Preview: 2012 Topps Major League Soccer

Schedule Release Date: July 15, 2013
Box Configurations: 24 packs per box, 10 cards per pack
SRP: Not Announced Yet

Box Break:
2 Autographs
3 Relic Cards

What To Expect:
Topps has signed a licensing agreement with Major League Soccer and they will be releasing their first set, 2013 Topps Major League Soccer, in July. Previously only Upper Deck had a MLS license so this will be interesting to see how things unfold; especially if Upper Deck ends up skipping a 2013 MLS set like is rumored. Topps has been making European football cards off and on over the last 3 decades so soccer cards are not new to them. They are actually using the 1978 EPL design for an insert in the release.

The base set is made up of a 200-card checklist with each of the teams being represented pretty well. Like most Topps sets there will be short prints, variations and parallels. None of the SP or variations have been announced yet. There are five base card parallels; Blue (#/50), Gold (#/25), Black (#/10), Printing Plates Golazo (1/1).

There are four autograph sets;
SuperDraft Autographs are rookies/young players. There are 4 parallel versions: Gold (#/25), Black (#/10), Red (#/10) and Golazo (1/1).
MLS Maestros Autographs cover the veteran players. There are 4 parallel versions: Gold (#/25), Black (#/10), Red (#/10)and Golazo (1/1).
Boot Die-Cut Autographs which focuses on retired and current goal threads
Extra Time Redemptions (#/99), these redemptions are for transfer players who join the league during the 2013 MLS season.

  

There are two relic sets;

MLS Kits contain a piece from a game used kit. There are 4 parallels; Blue (#/49) and Red (#/25) parallels. The Silver (#/5) parallel has a jumbo relic swatch and the Gold (1/1) parallel has a multi-colored jumbo relic swatch.

Autographed Relics have both a relic and an autograph. There are 5 parallels; Green (#/75), Gold (#/50), Black (#/25), Red (#/5) and Golazo (1/1). The Black and Red parallels have multi-colored swatches.

There are 4 base inserts plus one redemption;
1978 Topps EPL, uses current players but using the original 1978 Topps English Premier League design
This Is Soccer combines action shots and hideous designs straight out of Fleer’s 1994 design book
Rivalries is a combination of rival teams like Seattle Sounders and Portland Timbers
Mini Cards
Redemption cards are good for an official MLS ball, I am not sure if it is game used or just an official ball

My Thoughts:
I love soccer and while I feel that Upper Deck has done a solid job, but if they end up shutting down or losing the MLS license it is nice to know that an experienced company will be taking over.

Topps has been producing football cards in Europe off and on since the 1970s so they know the sport. The last decade or so they have been focusing on the English Premier League and EuroCup/World Cup national teams, a couple of years ago they picked up the German Bundesliga. Bringing in an American version will not be a stretch for Topps and so far I dig the base card design. The inserts are another thing for me, I just feel that they are too busy and the autograph sets remind me of the Futera from 10-12 years ago.

The Seattle Sounders are well represented through the set so I am game and at least will be picking up singles and some random packs. Kind of disappointed that Fredy Montero, who is on loan to the Columbian First Division team Millonarios FC for the 2013 season, is not in the set.

Being a Topps set you know there are going to be a bunch of chase cards, SPs, minis, etc. In this case I am ok with Topps using the 1978-79 English Footballer design for the 1978 EPL insert. Personally I prefer the design used on the 1976-77 Topps English Footballer set or the 1977-78 English Footballer set but this is ok.



Pros:
MLS cards in 2013
A different view of soccer from Topps
Large base set
5 hits per box


Cons:
Sticker autographs
Busy designs
Lots of SP, variations and parallels


Rating:
At this point it is kind of hard to rate, I think saying 3.5 out of 5 would be a reasonable assessment because I am not big on the designs used on the inserts, outside of the mini cards and 1978 EPL cards.

Preview: 2012 Upper Deck MLS

Schedule Release Date: May 22, 2012

Box Configuration: 12 cards per pack, 20 packs per box

SRP: $94/box

Box Break:

1 Autograph card

1 Multi-relic or Premium Patch relic

3 Memorabilia cards

My Thoughts:

Upper Deck is the only company doing MLS cards and they are doing it right. The base design is basic and beautiful, you have a full-bleed action shot with a small design with team logo, player name, player number and position along the bottom. The inserts are what we have grown to expect from Upper Deck with an interesting design and a nice player image.

The set includes a 200-card checklist which breaks down in to 165 regular players, 15 MLS Debut cards and 20 SuperDraft cards. This year Robbie Keane will be making his debut in a MLS set. Sadly the SRP is inching upwards and now is closing in on the $100 price point without adding any additional value to the box.

Pros:

Nice Design

5 Hits per box

Cons:

Increased price

Sticker Autographs

Review:
I give this set 4 out of 5, it has a pleasnat design, includes a nice sized checklist for set collectors and includes a nice selection of hits. It looses slightly on the increased price and sticker autographs.

Preview: 2011 SP Game-Used MLS

11 SP Game-Used MLS - Online Slideshow Creator

With the MLS season winding down over the next few weeks (with my Sounders sitting securely in a playoff position) Upper Deck has released some preview shots of the upcoming SP Game-Used MLS set which is scheduled to hit shelves right in the middle of the playoffs in November.

Upper Deck, currently the only card designer with a MLS license, usually produces a single set each year which they keep tight wraps on until right before release. In prior years they have even held the sales sheets close until mere days before the product was scheduled to hit so this was a bit unexpected but I think with the set being so similar to the NHL SP Game-Used set they were a little more open on posting information.

No pricing information has been announced and none of the authorized dealers are even offering pre-sells yet but with a similar pack out to the NHL product I am going to guess the product probably runs a similar $175-180/box price tag, a serious price increase over the base MLS sets. I wonder how soccer fans will take to the higher price?

Box Break:

3 cards/pack, 6 packs/box

1 Auto or Memorabilia card per pack
3 Numbered Rookie cards

 Some of the highlights include first cards of Charlie Davies, a solid phenom, as well as rookie cards for Juan Agudelo and WPS rookie Alex Morgan. Upper Deck is also introducing By The Letter Game Used relics to soccer plus multi-relic hits and oversized patches.

 From my understanding these card images are mock-ups.

Follow Up On Chad's MLS Dreams

Last week I wrote about Chad Ochocinco trying out for Sporting Kansas City of the MLS. After a 5 day try out he was awarded a spot on the Sporting KC reserve team. The reserve team is like the Minor Leagues in baseball, players are assigned to the minor league to work on their skills and each team plays a 10-game schedule. With MLS though, players on the reserve team are not signed to a contract and they are not paid.

After watching videos of his try out I have to say that this has to be a publicity stunt by KC. While he is fast and has the strength, stamina and quick feet he lacks the basic skills of soccer let alone the skills of a professional. He cannot trap while moving, cut or cross the ball. In one video he even had trouble dribbling and shooting. If I was a young player trying to make it in to professional soccer and I lost out on a spot because of this stunt I would be pissed. I can understand Ochocinco’s side, he loves soccer and wanted to really try and make the team plus this will keep him in great shape during the lockout but his skills do not warrant a position.

Chad Johnson In MLS?

Can soccer accept Chad Ochocinco? It is like he is re-inventing himself at 33 years old. In January he announced that he will be changing his name back to Johnson, he said he will have a try-out with Real Madrid and Barcelona (those turned out to be only a publicity stunt) but now he has a real try-out with Sporting Kansas City (MLS). Due to the lock out NFL players are not under contract and can go hog wild if they choose to, or in this case try out for another sport. According the KC’s web site Chad Johnson will begin a four day try-out with Sporting Kansas City of the MLS on Tuesday (March 22nd) and based on his ability things will be determined after that. Interesting how they scheduled it after their opening game and it ends before their second game, why now…why not a week or two ago before the season started?

The Kansas City team is known for being aggressive with publicity, they recently changed their name from the Kansas City Wizards to Sporting KC and they gave away the naming rights to their stadium for free so this may be nothing more than a publicity stunt but going back to an interview with ESPN  from 2007 Chad Johnson has been playing soccer since he was a kid and still loves the sport. He has traveled the globe as a fan of European clubs and counts a number of players amongst his friends. In a 2009 interview with Sports Illustrated he claimed that if there was a lockout in 2011 he planned on trying out for AC Milan in Italy’s Serie A.

He is an athlete and is still in good condition, he probably would not do too badly for a MLS team even as a substitute as long as the talent is there. I don’t think he could keep up with players like Landon Donovan or Alvaro Saborio let alone Beckham or Thierry Henry but I think he would bring in fans based on his name alone. I personally do not agree with players making a team only because of who they are/where, it has not really worked in the past (Think Babe Ruth with the Boston Braves or Michael Jordan with the Chicago White Sox and Washington Wizards) but if he turns out to be a decent player I have no problem with a player earning their way in to a second sport.

2011 Upper Deck MLS Review

Tonight was MLS’ First Kick starting off the 2011 MLS season in a typical Seattle, read this as rainy, night on a cold and wet pitch with the LA Galaxy continuing their stranglehold on the Seattle Sounders winning 1-0 in a tough fought game that really could have went either way.


Last week Upper Deck started posting information about the upcoming 2011 MLS release, which should be out in just over a month. Upper Deck has been known to hold information about the MLS release quiet and often not releasing any information until release day. I am unable to find any pricing or even a pre-sell for the product.

Schedule Release Date: April 19, 2011
Box Configuration: 20 packs per box, 12 cards per pack
SRP: Unknown


Box Break:
4 Memorabilia cards
1 Autograph cards

My Thoughts:
Really hard to say what we should expect from this release based on the three cards that I have seen posted. So far only a Henry base card, a Wambach/Marta WPS dual auto and a Donovan relic have been shown. This looks like it was phoned in, the base cards look more Panini in style instead of the expected Upper Deck clean design and the ML Materials relic reminds me of the generic Gameday Gear that show up in blaster boxes. I seriously hope that I am wrong about the set.

They are advertising that this set contains the first card of Thierry Henry but UD released a special edition Henry card last year with him in his Red Bulls kit after his first game, which you could pick up the card if you bought 2 blasters through Upper Deck directly plus he was also in the recent Upper Deck World of Sports release. I guess they mean this is his first card available in MLS packs.

2010 Upper Deck World of Sports

2010 Upper Deck MLS Special Edition

Seattle Sounders FC

I know that soccer matches are not something that you normally would find on a sports cards blog, but I have been a Seattle Sounders fan for a number of years now and even though I can not attend the games anymore I still keep up with the team in their inaugural MLS season (prior to 2008 the Seattle Sounders were a USL First Division team until the MLS offered an expansion to Seattle).

Anyway, the Sounders FC played in a Friendly against Chelsea FC this afternoon at Qwest Field. For those who do not know, Chelsea is one of the elite teams of the world. Since 2004 the Blues have been Premier League First Division Champions twice and Runner-up twice. They won the FA Cup twice (and are currently the FA Cup Champions) and the League Cup Champions twice with 1 Runner-up. They were also European Cup Runner-up in 2008. So, to play against Chelsea FC is an honor for a first year MLS expansion team.

While the match ended as a 2-0 loss, Seattle walked away with their head held high. Chelsea scored their first goal in the 12th minute and their second goal in the 35th minute, the remainder of the game saw two balanced teams controlling the ball well including some awesome defense by D Zach Scott in the last 10 minutes of the game. An exciting match overall and while a loss is a loss, it was still a great game to watch.