A class action lawsuit filed against Fanatics, the NFLNBA, MLB, their respective players associations and OneTeam, which serves as a commercial vehicle for the players associations, were dismissed Monday by a federal judge in New York on all counts.
The court granted Fanatic Movement to dismiss the lawsuit, which involved five plaintiffs: Robert Scaturo, Scott Bubnick, Joseph Davidov, Steven Mardakhaev and Jonathan Madar.
The suit accused the group of conspiring to monopolize the ever-growing trading card market for each of the sports leagues mentioned, thereby raising the price of cards for millions of consumers around the world.
It also largely followed an antitrust lawsuit filed by Fanatics trading card and memorabilia competitor Panini, citing parties throughout.
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People sift through baseball cards for sale during the 45th National Sports Collectors Convention at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, Illinois, July 31, 2025. (Audrey Richardson for The Washington Post/Getty Images)
Chief U.S. District Judge Laura Taylor Swain ruled that “none of the named plaintiffs adequately allege that they overpaid or will soon overpay for the trading cards sold by defendants.”
“We said from the beginning that this was a baseless and fundamentally flawed lawsuit since Fanatics was accused of raising prices on cards that we didn’t even produce,” a Fanatics spokesperson told Fox Business after Monday’s ruling. “The court agreed and ruled that the plaintiffs did not even have standing to file suit. We are pleased that the court has now found the complaint legally deficient and dismissed it.”
FANATICS AGAINST PANINI AMERICA AFTER ANTITRUST LAWSUIT IN LATEST DRAMA WITHIN THE TRADING CARD INDUSTRY
In its ruling, the court also acknowledged that when the lawsuit was filed in March 2025, Panini held the licenses for NFL and NBA trading cards. Topps, which was acquired by Fanatics in 2022 for a reported value of approximately $500 million, had not yet produced NBA-licensed trading cards until October 2025. Additionally, the NFL license for trading cards will not transfer to Topps until April of this year.
“Not only did no named plaintiff purchase such a trading card from defendants prior to the filing of the FAC, but it was actually impossible for a consumer to do so,” Taylor Swain wrote in the court ruling.
Tom Brady attends the Fanatics and Topps Hobby Rip Party with Michael Rubin, Tom Brady, Kevin Hart and Travis Scott on September 30, 2023, in Linwood, NJ (Dave Kotinsky/Getty Images/Getty Images)
As for the price gouging argument regarding MLB cards, the court found that the plaintiffs had not “explained whether the price difference was attributable to external factors, such as production costs or quality differences, or whether the difference was attributable to defendants’ anticompetitive behavior.” The plaintiffs provided a table comparing the prices of licensed Topps cards and unlicensed Panini products.
The plaintiff’s lawyer, John Radice, said Athletics his clients are “evaluating the court’s rejection without prejudice and considering all options.”
Although that class action lawsuit was dismissed, Panini continues to pursue its own lawsuit against Fanatics, accusing it of anticompetitive behavior and monopolization of the sports card industry. This happened after Fanatics acquired the exclusive licensing rights to the NBA and NFL, which were previously held by Panini. After April 2026, Fanatics will have exclusive licenses for the NBA, NFL, MLB, Premier League, F1 and WWE.
Bryce Miller, 10, holds a stack of sports cards he obtained at the Panini Group booth during the 45th National Sports Collectors Convention at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, Illinois, July 31, 2025. (Audrey Richardson for The Washington Post/Getty Images)
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Fanatics denied Panini’s claims and filed a countersuit, alleging its competitor engaged in a “prolonged, illegal and deceptive campaign of unfair trade practices, strong-arm tactics and tortious misconduct” in an attempt to force Fanatics to pay a considerable sum to have Panini terminate its licenses in 2022.
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