A United States District Court judge in the Southern District of New York allowed the bulk of Panini's antitrust case against Fanatics to proceed Monday in the latest development in a contentious legal battle between two of the biggest names in the hobby.
The dispute began in 2023, when Panini alleged Fanatics engaged in monopolistic practices to corner the market in the trading card industry. Shortly thereafter, Fanatics countersued for unfair competition and tortious interference.
Panini’s complaint arose out of Fanatics’ entry into the sports card space and its acquisition of Topps, as well as the company’s deals to produce licensed cards for the NFL, NBA and MLB, which Panini alleged amounted to a monopoly in the industry.
In a countersuit, Fanatics argued Panini had no ground to stand on, pushing back by claiming the success of Fanatics’ entry into the trading card space was not a result of monopolistic practices, but rather due to Panini’s incompetency.
Panini held the rights to produce NFL and NBA trading cards prior to Fanatics, which landed long-term deals for both sports beginning in 2026, in addition to MLB.
"The Court’s decision finding that Panini had properly alleged Fanatics’ violation of the antitrust laws allows us to move forward with this case, which seeks to preserve competition in the sports trading card business," said David Boies, chairman of Boiles Schiller Flexner, the law firm representing Panini.
"This litigation is important for fans, players, collectors, and everyone who benefits from the competitive prices, better products, and innovation that (have) characterized the market Panini has built and continues to lead — prior to Fanatics’ long-term exclusive dealing arrangements and restraints of trade."
Fanatics did have some wins in Monday's ruling.
Panini claimed it was an antitrust violation for Fanatics to purchase Topps. The judge dismissed that claim by saying, “Fanatics’ acquisition of Topps could not plausibly cause antitrust harm to Panini, and so Panini lacked standing to bring this claim.”
The judge also dismissed many of Panini’s claims around allegations around tortious interference as it relates to the contracts of employees that were hired by Fanatics from Panini.
Most of the claims Panini filed against Fanatics regarding defamation were dismissed, other than one instance in which Fanatics said, "Panini would be unable to fulfill its contractual obligations to athletes, that Panini was going to go bankrupt, and that Panini would lose its licenses” by 2023.
In a statement, Fanatics said, “We are pleased that the Court has already rejected a number of Panini's claims and is allowing Fanatics' case against Panini to move forward.
"Unlike Panini’s baseless allegations, we look forward to presenting actual evidence about how, in just a few short years, we have materially grown the hobby through investments, innovation, better products and marketing and a relentless focus around enhancing the overall collector experience."
Will Stern is a reporter and editor for cllct.