The World Baseball Classic (WBC) is an international baseball tournament run by the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) in partnership with Major League Baseball. First held in 2006, it is held every four years featuring national teams from around the world competing to be crowned the world champion. Plans are underway for the 2023 edition of the WBC that will take place from March 8-21, 2023 in cities across the United States, Japan and Taiwan.
Topps has produced official trading cards for every WBC since its inception, providing baseball card collectors a unique opportunity to obtain cards featuring their favorite international players outside of their MLB uniforms. For the 2023 WBC, Topps plans to release retail and insert sets totaling over 400 cards highlighting the excitement and drama of the international tournament. Here is an overview of what collectors can expect from the upcoming 2023 World Baseball Classic trading cards.
Base Set – The base set will feature 260 cards consisting of all qualified players and managers for the 16 participating teams. Players will be photographed in their official team uniforms wearing country colors with flag logos. Checklists, sponsor/event cards, and retired player tribute cards are also expected to be included. Topps has released base sets for past WBC tournaments in both factory-sealed wax boxes as well as retail blasters/hangers.
Premium Parallel Inserts – Like previous WBC releases, Topps plans premium parallels of top stars in various colors and numbered to specific print runs. Expect gold, silver, and red refractors, among others. Past sets featured numbered parallels as low as /10 copies making these inserts highly sought after by collectors pursuing the rarest versions.
Autograph/Memorabilia Cards – Topps inserts autographed cards of top international stars and MLB icons participating in the tournament. Past releases have included dual-autographed cards with players from different countries. For the first time, Topps plans “relic” cards containing game-used memorabilia from iconic WBC moments encapsulated on the cardboard.
Clear Vision Refractor Inserts – Top prospect players under 25 years old will be featured on these shiny refractive parallel cards numbering /199 copies highlighting the next generation of international talent.
Mascots Insert Set – Continuing a fun tradition, Topps will feature the official mascots for each WBC team nation on 4″ x 4″ cartoon cards. This set is a big hit with collectors of all ages.
Floating Head Inserts – Select franchise stars will appear on oversized head-shot “floating head” parallel cards that stand out from the rest of the set amidst a plain color background.
Team Set Inserts – Collectors can assemble complete 33-card team sets highlighting each of the 16 WBC nation squads with statistics, manager info, and more. These detailed team checklists are collector favorites.
Rainbow Foil Parallels – Topps’ ultra-popular and coveted “rainbow foil” parallel inserts will feature world-class talent on colorful shining cards numbered to just /25 copies, including rare 1/1 editions.
Topps plans widespread distribution methods for the 2023 WBC trading cards. Hobby shops and mass retailers like Walmart will carry Topps retail blasters and packs. Hobby boxes of 12 packs per box targeting serious collectors will be available from Topps.com and specialty sports shops. Cases containing full sets or of premium parallels are expected to fetch top dollar on the secondary marketplace. Digital packs and boxes for the TOPPS NOW WBC digital platform are assured too.
Alongside the primary Topps flagship set, expect full annual releases from competitor brands like Panini and Leaf covering the 2023 WBC too. Special variant sets issued by BBM in Japan of Japanese players are also anticipated. With WBC tournaments becoming a quadrennial tradition, its MLB-sanctioned crossover trading cards continue gaining popularity among both international and Stateside collectors alike. For fans of international baseball and exclusive memorabilia cards, the 2023 World Baseball Classic trading cards set to arrive next spring represent a highly anticipated release.
