28-05-2025
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.
