Confirmed dates from Beckett, SI, and Complex; official announcement July 8
Topps x KAWS baseball cards land July 20, with a Fanatics Fest first look
Topps and KAWS are releasing a limited MLB set on July 20, and Fanatics Fest NYC attendees get it first (July 16-19). The base design nods to 1990 Topps with multi-colored borders and the KAWS XX mark, running down to 1/1 Foilfractors, plus player autos and KAWS Artist Autographs. It launches globally through Complex, Fanatics, MLBShop, Nike.com, and select Yankees and Dodgers team stores, timed to the Yankees-Dodgers series at Yankee Stadium that weekend.
Source: Beckett News
July 22 release date listed on WaxStat's Topps calendar
2026 Topps Chrome Baseball hits July 22
The big summer one: 2026 Topps Chrome Baseball is on the calendar for July 22 in Hobby, Jumbo, and Blaster configurations. Chrome is the chromium flagship of the annual base set, and release week is reliably when the whole hobby is ripping the same product. Plan accordingly.
Source: WaxStat release calendar
Event date and products confirmed by SI.com, corroborated by WaxStat's calendar
Fanatics Fest NYC opens July 16 with Fest-only Topps variants
If you are going to the Javits Center, budget for the exclusives: 2026 Topps Series 2 Baseball at $300/box with Big Apple Foil Variations of NYC landmarks, and 2025/26 Topps Chrome UCC at $350/box with subway-style Big Apple Parallels and autos including Erling Haaland. WaxStat's calendar also lists a Topps Chrome x Cactus Jack Travis Scott Edition box under July 16.
Source: Sports Illustrated (Collectibles) · Published June 18, 2026
Official announcement on the Panini America blog, July 6; no exact date given
Panini is making EFL cards for the first time
2025-26 Panini Prestige EFL is the first trading card release built around the English Football League: a 300-card base set covering players from all 72 clubs, inserts like Blank Slate and City Limits, and autographs including Nwankwo Kanu. Panini says it drops 'very soon' with no exact date yet, in Hobby Preferred, International Mega Box, and International Blaster configurations. Lower-league football has never had its own modern card set; this is one to watch if your club plays on a Tuesday night in the rain.
Source: Panini America blog (The Knight's Lance) · Published July 6, 2026