‘Harry Kane for £20?’ – New Fanatics store in London is a collectors dream

With the January transfer window coming up Premier League bosses will wish they could just nip to the shops to pick up their perfect signing.

Pep Guardiola and Ange Postecoglou are dreaming of new defenders, while Ruben Amorim will want additions at Manchester United.

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Now, imagine if they could just pop to Westfield London by Shepherd’s Bush, pick up a bargain and change their fortunes? Bliss!

Jude Bellingham for £15, Harry Kane for £20, Erling Haaland for £50 – the deals they can only dream of. The perfect Christmas gift.

Sadly, for them, it’s not going to happen – but for you and me it’s on the cards – literally.

That’s because Fanatics have now opened their first ever collectibles pop-up store right in the English capital.

Whether you want to expand your card collection, or get the stickers you need to complete your WSL or Champions League albums, a whole host of products are available.

The Fanatics Collectibles store even has some nifty shirts too, including signed Lionel Messi and Pele jerseys, plus signed memorabilia from Tom Brady, Steph Curry and Victor Wembanyama.

And collectors were loving it on launch day as YouTube star GBW christened the store by breaking a box of Topps Finest 2024.

After pulling autographed cards of Liverpool star Dominik Szoboszlai and RB Leipzig defender Benjamin Henrichs to giveaway to one lucky customer he revealed how impressed he was by the new store.

“I think the pop-up is absolutely fantastic,” he told talkSPORT.com.

“I mean, you’ve got a bit of everything, every collector – new and old – you can come in here, start your collection, extend your collection. It’s unbelievable.

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“I mean, there’s too many tempting boxes in here that I want to open. There’s a lot of nice single cards in here as well.”

Not long after GBW had opened his box, another customer immediately ripped a box of UEFA Club Competitions 2023/24 to the delight of those in attendance.

And the Canadian collector got his man early doors, pulling a parallel of compatriot Alphonso Davies before packing an awesome Marco Reus relic card.

From Match Attax, all the way up to a stunning box of Borussia Dortmund cards worth £4,695, it really is the place for those both new to The Hobby, or the established collector.

Topps’ senior director of marketing and digital content, Ian Foster, added: “The aim of the store is just to give collectors a great experience

“So that might be established collectors who know which box to buy or which single card to buy. or it might be new collectors just finding out about The Hobby.”

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Like all hobbies, sometimes you need some advice to get you started, and Foster provided his top three tips to talkSPORT.com.

Education

“We’ve got a great website called Topps Ripped, which tells you all about cards and it’s an educational place to find out more on The Hobby.

“So all of the frequently asked questions that you would have about this new hobby – and that’s what we like to call it, it’s a hobby for everyone – are all there.

“So whether they’re a fan of football, American sports or entertainment, they can celebrate that and have something in their hand.

“That might be a moment, like Lamine Yamal winning the Kopa Award, or it might be Kylian Mbappe‘s first game and goal for Real Madrid – which is great because we got the goal net and put pieces of that into the cards. They’re called relic cards.

“So we recommend visiting Topps Ripped and finding out about the different brands and why people collect and the best things to do.”

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Check the price

“It’s really tempting when you start collecting to just buy any of the boxes. There’s lots of boxes out there to buy but they all vary in different ways. So make sure it’s what you want.

“If you’re interested in singles and you want to put an offer on the card, maybe just to check the value of it because it probably already exists unless it’s a one of one.

“It’s all there online to look at on eBay or PSA.”

Community

“There are card shows all around the country that are growing. They started off with a few dozen tables of people selling boxes Topps products and now there’s a lot more.

“There’s thousands of people going to these things every month. It’s a really great place to learn about the hobby, to meet other collectors and just celebrate.

“Some people will see it as an investment and they like that.
Other people just love it as a hobby, collecting a bit of football memorabilia, their favourite player, or their favourite team.”

And while there are plenty of incredible sealed products available, one of the star attractions is the Grabber.

After buying something from the store, or exchanging a flyer, you get a free chance of picking up a little something extra from the fairground favourite.

And you can even create your own personal card too and add it to your collection or just bring a card to swap on their brilliant wall.

You can visit the Fanatics Collectibles store in Westfield London until early January.