Fanatics manages to stay ahead of the competition through exclusive autograph agreements with some of the world’s most outstanding and well-known athletes.
Therefore, we were not surprised to learn that the company had signed an exclusive agreement with Shohei Ohtani, the best baseball player in the world. What does this mean for the Fanatics’ strategy for domination in the sports card space?
How does this advance Ohtani’s career? What will this mean for the average collector? We have all the answers in our overview of the Fanatics exclusive auto deal with Shohei Ohtani.
Check prices of Shohei Ohtani autos on eBay
The immediate deal secures Fanatics exclusive ownership of autographed cards, signed memorabilia, and merchandise.
Shohei has had a deal with Fanatics since 2018, which has allowed them to sell his memorabilia on their website. For example, you can buy a Shohei Ohtani Los Angeles Angels Autographed Fanatics Authentic Framed White Nike Authentic Jersey 2023 AL MVP Collage for $4,999 on their website.
However, that deal was not exclusive. That meant he could sign memorabilia for other companies and cards for manufacturers such as Panini and Upper Deck. Indeed, Shohei auto cards have been featured in prestigious Panini releases such as National Treasures.
That is an important point, and we will return to how this influences the seemingly endless saga of the Fanatics versus Panini competition.
This is part of an attempt by the apparel giant to lock up the services of the best athletes in the world. David Leiner, president of trading cards at Fanatics Collectibles, said, “What we’ve tried to do with the top players in the world is not just have them sign 1,000 cards sitting in a hotel room for two hours. We want to bring them in as partners, help promote the products, understand them, and design them with us.”
Ohtani was far more taciturn, as athletes often are in these cases: “I’m happy to be exclusively partnering with Topps to give fans unique cards and collectibles for seasons to come,” read the Ohtani’s press release.
It is no secret that Ohtani is the best player in baseball. Some believe he may also be the best player ever. This year, the Dodgers star announced that he will not be pitching. Therefore, many observers expected him to have a less glamorous 2024 than his two MVP-winning campaigns.
But as it turns out, when he doesn’t have to worry about pitching, Shohei’s hitting becomes even more lethal. He seems to be on track to be the first player ever to hit 50 homers and steal 50 bases. He is already one of only six players to break the 40/40 barrier. Therefore, he is the favorite to be the National League MVP.
That is why Topps President David Leiner said he was overjoyed at this deal: “For me, one, I’m a fan of his, and two, I was dying to delight our fans, delight our collectors. I’ve been 15 years between Topps and Fanatics, and at the end of the day, I’m evaluated, and Topps and Fanatics are evaluated on how we deliver for our collectors. And there’s no better way than delivering the biggest global athlete in baseball.”
It seems like a million years ago, but the baseball season started with a terrible scandal for Ohtani. His translator placed illegal sports bets using his bank account, and there was some concern that the new Dodgers signing would be suspended for his involvement.
However, the evidence did not support Ohtani’s direct participation, and the translator took the fall. The Japanese star soon put the whole affair behind him and, as noted, is having one of his best seasons yet. It seems nothing can stop this sporting and economic juggernaut.
Of course, with Shohei, you aren’t just getting the best baseball player in the world. You are also signing a deal with a national hero of unparalleled salience in his home country of Japan.
Dodgers President Stan Kasten explained, “I think this is good for baseball. The Dodger brand is unique and historic, and now it’s combined with the Ohtani brand, which is unique and historic. People in Japan are telling me that Ohtani is bigger in Japan than [Michael] Jordan was here. His presence is extraordinary. I don’t know who you compare him to, Messi. His presence is extraordinary.”
His market is not just Japan and the United States; Shohei is also massive in South Korea and several other East Asian countries. Therefore, his advantage to Fanatics is as a gate into big markets that baseball memorabilia has not yet saturated. The potential earnings are massive.
Baseball cards also have great potential in Japan and East Asia. Only about 10% of Topps’s earnings come from outside North America, with the vast majority in the United States. Nonetheless, Leiner says that share is “growing significantly.”
We can see the extent of Fanatics’ ambitions in Japan with their new release of Japan-exclusive sets. In 2021, the company made a deal with the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for (as always) exclusive rights to produce their cards. So far, they have been pleased with how that has panned out.
Leiner said, “We have to allocate our product pretty tightly, and there’s always an abundance of demand that is well more than the supply in Japan,” he said. “It’s a nice problem to have.”
A few months ago, in January 2024, Fanatics made headlines by nabbing exclusive rights to feature LeBron James autographs on their products.
That was considered a massive coup because, up until that point, “King James” had been a critical component in Upper Deck’s products. Indeed, the only higher-profile athlete for the Carlsbad, California-based company is (arguably) Michael Jordan.
So, bringing in James was a massive victory for them. Indeed, Lenier liked the two deals and said, “LeBron James hadn’t been doing NBA trading card autographs in several years, so to bring him back into the category has been pretty big.”
At the time, Fanatics released a statement: “Our goal is to push the envelope of where the hobby can go, and we are excited about how our collaboration with one of the best athletes in the world will continue to ignite fan and collector passion.” Meanwhile, LeBron wrote, “As someone who appreciates all the moments — big and small — along the journey, I’m excited to share more with my fans through this partnership with Fanatics.”
Fanatics even took a thinly veiled potshot at Panini to announce the agreement with Shohei. Lenier said, “What we’ve tried to do with the top players in the world is not just have them sign 1,000 cards sitting in a hotel room for two hours. We want to bring them in as a true partner, help promote the products, understand the products, and design products with us.”
But that is not the only case in which Fanatics has used its money and clout to secure exclusive autograph rights in a way that undercuts the influence of its rivals. In 2023, without any fanfare, Topps got the rights to the autos of Bryce Young and CJ Stroud.
Those are the two highest-rated players in the 2023 NFL rookie class. Therefore, getting those rights was an absolute coup and immediately devalued the NFL rights that remained in Panini’s hands. One of the many harmful moves they have made is the fanatic “death by a thousand cuts” approach to their competition with Panini.
While there was no announcement on this, perhaps because the deals behind it are somewhat dubious, it became apparent what happened when the two biggest names were not on the Mosaic and Select Draft checklist.
One user on Blowout Forums posted, “This is no longer speculation. It’s a fact that after seeing no Young or Stroud autos on the checklist, You can continue to question this if you want, but after months of smoke, now there’s proof of a fire. I opened this thread so Board members can share their thoughts on what this means going forward. Among topics: Will wax prices drop on Panini releases as they should with this news? Will the scant autos of Young and Stroud already in circulation be more valuable and or retain value longer? Will Panini sell their remaining NFL rights to Fanatics early, and we can move forward knowing we will get autos of all the top guys in Fanatics/Topps releases?”
Who has exclusive deals with Fanatics>
We have discussed Fanatics’s monopolizing tendencies on many occasions in this publication. The use of exclusive auto rights is undoubtedly one of the main arenas where this comes into play.
There is a reason for that. The autos are helpful across multiple areas, and the company is successfully attempting to become the only game in town. They not only increase the value of the cards that Fanatics produce.
However, they also allow the company to sell exclusively autographed merchandise at (very) high prices. It is a very worthwhile investment for the company.
The full roster of athletes that Fanatics has at its disposal is staggering. Here are some of the biggest names.
The way Topps executives talk, they plan to pump out many Ohtani auto cards. David Leiner said, “I want Ohtani’s autographs to be accessible to collectors of all shapes and sizes, income levels, and all those things. His autographs are featured from the entry-level to the ultra high end (Topps products).”
But there is no question that there will also be standalone products for Shohei. Few athletes warrant that kind of treatment, but this guy certainly is in that category. In his case, the sets may be targeted at the Far East.
Leiner further explained, “A lot of our category is built on ripping through packs and trying to find that superstar or that card you’re seeking for your collection, so when you do things for an individual athlete, it has to be special and unique, and there needs to be a time and a place for it. We’re open to it when an athlete warrants something of that level. Shohei is definitely in that very elite, tiny group of athletes.”
If there is one term that is synonymous with the Fanatics strategy in the hobby, it is the word exclusive. That has been particularly notable in their pursuit of the rights to the most significant leagues in the United States and elsewhere.
However, their exclusive deals with athletes are also an overlooked part of this strategy. There is a finite number of true superstars in any sport. With autos playing such an essential part in the hobby, the lack of big names on the autograph section of the checklist can doom the desirability of a specific release.
Therefore, the ability of Fanatics to gain exclusives with names like Shohei, Wemby, CJ Stroud, and LeBron James has significant ramifications for the viability of any card released by other manufacturers.
This is also part of an upheaval in the autograph and memorabilia space. This will presumably stop Ohtani and others from signing for other memorabilia companies.
That process will continue to put all the money in the hands of Fanatics, which will, in turn, increase its monopoly on the business.
The prices of the autographed memorabilia on their website speak for themselves. They are enormously high and will only increase as the other options fade out, just like the cards coming out of Topps.
What are the best Black Friday Deals for Collectors?
32 Spot Random Team 2024 NFL Mosaic Mega 8 Box Break
32 Spot Random Team 2024 NFL Mosaic Blaster 10 Box Break.
Sealed Blaster Box of 2022 Topps MLB Baseball Update Series.
Sealed box of 2019 Topps MLB Baseball Series 2 Hobby Box. 1 autograph or relic card guaranteed. Great rookie class.
Sealed Box of 2021 Panini Prizm Baseball Cello. 12 packs per box, 18 cards per pack.
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