Beloved World Cup tradition to end as FIFA president confirms new arrangement

Panini World Cup sticker albums will become a thing of the past following the centenary finals in 2030 after FIFA announced a new partnership on Thursday. The FIFA association with Panini already stretches back more than 50 years, with the first World Cup sticker book published ahead of the 1970 finals in Mexico, and will have reached 60 years by 2030. However, FIFA announced on Thursday that it had extended its agreement with Fanatics to cover collectibles, to include FIFA tournaments and events from 2031. The sticker albums were hugely popular, with one completed 1970 album selling for over £10,000 in 2017. JOIN US ON FACEBOOK! Latest news, analysis and much more on Mirror Football's Facebook page FIFA president Gianni Infantino said: “Across the sports landscape, we see that Fanatics are driving massive innovation in collectibles that provides fans with a new, meaningful way to engage with their favourite teams and with their favourite players. “So, from FIFA’s point of view, we can globalise that fan engagement precisely thanks to our global tournament portfolio. And this provides another important commercial revenue stream that we channel back, as always, into the game, into football.” WORLD CUP LEGENDS: The stars who lit up football’s greatest tournament - Buy the Special Edition today Fanatics chief executive Michael Rubin added: “This is truly a historic day in our company’s history. Global football is the biggest growth opportunity in sports, and when you combine the power of FIFA with the innovation and entrepreneurial backbone of Fanatics, together we’re poised to elevate storytelling and collectibles around the game in a way that’s never been seen before.” Panini agreed a deal with FIFA in December 2023 to remain as its exclusive partner for official stickers, trading cards, trading-card games and digital collectibles which covered this summer’s World Cup, the 2030 tournament and the 2027 Women’s World Cup, in addition to other FIFA tournaments and events. Panini has been contacted for comment. Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.