Fanatics purchases Topps for $500 million (updated)

Fanatics will be buying Topps, according to a report from Sportico on Monday night, and the deal will be publicly revealed by the companies on Tuesday.

In August Fanatics revealed it has a deal to be the exclusive card-maker for Major League Baseball and it added the NFL and the NBA soon thereafter, giving the leagues equity in the new company. A CNBC report estimated the deal at $500 million and that excludes the company's candy division. That will now be known as The Bazooka Company after its famous gum brand.

Beyond a continuation of Topps MLB this should mean the return of Topps' NBA and NFL lines at some point.

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Update: The first official confirmation of the sale came via Twitter -- and it's effective today.

"We are proud to share that the iconic Topps brand will remain on all MLB cards, which we are making as of today," Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin said in a tweet on Tuesday. "And a special welcome to all 350 Topps associates into Fanatics whose passion and world-class expertise will take the trading card industry to the next level and enhance the experience for collectors, fans, hobby shops, and partners globally!! Let’s go!!"

In a story from The Wall Street Journal, Rubin explained the move.

We wanted to start with a foundation that was in place," Rubin told the WSJ. "That’s a much better approach than building this from scratch."

He also talked about the circumstances of the licensing deals that preceded the Topps move. This allows Fanatics to start its presence in the card industry now with MLB and all of Topps present licenses before Panini America's deals with the NFL and NBA expire or are potentially acquired.

"It was, I think, tense up front in the immediate days after," Rubin said. "But Michael Eisner and I spoke weeks after, and he was very congratulatory of us.

"We have a vision to expand and do new things to grow new businesses," he said. "A lot of times we’ll look to, 'Is it faster to build pieces or to buy pieces?' And if it makes more sense to buy, we’re very happy to do that."

"The strong emotional connection between Topps collectibles and consumers of all ages – built through 70 years of tradition, starting with the Shorin family – will make it a jewel in the Fanatics portfolio," Eisner said in the formal Fanatics announcement. "Michael Rubin is the perfect entrepreneur to lead this company forward. Like any crown jewel, I and my partners at Madison Dearborn will miss our many years of ownership where we grew a highly profitable business through strategic licensing partnerships, global expansion, and digital transformation. We’re proud of what the Topps team has accomplished, and we look forward to seeing what Michael and his team do to continue growing the Topps collectible business while staying true to its iconic history and relevance to consumers."

In the formal announcement, Fanatics re-emphasized their plans for continuity with "all of the approximately 350 global Topps sports & entertainment employees will become part of Fanatics Trading Cards." It noted that Topps Global VP and GM David Leiner and VP/GM Topps Digital Tobin Lent will run Topps within Fanatics Trading Cards, a subsidiary of Fanatics. They will report directly to Doug Mack, Fanatics Inc. Vice Chairman and Fanatics Commerce CEO.

"With trading cards and collectibles being a significant pillar of our long-term plans to become the leading digital sports platform, we are excited to add a leading trading cards company to build out our business," Rubin said. "Their iconic brand, commitment to product excellence and passionate employees worldwide will allow us to immediately serve our league and players’ association partners and our fans."

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