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Monday, June 11, 2007

I think I understand why the IFL would partner with topps

Earlier today, I posted a press release from the IFL regarding partnering with Topps to sell trading cards of the company's athletes.

this article but there's more as this article suggests Upper Deck is not out of the picture to purchase the company and in another follow up article topps now being sued by Upper Deck

It would seem that Topps is in quite a bit of turmoil. Kind of makes it a natural business partner for the strapped for cash IFL.

Yours truly has at one time collected cards from: Baseball, Football, Basketball and Hockey. I've also purchased my fair share of wrestling cards.

From what I've been able to gather from the brief research I've done since seeing the IFL's press release, the industry is in a world of hurt. I've not collected cards since college called my name back in 1999 but this news would hardly come as a shock to me. When I was in High-school, I remember the price of cards going up, while the number of cards per pack is going down. Lets face facts, if you're going to spend $50, will you buy trading cards that are at best something you can apraise and store somewhere, or will you buy a video game for the same sport at the same cost which you can actually use in an interactive sort of way?

If you're the International Fight League, you'd better have gotten a good price for the license to your product to begin with because you're not going to see any kind of profit off of sales. I don't really know about the state of football cards, but I know that Baseball is really hurting now and MLB is certainly more well-known among the public than the IFL. I don't think that UFC would stand to gain much from a card deal and they're way more well-known than the IFL. Though I would admit, a 3-D card of Rashad Evans clobbering Sean Salmon would be kinda cool.

It doesn't work for wrestling either. Remember that TNA once had a trading card deal? of course you don't and it is not your fault and not really TNA's either. Did you know that you can buy WWE cards ironically enough made by Topps. I'm not sure how old these are, or if Topps still holds the WWE license, and I really don't care, the point is that how many wrestling fans buy these? I'm guessing not many, and you never see WWE advertise their existance.

If the IFL wants to make money off of this, they should really see if Topps will make IFL flavored gum or candy. I don't chew gum regularly but I'm far more likely to do that than buy a pack of IFL cards.

Each team could have their own flavor or something...and of course there's always power-Palaszewski gum as a possibility. Now how cool would that be?

Now how many sites are going to come right out and tell you that this means basically nothing? We here at the times are committed to finding the truth provided it is easy to find and we're not doing something else.

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IFL Enters Partnership and Licensing Agreement with the Topps Company

World’s Number One Team-Based Mixed Martial Arts League Joins With The World’s Preeminent Brand in Collectible Trading Cards

NEW YORK, June 11, 2007 – The International Fight League (OTC.BB: IFLI), the world’s number one team-based professional mixed martial arts league, today announced a multi-year strategic partnership and licensing agreement with The Topps Company, one of the most storied brands in sports collectibles.
The partnership will include the first-ever line of cards featuring IFL coaches and athletes, and will capture the league’s action and personalities in a collectible, consumer friendly, and high-quality format.



“We are very excited to begin this relationship with Topps, one of the most storied brands in the card business,” said Gareb Shamus, IFL co-founder and CEO. “This partnership is the latest in a series of moves by the sport of MMA and the IFL brand that shows how the sport will be able to reach a larger audience with compelling and unique content. It will be great way to showcase our stars through a combination of traditional trading cards, unique collectibles and new media projects.”

“The sport of Mixed Martial Arts is exciting and rapidly growing, and we are proud to partner with the IFL, their world class coaches and rising stars to make our entry in the sport,” said Ira Friedman, Topps’ vice president of publishing and licensing. “We have looked for the right entry point for the MMA category from a collectible standpoint, and feel that the IFL model is the best fit for both now and for the long term.”

The first Topps IFL branded product is currently in development. The card marketer plans its initial presentations to customers during the fourth quarter of 2007, with an expanded program in 2008 and beyond.

Topps joins an ever-growing group of IFL partners that include Microsoft Xbox, Brothers Apparel, Headline Headgear, Sandals Resorts, Warner Home Video, Dale and Thomas Popcorn, Fairtex Equipment and HeadBlade shaving products.

IFL events are televised weekly on FSN (Fridays at 11 p.m.) and Mondays at 8 p.m. Eastern and Pacific/7 p.m. Central on MyNetworkTV “IFL Battleground.”

About Topps

Topps is an international marketer of entertainment products, principally collectible trading cards, confections, sticker collections, and collectible strategy games. The Topps Company was founded in 1938 as Topps Chewing Gum, and in its early years produced a popular penny "Topps Gum" from a factory in Brooklyn, N.Y. After World War II, the company developed Bazooka Bubble Gum, and in 1950, added trading cards to its product line. Baseball cards appeared in 1951
and quickly became a vital part of pop culture, a tradition that continues to this day, and includes football (both American and European) and basketball, in addition to entertainment cards and stickers and albums, Topps also manufactures the popular lollipop brands marketed as Ring Pops, Push Pops, Baby Bottle Pops and other novelty candy and gum products.

About the IFL

International Fight League™ (IFL) is the world’s number one professional mixed martial arts sports league. IFL has its headquarters in New York and offices in Las Vegas. For more information about IFL, please see: www.ifl.tv

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