Irving, TX, November 19, 2024 (EZ Newswire) -- Panini America, the world’s largest sports and entertainment collectibles company, announced today an exclusive, multi-year agreement with the University of Connecticut’s Paige Bueckers for autographed trading cards.

Bueckers, a two-time first team All-American and the 2021 collegiate Player of the Year, joins Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark as women’s basketball stars who have partnered exclusively with Panini.

A senior, Bueckers will be featured across Panini’s collegiate products, including Panini’s Instant Card platform, as well as several unique Panini marketing activations, including a product line specifically focused on the pioneers of the women’s game who have inspired Paige and integration into a full team set of the 2024-25 UConn Women’s Basketball team. Bueckers’ initial Panini Instant Card will be available at www.paniniamerica.net.

“Paige is an incredible talent and one of the most accomplished, and influential players in the country, and we are excited to welcome her to the Panini family,” said Jason Howarth, Senior Vice President of Marketing and Athlete Relations for Panini America. “Our partnership with her is an exciting addition to our team of elite athletes, and we look forward to offering fans her products for years to come.”

Bueckers, a 6-0 guard, averaged a career-high 21.9 points and 5.2 rebounds last season in leading UConn to a 33-6 record and an appearance in their 23rd NCAA Final Four. So far this season, Bueckers is averaging a team-high 21.3 points per game and shooting 65% from the floor for the Huskies, who are 3-0 and ranked second in the country.

The partnership with Bueckers is the latest extension of Panini’s commanding presence in the collegiate NIL space. Panini recently introduced Panini College, a dedicated NIL platform that enables all athletes at a partner university to have their own Panini trading card under the Panini NIL brand. The platform has initially launched with football and volleyball athletes at Ohio State University, the University of Nebraska and the University of Texas, and will be expanding to additional partner schools and sports over the next few months. Panini and the University of Connecticut recently renewed their long-term relationship.

“Growing up I used to collect cards of all my favorite players, to know that my teammates and I will have our own Panini trading cards and that fans are going to go collect it is really special,” said Paige Bueckers. “I can’t wait to collaborate on projects that give collectors and fans more ways to celebrate our game.”

In addition to Bueckers, Panini also currently has exclusive partnerships with multiple collegiate athletes, including V.J. Edgecombe, Tre Johnson, Quinn Ewers, Jalen Milroe, Dylan Raiola, Arch Manning, Lexi Rodriguez, Julian Sayin and Zachariah Branch.

About Panini America

Panini America is a subsidiary of The Panini Group, established over 60 years ago in Modena, Italy with subsidiaries throughout Europe, Latin America and the United States. Panini is the world leader in officially licensed collectibles and is the most significant publisher of collectibles in the U.S., with official licenses for NFL, NFLPA, NBA, NBPA, NASCAR, FIFA, LIV Golf, WWE, the Professional Fighters League, College, Disney, and other key properties from many other licensors. Panini is also the exclusive trading card and sticker partner of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, Elite 11 and Pop Warner Little Scholars, Inc.

Panini has distribution channels in more than 150 countries and employs a staff of over 1,200. For more information visit us at www.paniniamerica.net, www.paninigroup.com or
http://blog.paniniamerica.net. You can also follow Panini America on social media platforms Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram.

SOURCE: Panini America

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