Topps Owned Draft Night in Pittsburgh — And the Hobby Was Watching

From the Collector Destination to live Topps Now cards dropping as first-round picks were announced, Topps' return to football couldn't have had a bigger stage.

It has been a decade since Topps and the NFL shared the same field. That wait is officially over — and Thursday night in Pittsburgh proved it in the most dramatic way possible. As Roger Goodell stepped to the podium and the 2026 NFL Draft's first round unfolded live on ESPN and ABC, Topps was right there with it — turning one of sports' biggest nights into the hobby's biggest moment in years.

Under a landmark multi-year exclusive licensing deal between Fanatics Collectables, the NFL, and the NFLPA, Topps has returned as the league's official trading card partner for the first time since 2016. The partnership grants Topps full use of team logos, uniforms, helmets, and official NFL branding — and draft night was proof that Topps intends to use every inch of it.

Round 1 Delivered — And Topps Was Ready

Round 1 of the 2026 NFL Draft did not disappoint. Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza went No. 1 overall to the Las Vegas Raiders, kicking off a night full of surprises, trades, and star-making moments on the Pittsburgh stage. David Bailey, the Texas Tech edge rusher, was taken second overall by the New York Jets, and Jeremiyah Love — the Notre Dame running back — landed with the Arizona Cardinals at No. 3.

Ohio State cleaned up in the top ten, with three of the Buckeyes' top defenders going in the top 11 picks. The Kansas City Chiefs traded up to take LSU cornerback Mansoor Delane at No. 6, while the Cowboys swapped with the Dolphins to snag Ohio State safety Caleb Downs at No. 11. By the time the first round wrapped, the hobby had 32 new names to chase — and Topps Now was already live.

Influencers, Collectors & the Hobby Converge on Pittsburgh

Draft night wasn't just watched from living rooms — the hobby showed up in person. Among the most prominent collectors and trading card influencers on the ground in Pittsburgh were King of Kards, Geoff Wilson, and Mojo Sports, three of the most recognizable names in the modern collecting community. Their presence on-site brought the hobby's online world directly into the draft experience, with real-time reactions, pulls, and content flowing from the Topps Collector Destination and the broader draft campus throughout the evening.

For a brand trying to signal that its return to football is more than a business deal — that it's a genuine reconnection with collecting culture — having hobby's most-followed voices in the building was no accident. Topps understood that the collectors who move markets, drive conversation, and introduce the next generation to the hobby weren't going to be parked at home. They were going to be in Pittsburgh, and Topps made sure the experience was worth documenting.

First-Round Picks. Real Cards. Draft Night.

As each pick was announced Thursday night, Topps Now cards were produced for all 32 first-round selections — capturing the exact moment each prospect officially became an NFL player on cardboard. For collectors who had David Bailey or Jeremiyah Love on their radar heading into the night, those Topps Now cards carry an added layer of meaning: both players were on-site in Pittsburgh, on the same stage, when their names were called.

Bailey going No. 2 to the Jets and Love landing at No. 3 with the Cardinals confirmed what the hobby already suspected — both are going to be cornerstone names in this rookie class for years. Their Topps Now cards, timestamped to draft night in Pittsburgh, will be the first officially licensed NFL trading cards of their careers. That provenance doesn't come around twice.

"The First Topps Card designation on rookie issues matters to collectors building around a player long term — and there's no more significant first than draft night itself."

Draft class cards are available through Topps.com following the close of Round 1, with limited ordering windows in keeping with the Topps Now model's scarcity-driven appeal. For collectors who have been waiting a decade for Topps to return to football, last night was the moment they'd been holding their binders open for.

A Hobby HQ in the Heart of Pittsburgh

Running Thursday through Saturday, Topps established the Collector Destination — a fully immersive hub where football culture and trading card collecting collide in real time. Eight hobby shops from across the country, each representing one of the NFL's eight divisions, set up shop on-site, creating a communal trading floor unlike anything the hobby has seen at a major sports event. Live Pack Wars featuring 2025 Topps Chrome Football ran throughout each session, alongside giveaways, broadcasts, and appearances by NFL players and hobby personalities.

"From opening packs to meeting legends, the experience captures what makes The Hobby special: connection, discovery, and community."

As NFL trading card sales have grown nearly sixfold since 2019, Topps and the NFL are betting big on Pittsburgh as the launchpad for what comes next. The Collector Destination made that case in real time on Thursday — and the hobby's biggest influencers were there to broadcast every moment of it.

Saturday: The Field at Acrisure Stadium Is Yours

The weekend's final act arrives Saturday, April 25th, when Topps takes full control of Acrisure Stadium's field for Collector Celebration Day — a free event running 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Fans descend from the lower bowl onto the actual turf for pack ripping, trading, hobby shop markets, and live programming. The first 1,000 fans through the gates receive an exclusive 2025 Topps Chrome Football value box. Steelers legends James Harrison and Joey Porter Sr. are scheduled to appear on the field throughout the morning.

Pittsburgh Was Just the Beginning

When the dust settled on Round 1 Thursday night, Topps had done exactly what it came to Pittsburgh to do. Thirty-two Topps Now cards live. The hobby's biggest influencers on the ground are creating content. A Collector Destination running full tilt. And the entire NFL Draft audience — millions of fans watching live — is getting their first real taste of what Topps back in football looks like.

With 2025 Topps Chrome Football already in collectors' hands, a groundbreaking Rookie PREM1ERE Patch Autograph program linking cards to players' actual NFL debut jerseys, and now a draft weekend that made history on multiple levels, Topps' return to the NFL is no soft launch. Rounds 2 and 3 continue Friday, with Collector Celebration Day on the field Saturday morning. The Steel City delivered — and the hobby was right there for all of it.