013 Topps MLS and ensure the product generates some buzz but I guess Topps didn't see it that way.

As for the other kind of cards in the collection, the jersey cards (or relics as Topps calls them) seem decent enough. The mini cards I don't care for at all. I'm not keen on any of the other inserts either, except for the vintage 1978 'footballer' inspired cards which are a nice touch.

"Topps has secured a licensed with Major League Soccer and will produce its first MLS cards this summer.

Each hobby box will have 24 packs with 10 cards in each pack. In addition, there will be two autographs and three relic cards in every box.

Autographs will include players from the MLS SuperDraft and top stars from the league on cards called MLS Maestros Autographs. Each autograph will feature four different parallels, including a Golazo parallel numbered 1-of-1.

Other autographs include Golden Boot Die-Cut Autographs with current and former goal scorers.

In addition, the set will include Extra Time Redemptions for transfers who make their debut during the 2013 season.

Some relic cards will also bear signatures with different levels of parallels.

The set is scheduled to come out in mid-July."

2013 Topps MLS Checklist
BASE
Veterans and Rookies
Thierry Henry New York Red Bulls
Robbie Keane LA Galaxy
Tim Cahill New York Red Bulls
Chris Wondolowski San Jose Earthquakes
Graham Zusi Sporting Kansas City
Dwayne De Rosario D.C. United
Alessandro Nesta Montreal Impact
John Bostock Toronto FC
Osvaldo Alonso Seattle Sounders FC
Omar Gonzalez LA Galaxy
Chris Pontius D.C. United
Will Bruin Houston Dynamo
Eddie Johnson Seattle Sounders FC
Mike Magee LA Galaxy
Juninho LA Galaxy
Kyle Beckerman Real Salt Lake
Brad Davis Houston Dynamo
Austin Berry Chicago Fire
Jimmy Nielsen Sporting Kansas City
Aurelien Collin Sporting Kansas City
Matt Besler Sporting Kansas City
Victor Bernardez San Jose Earthquakes
Nick DeLeon D.C. United
Darlington Nagbe Portland Timbers
Tally Hall Houston Dynamo
Federico Higuain Columbus Crew
Alvaro Saborio Real Salt Lake
Brian Ching Houston Dynamo
Mauro Rosales Seattle Sounders FC
Jose Villarreal LA Galaxy
Juan Agudelo Chivas USA
Kenny Cooper FC Dallas
Nick Rimando Real Salt Lake
Chris Rolfe Chicago Fire
Sean Johnson Chicago Fire
Joel Lindpere Chicago Fire
Steve Zakuani Seattle Sounders FC
Ramiro Corrales San Jose Earthquakes
Drew Moor Colorado Rapids
Jairo Arrieta Columbus Crew
Chad Marshall Columbus Crew
Justin Morrow San Jose Earthquakes
Zach Loyd FC Dallas
Carlo Cudicini LA Galaxy
Patrice Bernier Montreal Impact
Davy Arnaud Montreal Impact
Heath Pearce New York Red Bulls
Jeff Parke Philadelphia Union
Michael Gspurning Seattle Sounders FC
Darren Mattocks Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Michael Farfan Philadelphia Union
Ryan Johnson Portland Timbers
Fabian Espindola New York Red Bulls
Kevin Alston New England Revolution
Dan Kennedy Chivas USA
Robert Earnshaw Toronto FC
Claudio Bieler Sporting Kansas City
Jack McInerney Philadelphia Union
Sebastien Le Toux Philadelphia Union
David Ferreira FC Dallas
Diego Valeri Portland Timbers
Deshorn Brown Colorado Rapids
Edgar Mejia Chivas USA
Joaquin Velazquez Chivas USA
Mario de Luna Chivas USA
Bobby Burling Chivas USA
Eric Avila Chivas USA
Walter Vilchez Chivas USA
Laurent Courtois Chivas USA
Oswaldo Minda Chivas USA
Tristan Bowen Chivas USA
Dilly Duka Chicago Fire
Gonzalo Segares Chicago Fire
Jalil Anibaba Chicago Fire
Jeff Larentowicz Chicago Fire
Patrick Nyarko Chicago Fire
Sherjill MacDonald Chicago Fire
Atiba Harris Colorado Rapids
Brian Mullan Colorado Rapids
Diego Calderon Colorado Rapids
Dillon Powers Colorado Rapids
Hendry Thomas Colorado Rapids
Marvell Wynne Colorado Rapids
Matt Pickens Colorado Rapids
Agustin Viana Columbus Crew
Andy Gruenebaum Columbus Crew
Danny O’Rourke Columbus Crew
Dominic Oduro Columbus Crew
Glauber Columbus Crew
Josh Williams Columbus Crew
Tyson Wahl Columbus Crew
Bill Hamid D.C. United
Brandon McDonald D.C. United
Chris Korb D.C. United
Dejan Jakovic D.C. United
Lionard Pajoy D.C. United
Perry Kitchen D.C. United
James Riley D.C. United
Andrew Jacobson FC Dallas
George John FC Dallas
Jackson FC Dallas
Matt Hedges FC Dallas
Raul Fernandez FC Dallas
Fabian Castillo FC Dallas
Michel FC Dallas
Bobby Boswell Houston Dynamo
Boniek Garcia Houston Dynamo
Corey Ashe Houston Dynamo
Jermaine Taylor Houston Dynamo
Kofi Sarkodie Houston Dynamo
Ricardo Clark Houston Dynamo
A.J. DeLaGarza LA Galaxy
Jack McBean LA Galaxy
Marcelo Sarvas LA Galaxy
Sean Franklin LA Galaxy
Todd Dunivant LA Galaxy
Andrea Pisanu Montreal Impact
Felipe Martins Montreal Impact
Hassoun Camara Montreal Impact
Jeb Brovsky Montreal Impact
Marco Di Vaio Montreal Impact
Matteo Ferrari Montreal Impact
Troy Perkins Montreal Impact
A.J. Soares New England Revolution
Andrew Farrell New England Revolution
Clyde Simms New England Revolution
Jerry Bengtson New England Revolution
Jose Goncalves New England Revolution
Juan Toja New England Revolution
Lee Nguyen New England Revolution
Matt Reis New England Revolution
Saer Sene New England Revolution
Dax McCarty New York Red Bulls
Jamison Olave New York Red Bulls
Luis Robles New York Red Bulls
Brandon Barklage New York Red Bulls
Eric Alexander New York Red Bulls
Juninho New York Red Bulls
Amobi Okugo Philadelphia Union
Brian Carroll Philadelphia Union
Keon Daniel Philadelphia Union
Raymon Gaddis Philadelphia Union
Sheanon Williams Philadelphia Union
Zac MacMath Philadelphia Union
Andrew Jean-Baptiste Portland Timbers
Diego Chara Portland Timbers
Donovan Ricketts Portland Timbers
Michael Harrington Portland Timbers
Mikael Silvestre Portland Timbers
Will Johnson Portland Timbers
Jack Jewsbury Portland Timbers
Chris Schuler Real Salt Lake
Khari Stephenson Real Salt Lake
Kwame Watson-Siriboe Real Salt Lake
Luis Gil Real Salt Lake
Robbie Findley Real Salt Lake
Sebastian Velasquez Real Salt Lake
Tony Beltran Real Salt Lake
Jason Hernandez San Jose Earthquakes
Jon Busch San Jose Earthquakes
Rafael Baca San Jose Earthquakes
Sam Cronin San Jose Earthquakes
Ty Harden San Jose Earthquakes
Jhon Kennedy Hurtado Seattle Sounders FC
DeAndre Yedlin Seattle Sounders FC
Mario Martinez Seattle Sounders FC
Andy Rose Seattle Sounders FC
Benny Feilhaber Sporting Kansas City
Oriol Rosell Sporting Kansas City
Paulo Nagamura Sporting Kansas City
Seth Sinovic Sporting Kansas City
C.J. Sapong Sporting Kansas City
Ashtone Morgan Toronto FC
Danny Califf Toronto FC
Darren O’Dea Toronto FC
Hogan Ephraim Toronto FC
Joseph Bendik Toronto FC
Reggie Lambe Toronto FC
Richard Eckersley Toronto FC
Terry Dunfield Toronto FC
Alain Rochat Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Andy O’Brien Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Daigo Kobayashi Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Gershon Koffie Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Joe Cannon Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Jun Marques Davidson Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Kenny Miller Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Young-Pyo Lee Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Jay DeMerit Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Edson Buddle Colorado Rapids
Danny Mwanga Colorado Rapids
Logan Pause Chicago Fire
Blas Perez FC Dallas
Steven Beitashour San Jose Earthquakes
Steven Lenhart San Jose Earthquakes
Teal Bunbury Sporting Kansas City
Danny Koevermans Toronto FC
Landon Donovan LA Galaxy
Obafemi Martins Seattle Sounders FC
Giles Barnes Houston Dynamo

INSERTS
This Is Soccer Insert
Dwayne De Rosario D.C. United
Victor Bernardez San Jose Earthquakes
Aurelien Collin Sporting Kansas City
Ramiro Corrales San Jose Earthquakes
Deshorn Brown Colorado Rapids
Obafemi Martins Seattle Sounders FC
Justin Morrow San Jose Earthquakes
Austin Berry Chicago Fire
Jose Villarreal LA Galaxy
Dan Kennedy Chivas USA
Jhon Kennedy Hurtado Seattle Sounders FC
Hassoun Camara Montreal Impact
Mario Martinez Seattle Sounders FC
Robert Earnshaw Toronto FC
Fabian Espindola New York Red Bulls
Brian Ching Houston Dynamo

Topps 1978 EPL Soccer Insert
Thierry Henry New York Red Bulls
Robbie Keane LA Galaxy
Tim Cahill New York Red Bulls
Chris Wondolowski San Jose Earthquakes
Graham Zusi Sporting Kansas City
Dwayne De Rosario D.C. United
Alessandro Nesta Montreal Impact
John Bostock Toronto FC
Osvaldo Alonso Seattle Sounders FC
Omar Gonzalez LA Galaxy
Chris Pontius D.C. United
Will Bruin Houston Dynamo
Eddie Johnson Seattle Sounders FC
Mike Magee LA Galaxy
Juninho LA Galaxy
Kyle Beckerman Real Salt Lake
Brad Davis Houston Dynamo
Austin Berry Chicago Fire
Jimmy Nielsen Sporting Kansas City
Aurelien Collin Sporting Kansas City
Matt Besler Sporting Kansas City
Victor Bernardez San Jose Earthquakes
Nick DeLeon D.C. United
Darlington Nagbe Portland Timbers
Tally Hall Houston Dynamo
Federico Higuain Columbus Crew
Alvaro Saborio Real Salt Lake
Brian Ching Houston Dynamo
Mauro Rosales Seattle Sounders FC
Jose Villarreal LA Galaxy
Juan Agudelo Chivas USA
Kenny Cooper FC Dallas
Nick Rimando Real Salt Lake
Chris Rolfe Chicago Fire
Sean Johnson Chicago Fire
Joel Lindpere Chicago Fire
Steve Zakuani Seattle Sounders FC
Ramiro Corrales San Jose Earthquakes
Drew Moor Colorado Rapids
Jairo Arrieta Columbus Crew
Chad Marshall Columbus Crew
Justin Morrow San Jose Earthquakes
Carlo Cudicini LA Galaxy
Patrice Bernier Montreal Impact
Davy Arnaud Montreal Impact
Heath Pearce New York Red Bulls
Jeff Parke Philadelphia Union
Michael Gspurning Seattle Sounders FC
Darren Mattocks Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Michael Farfan Philadelphia Union
Ryan Johnson Portland Timbers
Fabian Espindola New York Red Bulls
Kevin Alston New England Revolution
Dan Kennedy Chivas USA
Robert Earnshaw Toronto FC
Claudio Bieler Sporting Kansas City
Jack McInerney Philadelphia Union
Sebastien Le Toux Philadelphia Union
Landon Donovan LA Galaxy
Jay DeMerit Vancouver Whitecaps FC

Topps Minis
Thierry Henry New York Red Bulls
Robbie Keane LA Galaxy
Tim Cahill New York Red Bulls
Chris Wondolowski San Jose Earthquakes
Graham Zusi Sporting Kansas City
Dwayne De Rosario D.C. United
Alessandro Nesta Montreal Impact
John Bostock Toronto FC
Osvaldo Alonso Seattle Sounders FC
Omar Gonzalez LA Galaxy
Chris Pontius D.C. United
Will Bruin Houston Dynamo
Eddie Johnson Seattle Sounders FC
Kyle Beckerman Real Salt Lake
Landon Donovan LA Galaxy

MLS Rivalries
LA Galaxy vs. Chivas USA
Seattle Sounders vs. Portland Timbers
D.C. United vs. New York Red Bulls
Colorado Rapids vs. Real Salt Lake
Toronto FC vs. Montreal Impact
New England Revolution vs. New York Red Bulls
D.C. United vs. Philaelphia Union
Houston Dynamo vs. FC Dallas

AUTOS
SuperDraft Auto
Kyle Bekker Toronto FC
Emery Welshman Toronto FC
Ryan Finley Columbus Crew
Taylor Kemp D.C. United
Dillon Powers Colorado Rapids
Andrew Farrell New England Revolution
Carlos Alvarez Chivas USA
Mikey Lopez Sporting Kansas City

MLS Maestros
John Bostock Toronto FC
Danny Koevermans Toronto FC
Federico Higuain Columbus Crew
Danny Mwanga Colorado Rapids
Nick DeLeon D.C. United
Chris Pontius D.C. United
Drew Moor Colorado Rapids
Teal Bunbury Sporting Kansas City
Aurelien Collin Sporting Kansas City
Graham Zusi Sporting Kansas City
Matt Besler Sporting Kansas City
Jimmy Nielsen Sporting Kansas City
Michael Farfan Philadelphia Union

RELICS
MLS Kits
Osvaldo Alonso Seattle Sounders FC
Will Bruin Houston Dynamo
Brad Davis Houston Dynamo
Tim Cahill New York Red Bulls
Jimmy Nielsen Sporting Kansas City
Chris Pontius D.C. United
Jack Jewsbury Portland Timbers
Sean Johnson Chicago Fire
Michael Farfan Philadelphia Union
Nick Rimando Real Salt Lake
Matt Besler Sporting Kansas City
Steven Beitashour San Jose Earthquakes
Graham Zusi Sporting Kansas City
Chris Wondolowski San Jose Earthquakes
Teal Bunbury Sporting Kansas City
Mauro Rosales Seattle Sounders FC
Blas Perez FC Dallas
Nick DeLeon D.C. United
Steven Lenhart San Jose Earthquakes
Alvaro Saborio Real Salt Lake
Zach Loyd FC Dallas
Heath Pearce New York Red Bulls
Kyle Beckerman Real Salt Lake
Drew Moor Colorado Rapids
Eddie Johnson Seattle Sounders FC
Chris Rolfe Chicago Fire
Brian Ching Houston Dynamo
Austin Berry Chicago Fire
Thierry Henry New York Red Bulls
Danny Koevermans Toronto FC
Dwayne De Rosario D.C. United

Some samples of the cards.

Depending on the box price I'll see if it's worth my while to break some of this product. If I'm to open some boxes I'll definitely post my results here on SCB so be sure to stay tuned.

First Ever SCB Box Break

Originally posted on 28 April 2012.

To be honest there's just not that many contemporary unopened soccer products out there worth opening so I mainly stick to buying only the singles I want. However I do sometimes pick up a box from an older collection I'm interested in, especially if the price is right as was the case with my recently busted 36 pack box of 1994 Upper Deck Wold Cup.

I had yet to pick up this preview edition World Cup set so this was a great chance to add it to my WC sets collection. Here's the breakdown of the "hits" from my box break as pictured in the scan below. I got 4 different "Bora Selects" inserts which the back of the pack states that the odds of finding these is 1:12 packs. Next I got 2 SP "Honorary Captain" inserts (1:24 odds) including Michael Jordan. Lastly I got 6 (3 not pictured) "World Cup Super Star Holograms" inserts. I have heard that these hologram cards were originally meant to be stickers and it makes sense because they are much thinner than the rest of the cards and very flimsy, still nice looking cards though plus I absolutely smashed the odds on these as they're stated odds are only 1:18 but I got 6 in 36 packs.

As a result of this fun and dirt cheap break I now have the complete base set for my PC and a spare one to trade, as well as the entire Hologram insert set. I still need plenty of inserts especially the Bora and SSP Honorary Captains so if anyone out there has 'em I'd be interested in trading for them.

Key Soccer Rookie Cards Are On A Roll

And if they're graded by BGA or PSA they are beyond being on a roll, they're absolutely on fire! Check out what I mean by clicking on the eBay prices listed below for these Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Zidane rookie cards.

Cristiano Ronaldo
2002-03 Panini Mega Craques
- $293.88 (BGS 9) -
- $247.50 (BGS 8.5) -
- $150.00 -
- $107.50 -
- $102.50 -
- $81.00 -

Lionel Messi
2004-05 Panini Mega Cracks
- 1,300.00 (PSA 10) -
- $704.99 (PSA 9) -
- $600.00 -
- $499.98 -
- $355.00 -
- $349.00 -
- $299.00 -
- $274.00 -
- $255.00 -
- $250.00 -
- $250.00 -
- $239.16 -
- $206.94 -
- $122.00 -
2004-05 MundiCromo Las Fichas de La Liga
- $175.00 (BGS 9) -
- $45.00 (BGS 9) -
2004-05 Panini Mega Cracks Barça Campeón/Campió
These 3 cards are XRC's (extended rookie cards) IMO but they still sell very well.
#35
- $167.50 (BGS 9.5) -
- $150.00 (BGS 9.5) -
- $149.99 (BGS 9.5) -
- $125.00 (BGS 9.5) -
- $78.77 (BGS 9.5) -
#62
- $91.00 (BGS 9.5) -
- $76.00 (BGS 9.5) -
- $71.00 (PSA 10) -
#89
- $149.99 (BGS 9.5) -
- $130.00 (BGS 9.5) -
- $100.00 (PSA 10) -
- $100.00 (BGS 9.5) -
- $70.99 (BGS 9.5) -
- $61.01 (PSA 10) -

Zinedine Zidane
1992-93 Panini Football Cards
- £68.67 -
- $66.00 -
- £35.55 -

The Messi RC's are the best performing of the bunch which is to be expected considering he is currently provoking discussions about whether he will one day be considered the greatest of all time (G.O.A.T.) but Cristiano Ronaldo and Zidane are also rising. I picked up a Ronaldo BGS 8.5 RC for peanuts a few years ago. I also recall being outbid at the last moment for a Zidane RC which ended for $20 something bucks, I now regret not going higher on that one.

All of this suggests to me that interest in soccer rookies in general is growing. I wonder if this growing interest will last and if prices will continue to rise? I suppose only time will tell...