Major League Wrestling and Panini America Announce 

Exclusive Trading Card Partnership

Landmark licensing partnership begins this summer.

NEW YORK – JUNE 30, 2025 – Major League Wrestling (MLW), one of the fastest-growing wrestling leagues in the U.S., and Panini America, the world’s largest sports and entertainment collectibles company, announced today a multi-year exclusive partnership. As part of the agreement, Panini becomes the official trading card, memorabilia, and collectible sticker partner of MLW.

The partnership begins with Panini commemorating some of the most memorable moments from “MLW Summer of the BEASTS” which took place in New York City on Thursday, June 26, by launching products on its Instant Card platform at www.paniniamerica.net. Additional MLW products from Panini will be available later this year at mass retailers including Walmart and Target, in hobby stores nationwide, as well as on Panini’s website.

“As MLW’s global presence continues to grow, partnering with Panini – the worldwide leader in collectibles – is the perfect next step,” MLW Founder and CEO Court Bauer said. “With the world’s top-ranked fighters throwing down in front of sold-out crowds, MLW is built on iconic moments. Now, thanks to Panini, fans can collect those moments and own a piece of the fight.”

With a roster of high-octane talent and a rapidly expanding international footprint, MLW is continuing to build momentum among media and fans alike. This partnership with Panini marks the league’s first entry into officially licensed trading cards and collectibles, giving fans a new way to connect with the action inside – and outside – the ring.

“We are looking forward to this new partnership with MLW, as MLW continues to grow and expand internationally – we are positioned well to help them reach wrestling fans on a global basis and bring trading cards to wrestling fans,” said Mark Warsop, Panini America CEO.

Thoughts: Trading cards were all the rage in the ’80s and ’90s. They fell off significantly in the 2000s and appeared to be a dead industry until a notable resurgence occurred during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, the trading card hobby is bigger than ever before.

Wrestling cards used to have little to no value as a financial investment. Today, an Undertaker rookie card not only holds great value, but the deadman himself, Mark Calaway, won’t autograph his rookie card at fan conventions, so fans can’t make money off his name.

AEW star Darby Allin’s rookie card sold for over $1,000 a few years ago. Autograph cards can also fetch a pretty penny, depending on their rarity.

While Topps and Panni are considered the two titans of the contemporary trading card game, Panni is set to lose the NBA and NFL license this year. They will still produce Basketball and Football cards, but they can’t use the team and league logos. Topps currently releases Basketball cards without team and league logos until it obtains the license on October 1st, 2025.

Upper Deck has the AEW license, while Topps has WWE’s exclusive trading card offerings firmly in their pocket, thanks to the juggernaut sports apparel company Fanatics. MLW’s entry into the trading card game offers wrestling fans a third promotional option, as its eclectic roster of veterans and rising stars will introduce many first-time cards to the market.