NFL and NFL PLAYERS announce new multi-year deal with Topps
Multi-Year Deal Begins with the 2010 NFL Season and the Release of Topps Football
The Topps Company, a leading creator and marketer of sports cards, announced a multi-year trading card licensing agreement with the National Football League and NFL PLAYERS (the marketing and licensing arm of the NFLPA). This deal will allow Topps to continue its strong history of offering collectors the industry’s most sought-after football cards.
“We are excited to continue our deep, long standing partnership with the NFL and the NFLPA,” said Ryan O’Hara, CEO of The Topps Company. “Topps will bring innovative, exciting and fun products to the marketplace to serve consumers and customers well.”
“For more than a half century, football fans have been able to connect with the NFL and their favorite players through Topps football cards,” said Leo Kane VP of consumer products at the NFL. “We look forward to continuing our partnership with Topps, bringing our fans collectibles for many years to come.”
“Topps has been instrumental in establishing the player-fan connection for more than 50 years,” said Keith Gordon, President of NFL PLAYERS. “We’re excited about the direction Topps is headed and are eager to see new products that will further enable football collectors to connect with our players.”
Topps is set to unveil its first product of the season, Topps Football, just prior to the start of the 2010 NFL season. “This year’s Topps Football will be our best ever as it will be loaded with amazing content and truly deliver NFL rookies and stars,” said Warren Friss, Topps’ GM of Sports and Entertainment. “It will also include a special Gridiron Giveaway promotion, which will allow collectors to unlock vintage Topps football cards and win various football prizes.”
Oakland Raiders draft Hillsdale College’s Jared Veldheer
For the first time in 30 years, a Hillsdale College football player‘s name was called during the NFL Draft.
Offensive lineman Jared Veldheer was selected by the Oakland Raiders in the 3rd round of the 2010 NFL Draft on Friday night. The draft is being held at Radio City Music Hall in New York City.
“Jared is a fine young man and we are proud to have him representing Hillsdale in the NFL,” said Hillsdale College President Dr. Larry Arnn.
The last Charger drafted by the NFL was Nate Johnson in 1980. Veldheer was the highest draft pick to come out of Hillsdale since placekicker Chester Marcol was picked in the second round by the Green Bay Packers in 1972. Marcol went on to be named the NFC Rookie of the Year that year.
Veldheer was a four-year starter for Hillsdale, starting all 46 games of his career while never allowing a sack throughout his career. He was named the team’s Offensive Lineman of the Year three times and was First-Team All-Region twice. In 2009, he was named First-Team All-American by the American Football Coaches Association, and led the Chargers to a 10-3 record. Veldheer participated in the Texas vs. The Nation Bowl in February, and was as one of three Division II players to play in the game.
Veldheer’s selection in the 3rd round marked the highest any Division II player has been drafted by the NFL since 1999. He participated in the NFL Combine in February, and was the only offensive lineman at the combine to place in the top 10 in every test given to the players. In the weeks leading up to his selection, Veldheer was flown out to Oakland and personally met with owner, Al Davis.
In 2009, Hillsdale qualified for the NCAA Division II playoffs for the first time in its history, defeating Minnesota State-Mankato in the first round before losing to eventual national runner-up Grand Valley State in the second round. The team’s 10-3 record was its best since 1988.
SIRIUS XM Radio covers the 2010 NFL Draft
Listeners nationwide get live coverage and instant analysis of every selection from every round NFL experts Gil Brandt, Pat Kirwan, Tim Ryan and host Adam Schein provide live coverage from Radio City Music Hall in New York Chris Russo to host special pre-Draft Mad Dog Radio show among the fans at Radio City April 22
SIRIUS XM Radio, the Official Satellite Radio Partner of the NFL, will offer comprehensive coverage of the 2010 NFL Draft on April 22-24, providing live coverage and expert analysis of every pick from every round, on SIRIUS NFL Radio (SIRIUS channel 124, XM channel 124 with the “Best of SIRIUS” programming package).
On Thursday, April 22, the NFL Draft will begin for the first time in primetime when NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell opens the event at 7:30 pm ET. SIRIUS NFL Radio will begin broadcasting live from NFL Draft headquarters at Radio City Music Hall at 7:00 pm ET and will cover every selection.
On Friday, April 23, SIRIUS NFL Radio’s on-site Draft coverage will resume at 6:00 pm ET and will cover every pick from rounds two and three. On Saturday, April 24, SIRIUS NFL Radio will broadcast every selection from rounds four through seven from 10:00 am ET through 6:00 pm ET. In all, SIRIUS NFL Radio will provide 17 hours of live coverage from inside Radio City Music Hall plus full pre- and post-Draft analysis every day leading up to and throughout the event.
SIRIUS and XM listeners from coast-to-coast will get access to the live announcements of all 32 teams’ selections plus one-on-one interviews with dozens of draftees, general managers and coaches from around the league. SIRIUS XM’s hosts will draw on decades of experience in player evaluation to address each team’s needs and offer analysis. The acclaimed SIRIUS NFL Radio team on the floor at Radio City Music Hall will feature Gil Brandt, the renowned former VP of Player Personnel for the Dallas Cowboys; Pat Kirwan, a former NFL scout, coach and front-office executive; Tim Ryan, a former Chicago Bears defensive lineman and former captain and two-time All-American at USC; and veteran SIRIUS NFL Radio voice Adam Schein.
Before and after each day’s live broadcast from Radio City Music Hall, SIRIUS NFL Radio hosts will be on air to discuss the latest news and give fans from all over the country a forum to call in and react to their team’s 2010 Draft performance.
On Wednesday, April 21, Adam Schein and Gil Brandt will host SIRIUS NFL Radio’s midday show, The SIRIUS Blitz, live from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm ET from the NFL Draft Youth Clinic in Central Park, where they will interview top prospects and report on the latest pre-Draft news.
SIRIUS XM’s all-sports Mad Dog Radio channel (SIRIUS channel 123, XM channel 144) will also be covering the NFL Draft leading up to and throughout the event. Chris ‘Mad Dog’ Russo will host his daily show, Mad Dog Unleashed, live from Radio City Music Hall before the Draft’s first round on Thursday, April 22 (2:00 – 7:00 pm ET), where he will report on Draft news and rumors and discuss team selections with fans in attendance at Radio City and listeners tuning in from around the country.
The SIRIUS NFL Radio and Mad Dog Radio channels are also available to Premium Online subscribers via SIRIUS Internet Radio and XM Radio Online and on the Apple iPhone, iPod touch and several BlackBerry devices through the SIRIUS XM App in conjunction with your satellite radio subscription. (A “Best of SIRIUS” subscription is required for XM subscribers to listen to SIRIUS NFL Radio.)
As the Official Satellite Radio Partner of the NFL, SIRIUS XM airs live play-by-play of every NFL game from the pre-season through the Super Bowl. SIRIUS NFL Radio, (SIRIUS channel 124, XM channel 124 with “Best of SIRIUS”) airs year-round and is the only 24/7 radio channel dedicated entirely to professional football, offering fans live game action, daily news and analysis, coverage of the NFL Draft, training camps, the NFL Combine, a fantasy football show and more.
For more information visit www.sirius.com/nfl.
NFL Mobile is here, exclusively for Verizon Wireless customers
New App Available Today Gets Fans Ready for the 75th NFL Draft and 2010 NFL Season
In time for the 75th NFL Draft, Verizon Wireless customers can download NFL Mobile, a new application available today on select 3G Smartphones and 3G Multimedia Phones that gives fans of America’s number one sport unprecedented access to information about their favorite teams, players and games.
NFL Mobile provides the latest news and information, including in-depth profiles of current players and draft prospects, team updates, mock drafts, expert analysis and more. The new app also lets fans watch NFL Network, including live coverage of the 2010 NFL Draft, which will be held at New York’s Radio City Music Hall from Thursday, April 22 to Saturday, April 24.
NFL Mobile on Verizon Wireless will add new features later this year, including content from NFL training camps, preseason games and games throughout the 2010 NFL season. The new app also will offer live streaming of NBC’s Sunday Night Football and NFL Network’s Thursday Night Football. In addition, fans will have access to fantasy information, news, and player and team statistics, as well as receive NFL Network, which airs seven days a week, 24 hours a day on a year-round basis and is the only network fully dedicated to the NFL and the sport of football.
NFL Mobile provides Verizon Wireless customers access to live radio broadcasts of every regular season and playoff game; postgame highlights; and ringtones, graphics and alerts for each team.
Also later this year, NFL RedZone, the wildly popular channel from NFL Network, which airs live or near-live look-ins of every key play and touchdown from Sunday afternoon games, is coming to mobile for the first time.
Phones, Pricing and Availability
At launch, NFL Mobile will be available on 13 3G Smartphones and 3G Multimedia Phones, including DROID by Motorola, Motorola DEVOUR(TM), DROID ERIS(TM) by HTC, BlackBerry® Curve(TM) 8530, BlackBerry Curve(TM) 8330, BlackBerry Storm2(TM), BlackBerry Storm(TM), BlackBerry Tour(TM), BlackBerry 8830 World Edition, LG Chocolate Touch(TM), LG enV® TOUCH, LG VX8360 and Samsung Rogue(TM).
NFL Mobile is a free app covering the 2010 NFL season, with no subscription or monthly charges if customers download it by Dec. 31, 2010. For customers without an unlimited data plan, data or megabyte charges may apply when downloading or using the application.
Beginning today, customers with Android phones can download the app from the Verizon Channel in Android Market(TM). Customers with BlackBerry devices can enter http://mobile.vzw.com/nfl on their smartphones’ browsers to download the app. Over the next few weeks, BlackBerry customers will also receive a virtual pre-load of the NFL Mobile app to the homescreen of their smartphones. Customers with select 3G Multimedia Phones can get the app by texting “NFL” to 2777 to receive directions on how to download.
The exclusive app is part of Verizon Wireless’ multi-year sponsorship agreement with the NFL. Verizon Wireless is the official wireless service provider for the NFL.
For more information, visit www.verizonwireless.com/nfl.