UD Releases Special Edition Thierry Henry Card

After the World Cup finished in July a number of international stars made their way to the US shores and signed on with MLS teams, but none were bigger then Frenchmen (and former Arsenal star) Thierry Henry signing with the New York Red Bulls.

Since Upper Deck released the 2010 MLS set in May the newest acquisitions are not in the set, not wanting to wait until the 2011 release Upper Deck has created a special edition card of Henry that collectors can get free when they order 2 blaster boxes from Upper Decks store. So for $40 you get two 20-pack blasters and the Thierry Henry card, so not a bad deal for MLS collectors looking to add a special edition card to their collection.

The offer is new so there are no cards up for auction yet, but if you are looking to add to Henry to your collection now you can find some pretty sweet Futera cards including jersey cards going for under $50 each.

UD MLS Packs Finally

In mid-May Upper Deck released the 2010 MLS set with little fanfare, which is odd considering that the World Cup begins in only a few days on June 11th, not even a month after the MLS set was released.

Now Arizona is not a “hot bed” for a soccer fan. Consider that our “local” team is Chivas USA, located roughly 6 hours away in LA. So, hunting down some packs locally has turned in to a difficult task. I even contacted UD directly to see if they had promo cards or packs that they would be willing to send out to let me review the product on the blog, needless to say that request was shot down with a resounding "No!"

After weeks of frustration I was to the point where I considered putting down $100 and buy a box without having even seeing the cards firsthand. Alas my prayers were finally answered when I stopped by the store and saw a hobby box sitting on the shelf, opened and rifled through but I figured I would grab a few packs and scratch the itch at least a bit until I break down and order a box.

I bought 2 packs, 16 cards total and 9 of them were Defense or mediocre Goalies, which was quite saddening for me. I did pull a 2010 Super Draft card of so-so rookie Corben Bone (1 Game Played, 39 Min and 1 SOG), but the best card pulled was probably the WPS Stars card of Sonia Bompastor (1 Goal and 3Assists in 8 Games Played).

I do like the action shots, there are clean lines and the cards are not overwhelmed by mad designers intent on destroying every card they touch. This is a great set and I love the landscape card of Stefan Frei, you can see the focus he has on the ball. Sadly the packs were void of Seattle Sounders FC cards, something I hope to remedy if/when I pick up a box.

2010 Upper Deck MLS

Upper Deck is taking the hype from the upcoming World Cup (6/11-7/11) and carrying it over in to the 2010 Upper Deck MLS set scheduled to be released in a few days on May 18th. I am a footy fan, I play soccer, I coach soccer and I support my Seattle Sounders FC and the red devils of Man U but to be honest I have never been a collector of MLS cards though I do have a decent selection of early 20th Century English football cards that I picked up in some trades with an English dealer in the early-90s.

I watched a box break on Beckett’s Blog and while Chris Olds did not take part in the break, they did pull some nice hits. It is weird, but I actually like Tracy Hackler.

Scheduled Release Date: May 18, 2010
Box Configuration: 20 packs per box, 12 cards per pack
SRP: $89.99

Box Break: Four memorabilia and 1 autograph per box.
1 memorabilia card will be a Premium Series Memorabilia Patch Card #/35 or less

From what I have seen in the box break this actually looks like a good set. Upper Deck used their typical action photos, reminiscent of their baseball and football base sets from years past. The set is 200 base cards and an interesting mix of memorabilia and autograph cards.


My Thoughts:
I love soccer and the Beckett box break did produce a relic of Seattle Sounders All-Star Fredy Montero, but I really cannot make a solid decision without seeing more of the set. I really wish I could get my hands on a box or even a couple of packs to get an honest review.

I will say that for $90 you seem to get a good variety of cards and a decent deal for the price for any MLS fan.

Rating: Undecided at this time