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Caitlin Clark is starring in Topps’ first official March Madness set, despite her recently announced multiyear deal with Panini America.
The Topps product—Bowman U Now March Madness—featuring both men’s and women’s players, goes on sale Monday.
Panini became Clark’s exclusive memorabilia partner when the deal was announced earlier this month, but trading card exclusivity doesn’t kick in until April 1, in the midst of the NCAA women’s basketball tournament Elite Eight round. Clark will be paid more than $1 million in the first year of the tie-up, Sportico previously reported.
Panini, which has continued a legal row with Fanatics (Topps’ parent company), is planning to release a dedicated Clark product for pre-orders soon after its exclusive window begins. In the meantime, it also has put out Clark cards, including a special release when she broke the modern NCAA women’s basketball scoring record.
Clark has become one of the biggest stars in college athletics’ new NIL era, signing deals with Nike, Gatorade, Buick, State Farm and others. This release gives Topps one more chance to capitalize on her current fame and further boost her brand. A 2022 Bowman U Clark autograph card recently sold for $78,000, the highest price on record within women’s basketball. The Bowman U line has been putting out various college cards since 2021.
Topps’ new product also includes the NCAA’s official March Madness logo, as well as team marks, an indication of potential future licensed products from Fanatics, which already manages the NCAA’s ecommerce business.
Bowman U Now March Madness packs will be sold for $140 from Topps.com. Included in the set are dual autographs featuring Clark and LSU’s Angel Reese, as well as Clark and Purdue’s Zach Edey.
As college NIL rights remain fragmented, the set will highlight 20 athletes, all of whom have Topps deals.
Men’s players include: Reed Sheppard (Kentucky), Tristen Newton (UConn), Rob Dillingham (Kentucky), Cody Williams (Colorado), Dalton Knecht (Tennessee), Zach Edey (Purdue), Kyle Filipowski (Duke), Stephon Castle (UConn), Kevin McCullar Jr. (Kansas) and Armando Bacot (UNC).
Women’s players include: Caitlin Clark (Iowa), Cameron Brink (Stanford), Aaliyah Edwards (UConn), Angel Reese (LSU), Georgia Amoore (Virginia Tech), Mikaylah Williams (LSU), Rickea Jackson (Tennessee), Hailey Van Lith (LSU), Hannah Hidalgo (Notre Dame) and Paige Bueckers (UConn).
—Additional reporting by Eben Novy-Williams