album: Calciatori Celebration 2022-2023 (Panini) stickers: 144 (1-144) album + complete set 19,90€
After 8 months we can finally put an end to the Calciatori 2022/23 album. Of course it depends on the points of view, because everyone has their own idea of which of the extra outputs are fundamental. According to Panini obviously all, because the only goal is to sell, in our opinion, in the current state of things, the only extra release that we can define as a real completion of the traditional album is this one.
Real but not fundamental, but if we consider that the fundamental things of life are different, then there is never a definitive answer or rather, everyone has their own personal point of view and they are all legitimate.
The formula is appreciable, which also makes it captivating, with 20 euros you get the album and the complete set of stickers to attach. Considering the increasingly insane prices of products connected to the world of stickers, it may seem like a small turnaround. In reality, due to the format and all the rest, it is certainly not a product made to go into storage, but it is not designed to remain available for long. In the Modena area, once the copies have been distributed, no reprints are foreseen.
The positioning of the teams on the cover is questionable, we would have put Fiorentina in the foreground, protagonist of two finals and not others, more famous, but in reality with a light and dark past season.
In essence, the album is an extended version of the Film of the Championship that until last year we found within the traditional Calciatori. With the addition of the stickers of the 20 teams, not previously present.
The first page dedicated entirely to the Napoli Campione d’Italia is dutiful, it is not the typical training as there are only ten stickers but they are the summary of an extraordinary season with the highlights of the individual Azzurri protagonists. Who knows if the album would have had a different setting if Italian football in the European cups hadn’t done .. the treble in reverse, losing them all.
Following is the page with the basic team-by-team statistics where we find the stickers of the 20 formations as previously reported. Nothing particularly exciting, a necessary filler both to cover a gap in the Calciatori album and not to have a Celebration too poor in pages and stickers.
The advantage of having more space available is certainly an advantage for the Films of the Championship stickers, which despite the little interest aroused previously, on this occasion they are appreciated, each one presenting a day of the championship. In total then 38? No, over 50, as those linked to Serie B and news, Serie C and Serie A for women must also be considered.
The album is filled with stickers that recall the setting of the Adrenalyn collection, with MVPs, rookies and Rising Stars. The presence of a sticker to be attached on the back cover is certainly curious, Panini rarely makes this choice.
The photographic level stickers are of good quality, fortunately light years away from the terrifying “instant cards”. An album which, set up in this way, can be successful due to the relatively low price and because the combination of Panini and Calciatori often sells regardless.
Sure it’s a trial year, the graphics can be greatly improved. From our point of view, the team sticker could be brought back to the main album and make the Celebration a long and adventurous Championship Film, in all its 144 stickers or those that will be.
Remember the special stickers found in the upgrade set that you didn’t understand the use of and thought they were needed in this collection? Nothing more wrong. It is conceivable (probable?) that instead in Modena we have given an indication of what will be, with the arrival of parallel stickers also in the Calciatori, to be found in the classic sachets (as recently seen in the latest Super Mario album) or perhaps in special sachets where the presence of a greater number is guaranteed.
Honestly, we feel like quoting the accountant Ugo Fantozzi and his consideration of a certain Potemkin in a legendary scene from a film. Then everyone is free to spend their money as they see fit, it is important (on the contrary it would be a sacrilege) that there is still the possibility of completing future albums in the traditional way, considering that the traditional hasn’t been traditional for several years.
hard cover + 5 packets (january/february 2023) 24,90€
The end of the year is the time for discussion of the Finance Law and the budgets of the Municipalities and Regions, an important moment at the center of a thousand debates. In any case, little if compared to the thousand discussions generated by the most awaited sticker album of the year. Of course, our statement is deliberately exaggerated, but up to a certain point. If Churchill stated that «Italians lose football matches as if they were wars and lose wars as if they were football matches», such an extreme concept can also be considered, given the due proportions, in the Panini album of the Calciatori.
Starting from the consideration that it is impossible to make everyone happy, for example among the nostalgics and the proponents of renewal at all costs. Calciatori always maintains its charm, it is an objective fact, even if going forward over the years it is increasingly similar to an album linked to Serie A and partly to Serie B. The rest is little, at least within the album traditional.
Necessary because the world of football has changed, the teams present squads of about 30 players, once half of the stickers were enough to present a club. Now there would be the risk of leaving out too many protagonists of the championship. Every Serie A club must necessarily have at least 30 stickers and even so someone is left out. The solution cannot be otherwise and the cause and effect on the album is a limitation of everything else.
Right? In our opinion, yes, but inevitably. We are sure that many will not agree with us, but we believe that Panini’s choice to limit the total number of stickers on the album is appropriate. Not counting the stickers that will come out later, we find ourselves with “just” 667 stickers in the basic set, the one found in the traditional packets. In the past years we had reached over 800.
The Calciatori album has a duty, perhaps even a moral one, to be a popular product, within the reach of everyone or at least the vast majority of the population. Which, mind you, does not coincide with a poor product concept, the Calciatori album never was.
For avid collectors, for those looking for more products, for everyone else, Panini has invented various products over the years, more or less appreciable. This year the Celebration Album will be added in June next year, too early to understand what it is. Definitely one more collection for those who can’t get enough. Where also, after so many years, the Film stickers of the Championship find space which leave the traditional album, perhaps only for a year, perhaps forever.
Note of merit for the first page, in life details such as memory are important, the exciting tribute to Bruno Bolchi, the first sticker ever printed by Panini, who passed away this year, is a gesture that should be appreciated and applauded. Even more so that it is the number 1 sticker and with this the album opens. Not considering the 00 sticker which is somehow extra to the collection, perhaps also for this reason it is not part of the classic numbering.
The Serie A chapter is largely the most substantial of the entire collection, 545 out of a total of 660 stickers. It’s always nice to find that the teams all have the exact same space and that the total number of stickers is equally divided for each of them. For each club, the total four pages have been confirmed, on the first two pages 22 stickers of the main players in the squad plus the Scudetto. A perhaps too abstract page seen empty but splendidly attractive with stickers attached (stickers are born to be attached! We are of the Old Guard, now and forever).
The attempt to change the sticker with a double image like last year did not last long, the sticker is however distorted compared to the classic one. Remember stickers from other publishers, we personally don’t mind. We are also convinced that it is a constantly evolving process, let’s perhaps expect something different in the 2023-24 season.
The other two pages have a completely different aspect, where the space for the stickers is limited to five but the colours, the captions, the printed photos make it attractive to then be, almost, perfect with the addition of the stickers. Why almost? We would have tightened everything to leave the player scores in this area and not relegated to the bottom of the album. We remain of the idea that everything concerning a team must find space in these pages, even to the detriment of limiting the stickers.
This year we find the special stickers of the top player (“Elite”) and for the most significant new arrival (“New signature”), in addition to the traditional stickers of the coach and the shirt. Squadra Primavera rightly present, but only as a photo. The P-Più amata stickers, confirmed after last year’s success, also present for 2023 and always available with the update set.
At the end of Serie A, the usual columns linked to the news of the championship. As already written, The Film of the Championship is no longer present. The nine PM and CM stickers have been confirmed, with the players and coaches voted for month by month. It is not specified exactly but the first three of both can be found in the traditional packets, the others with Sport Week. Followed by the 40 stickers of the Calcio Mercato. We checked, there doesn’t appear to be any Tim figurine or similar, thanks! Object forcibly useless, we will not miss it.
The novelty of this year is the lack of .. other. Every year Panini has invented several extra pages, last year the national team, the year before also the national singer (a page highly contested by many, not by us, in all honesty). In the 2022-2023 album from Serie A we go directly to Serie B and, if you are too curious to wait, and jump to the end of the collection, you won’t find anything there either. Necessary choice perhaps due to the lack of a winning idea, useful for maintaining the total number of stickers.
Speaking of novelties, the one linked to Serie B is significant. An option already seen in past years, no longer single stickers in blocks of 3 players but four large stickers with a total of 16 players. So we have 2 players less than in previous years. In reality, the number of stickers has decreased but not the players as a whole. Many others find space at the bottom of the page, complete with a small photo.
A detail that we are pleased to point out, on the Spal page, as for all the other teams, at the top we find a “frame” of the photo from the fans’ curves. The image is deliberately not clear, but in the case of Spal and the members of the Curva Ovest Ferrara, it is very easy to recognize the flag with the image of Federico “Aldro” Aldrovandi to whom we have dedicated two of our Solidarity Comic Cards (https://figurineforever.com/en/2022/09/22/fumetto-forever-card-29-aldro-lives/), in collaboration with the Ultras and Amnesty International.
Let’s imagine Panini inserted the photo without probably thinking about it, maybe the graphic designer doesn’t know the story. We do and we are happy if, even if unwanted, it finds space in an album that is printed in millions of copies. Aldro lives.
Serie C at historic lows, but since last year there’s a reason. In fact, the 3 albums connected to the Digital Collection have been confirmed, which we recall are virtual only if one wants to keep them as such, it is possible, when completed, to order them in Panini with the traditional stickers to attach. The figure of 50.00 euros per album is not entirely cheap but not prohibitive either. The big news for 2023 is that the album on the women’s Serie A is finally added. This is an absolute first, let’s hope it’s successful. In this way, the miserable 10 stickers with the women’s teams on the album find new life from this editorial initiative that we greatly appreciate.
Coupon as always present in each packet, this year with a double use. Not only the Digital Collections but also the return of Calcio Regali and therefore the collection of points. A further effort by Panini that is never taken for granted and therefore a pleasant return.
The Calciatori album has another feature, often unique in the panorama of stickers, its story never ends with a review. There are still many aspects that we will discover during the year, it should be renewed or at least communicated, as we will do on our social pages.
The stickers are much lighter to the touch than last year. A detail that will not go unnoticed, even by the most inattentive collectors. We believe it can be traced back to a Panini choice to keep the costs of the packets unchanged from last year, for the same reason the number of stickers is more limited.
Some have already asked us on past occasions why we don’t refer to the exclusive products of the Panini site. We have rarely done it, we are always on the side of retail, on the side of newsstands which are the heart of the country, they are the point of reference for millions of Italians. They are the Italy we like. Let’s add, for the record, that this year Panini has created 20 extra “cover players” stickers, they are not part of the collection (according to them, go explain it to the “completists” among us ..) things will find a way to be sold in other subsequent releases as well. Very likely they are only Parallels that are so fashionable now (image equal to the classic sticker, perhaps in a silver, gold or even limited edition version).
Everyone is clearly free to spend their savings as they see fit.
We all relaunch the invitation that is emphatically written on the cover “unleash your passion” and above all have fun! Perhaps by joining many other collectors at FIGUCON 2023, Sunday 15 January at Estragon Bologna, a fundamental day also for exchanges and hopefully the possibility of completing one’s albums.
(EN)
ANTEPRIMA CALCIATORI 2022/23 (Panini)
EDICOLA NEWS: THE REVIEWS nr. 260
album: ANTEPRIMA Calciatori 2022/23 (Panini)
stickers: 216 (1-216)
starter pack: album + 3 packets 2,90€
box: 24 packets (6 stickers per packet) 1,00€ cad.
This album has very little to do with last season’s edition, of course it is a matter of taste, to us it seems a substantial and important improvement both in form and in content, so much so that seeing this edition, someone may look for the previous one.
This album has nothing to do with the classic Calciatori if not for some defects that unfortunately continue to grip the Panini collections in recent years, the folds in the pages are not a pretty sight. Someone has already written that the central page comes off easily, honestly in the copy in our possession we have not encountered this problem. We also tried to hold the page with the full weight of the album (empty) suspended in our hands and it holds up without problems. Maybe something changes with the stickers attached, but the presence of three staples for a medium-small album seems to us at least an attempt to improve. For the quality of the paper, at this point, all you have to do is wait for the contract with the current printers to expire (Panini hasn’t printed albums on site for years) and for someone from the Modena-based company, perhaps even spending a little more, to go to look for higher quality elsewhere. The short circuit between the (low) quality of the paper and often the excellent work of preparation and graphics of the Panini albums, sooner or later, hopefully sooner, will have to end, right?
We apologize for the long introduction, we only hope that in December with the new players we will already see substantial improvements. Having said that, “accepting” these small problems, the album is very interesting, we like it and we will try to explain why.
The greater number of stickers and also the greater space available, allows us to present our Serie A in a more complete and more articulated way. Last year each club had just 4 stickers and only four players, now we have two pages per club where, correct choice, you do not see a copy of what we will see in December. Indeed, we like to think that some stickers can also be tests to be used in the main album.
Each club has 10 stickers, the newly promoted Monza has the same number as the Italian champions of Milan. Exactly as it happens, albeit with a much higher number of club stickers, with the classic Calciatori. Right! And each club has a page with more engaging graphics than last year’s more basic one. It couldn’t be otherwise, thanks to the biggest album. Also interesting are the choices, the phrase of a player that reflects the values or love for the team where he plays, a brief introduction to the possible results of the new season and a photo with a detail of the curve. The choice to put some clear photos and others blurry, from Diego’s lovers, is a beautiful detail on the page of Napoli of a flag with the face of the Pibe de Oro.
We come to the stickers, after all they are always the absolute protagonists. Looking at the album, the first for the team is a close-up of the “flag” player, often not exactly as such, but the words that are written next to him are his. The sticker is unveiled on the album, Panini will not like the combination but they are reminiscent of certain albums by the South American publisher Navarrete.
The next three are the team roster, 5 players per sticker, fifteen in total. In other areas not suitable but in this preview album a valid way to present a good number of players. Of course, as with the cards, the release in August brings several players back to the wrong teams, for example Simeone no longer in Hellas Verona but moved to Napoli.
The following stickers are in our opinion the most interesting, we like the Club Identity stickers, which ranges from details of the curve to the game jerseys, it lacks a bit of uniformity between the various pages, but on the contrary it is precisely the differences that make the whole. more pleasant.
The next two are the news of the club (for Juventus, for example, we find the newly acquired Angel De Maria) with a double image of the player, with the game shirt and often on arrival at the new club, in civilian clothes, sometimes with the club scarf on display. The second sees the champions in training. The last three stickers on the page focus on the champions in action, in some ways they refer to the Adrenalyn cards but applause is the choice of leaving the original background where you can savor the smell and passion of the stadiums and stands.
Speaking of cards, the initial pages of the album are dedicated to the top performers, even here the players portrayed in action with an important statistic (after all there is a reason if we find them here). Particular graphics, as if the players had taken the super speed of Flash, perhaps it is a tribute to the DC Comics comics, recently passed to Panini.
Compared to the first edition, the album is larger, more defined, more colorful, more complex, for us a clear step forward. Of course it becomes a more challenging album to complete. Making a comparison between the costs of the packets is unrealistic, given the completely different format. The price of 1 euro for 6 stickers makes you tremble a little thinking about the players, but now and unfortunately that’s where we are going. The solution of the 24 packets box clearly makes it impossible even to approach the completion of the collection with a single box. For a product linked to football and with possible potential, it was possible to dare and make boxes of 36 packets.
The advantage for Bolognese collectors is that they will be able to come to the appointments of the Figurine Day organized by Figurine Forever at the Edicola Birra, a good opportunity to try, through swaps, to find the missing ones. Whatever happens, there are always Comics Fairs and for the most “true believers” our FIGUCON on January 15, 2023 in Bologna, without forgetting the appointment in Rome on September 24 and 25, 2022.
In stickers we trust, yesterday, today, tomorrow, always
(EN)
CALCIATORI ADRENALYN 2022/23 (Panini)
EDICOLA NEWS: THE REVIEWS nr. 259
album: Calciatori ADRENALYN 2022/23 (Panini) cards: 471 (1-471) + 27 limited edition + 5 cards momentum starter pack: binder + 5 packets + 3 cards limited edition 8,00€ box: 24 packets (6 cards per packet) 1,00€ each tin box: cards 41 + 4 limited edition 11,99€ special packets: Premium 5,00€ (tbc), Premium Gold 10,00€ (tbc.) packets PLUS: from october with cards plus, specials and trainers 1,00€ limited edition: read article
In a truly strange season for the world of us collectors, as well as the championship, the Adrenalyn collection also arrives on newsstands while many are still filling beaches and cities of art. Strange because the unlikely winter world championship is looming in Qatar, which has partly upset all the programs, apparently not those of Panini, both for the cards and for the classic players, the exit period remains the standard one. Choice also made easier by the encore of non-classified Italy at the final stage of the World Cup, which certainly makes the World Cup album uninteresting for the Italian market. Clearly not for us, collectors of the albums of the competitions by nations, who would buy the album even if in Qatar there were only Bolivia and Kazakhstan (with all possible sympathy for the two countries mentioned, of course).
The Adrenalyn collection, already last year, is trying to renew itself, with more captivating and different graphics, for this season with references also to the colors of the various clubs, following the line of the European cards. We are still a long way from other products, but it must also be said that they are born from a different perspective. This is The Collection of cards of the Italian Serie A championship, in addition to the substance, the form is also important, the total number of cards is always important and even if it is not as complete as the Calciatori stickers, it gives a good idea of our football.
After the preparation in July, he has some players who are no longer protagonists (for example De Ligt who moved from Juventus to Bayern), but it could not be otherwise. The confirmed presence of the plus cards is important in this sense, although the release in October is quite premature. On the other hand, the flagship Calciatori arrives in December and (luckily, we add it) it is still the most important collection of the year.
The sections of the collection find great classics such as Stelle or Portieroni and every year new sections come to light which then only time will tell if they will be appreciated to such an extent that they will remain the following year. For 2023, the new cards on which Panini seems to focus more are the Momentum, 5 exclusive cards outside the numbering and, unfortunately, cannot be ordered later. Italian football is not experiencing a moment of maximum splendor, even these cards highlight it, with all the good you could want from Bonucci or Luis Alberto.
Among the novelties, part of the numbering of 471 cards, we point out the Team Scudetto card that celebrates the 19th AC Milan championship and the Super Top Player, also linked to the past season. The Fantastelle can be potential future rookies, less captivating than the Magic 4 with precisely four players together, too many all together. More than the new and old sections, interesting the different realizations of the cards, including silver paint, metallic material, metallic gold. The presence of the 20 cards with the club logos is always a choice that we appreciate.
In general, it seems like a good collection for lovers of the genre. Rightly different from products more for “professional collectors” such as the Score or the Donruss. This collection is more designed for a young and very young audience that maybe, we hope, growing up also goes to the collection of stickers as their parents did. On the other hand, the novelty of indicating the rarity index (the Rarity Index) on the front of the cards is nice, who knows that it may not be a fundamental point in the great experience of exchanges, inevitable and also protagonists of our Figurine Days.
Worthy of note are the many promotional initiatives connected to the collection, from the completion of the virtual collection to the registration to Serie A Adrenalyn. Perhaps secondary aspects for the “older” of us, but certainly an added value for the younger ones.
Last thing, the very limited choice in requesting the missing cards is always questionable and hard to agree. While understandable on the one hand to limit “speculation”, on the other hand it is not very useful for those who simply want to complete their binder. Fortunately, there are events all over Italy such as those organized by Figurine Forever at the Edicola Birra in Bologna 😉
“Sorry for delay”. We can forgive Panini, we are his lovers, we could not do otherwise. The delay to which we refer is that this epochal change in presenting the stickers in the Calciatori could coincide with the 60th anniversary. At the same time it is right that it went like this, somehow close a period with a celebratory album and start the following year with something different.
Let’s start with a fundamental aspect, the keeping of the album. We will only have proof of it when it is weighed down by over 800 stickers but it looks absolutely improved after last year’s havoc. We took the central page and lifting it up, suspended, with all the weight of the album on it, it holds! And it holds very well, clearly we do not recommend doing it as a complete album. Unfortunately, many have already reported the exact same problem as last year (see photo above), too many to think of some flawed copies. What can I say .. making mistakes is human to persevere is diabolical, pay close attention and let’s not comment further.
The world of the web is colorful and interesting, sometimes it is deceiving. We had said everything and more, we too had commented with regret the “announced” disappearance of Serie C, but there is, as well as women’s football and a due tribute to the Azzurri Champions of Europe. Of course, like others, we dreamed of a cover that referred to that of 1983 with Bearzot lifting the Cup, it had not already happened in 2007 after the World Cup in Germany, it does not even happen this year after the Europeans and the final victory at Wembley. Cover that in any case live, with the parts in relief, is less ugly than it seemed only on the internet.
Substantial part of the album dedicated to Serie A (from sticker 1 to 524), rightly so, but the presence of the other professional leagues makes the Calciatori beyond any reasonable doubt always one step above (for us a mountain) compared to the Premier album League.
Serie A is presented in a different way from the last 40 years, even beyond, those who have always looked at the Spanish Liga album with a little envy have been satisfied. Each player has a double image, the classic bust and the one in game action. Finally! We are lovers of tradition, but it has been clear for some years that the Calciatori album needs a refresh, marrying, among other things, two distant generations. Who remembered the 70s albums and who among the younger ones prefer the cards because they see the player in action.
Not only this, the pages have been completely renewed, for obvious space requirements. No more a page with the players and the other with specials, team and coach. Now the players are equally divided into four sides, it loses a little the spectacularity of the album, but it becomes more effective. The number of players is still 22 stickers, to which are added the championship, the coach, the team. In addition to the “most loved Panini” sticker, this year dedicated to the great bombers, stickers not present in the packets but within the update set from March 2022.
The scores of the players are an integral part of the pages, statistics and captions reduced to a minimum, but the essential is sometimes enough. We really like the box on the last page at the top right where the history and curiosity of each individual club is found. Non-trivial information, therefore interesting. The egamers are also present, we are old and we do not understand it, but as long as they are a small non-invasive detail we can bear it.
With the clear aim of limiting the total number of stickers, the Primavera team, second and third kits, the stadium are only photographs. For the more technological, however, you will find a QR code to learn more about the temples of football. In general, it is a solution that we understand, especially if this still allows you to have Serie B, C, Womens in the album or on the contrary avoids reaching almost 1000 stickers as happened in the past.
Gigi Buffon is the sticker number 654a, so the collectors of the thematic stickers of the great champions is in place. Serie B (stickers from 561 to 701) is the same as always, excellent. Scudetto and 18 players divided into 9 stickers, The novelty of Serie A allows even more to differentiate the players of the top division from the cadet one. Only in photos jerseys, teams and coach. Here too it is an understandable choice in order not to overload the album with too many stickers. It is appreciable that, as for Serie A, they are still photos that reproduce the format of the stickers, standard or shaped, even the coach who closes each page with a mini sticker like the players of his team.
Womens, Serie C and Serie A are there! Their disappearance was hypothesized on the web, we too fell into fake information, but they are absolutely confirmed and indeed this year presents a great novelty. The Serie C (from 702 to 716) has the stickers of all the championships, small (four per sticker), but let’s be satisfied. Especially for the first time, in reality we also have the stickers of the players of the third national series. In each packet there is a coupon to download the codes and obtain the digital stickers. A very interesting aspect is that, once the album is completed, you will be able to receive the paper version of the 3 albums (one for each group). Of course, the extra expense is not painless, 150 euros (49.90 euros per album) but for a total of 1320 extra stickers to attach and also considering the low circulation, it makes more sense than, for example, buying the limited copy in “human skin”on sale from January. If desired and in the future, the initiative could also be extended to women’s football, currently only present in the album with the stickers of the teams (from 550 to 561).
An important page because it was important, the right tribute to Mancini’s national team, European Champion. Not really really, for those who want the stickers of all the Wembley champions, a poster with dedicated stickers has come out. Here we find strip stickers as already happened in past footballers, numbered from 525 to 539, which give space to the young Italy, you will not find Bonucci or Insigne, but only players born from 1998 onwards. Somehow more a page dedicated to the Under 23 team than to the senior national team, Panini’s original and in some ways risky choice, not everyone will agree. We were a little confused but even so it has its reason.
The extra part of the Calciatori album has always been at the center of great debates among collectors. Getting everyone to agree is practically impossible. Who would like a memorabilia part on the history of football, who would like subjects out of the classic (in the recent past the Disney characters or last year the singers), who would not want extra pages, who would like them closely linked to the players themselves. For example, the 20 Top Performers (from 540 to 549), one per team, in the strip format that Modena seems to like very much.
This year the most interesting news is the Avatar page (from A1 to A20), in collaboration with TIM. Very particular figurines, in some ways futuristic, are not bad, certainly they are very far from the classic stickers with mascots or caricatures seen in recent years. Be careful not to fall into the trap of what is written on the album, these stickers (A1-A20) are attached to the bill or in Tim stores but are also found inside the packets. Fortunately! Only the one on the left, not numbered, will be distributed at the Tim stores or arrive with the bill.
The extra part closes with all the stickers found in the Film Del Campionato packets (4 packets between January and June), the PMs with the top players confirmed, and the CMs that will award the nine coaches of the month are interesting news. The Cs with the history of the championship are always distributed with the Gazzetta dello Sport, the first 5 in the packets, from C6 to C20 with special packets.
After many years Panini says goodbye to Sky and the famous “Calciomercato” program, too bad, the update stickers are linked to the Dazn platform. From the traditional 48 we go down to 40 cards (M1-M40), an opportune choice, given that in recent years we have not seen a few important names in the “repair market”, perhaps precisely this year will be different!
We have already said of our appreciation for the decision to renew the Calciatori with double-image stickers. The statistics may be affected by being less legible, but we would be about to remove them and therefore it is a fact that excites us little. If you see the differences it is because the players who can count successes in their palmares, also have details on the right and not only on the left. Definitely thumbs up for the coaches’ stickers, beautiful with the background, the tactics board and the club colors.
Special stickers a little at an all-time low, nothing particularly exciting, the most intriguing certainly the Avatar Tim. The rest is all very standard, it is the less successful side of the album. We would have liked to see more variations, maybe even shaped ones or more. If you look at what Panini can do in other non-sporting albums, a precise choice has probably been made with the Calciatori. Perhaps also to avoid having to touch the cost of the sachets, if so, the better. We like to emphasize a detail, if the badges are classic, the choice of not putting the name of the club at the bottom but re-proposing the paint-effect stripes with the social colors as the whole album is already set up is nice. Maybe next year we will have the stickers that glow in the dark 🙂
In general, it is an album that, while it is certainly innovative on the one hand, is very traditional on the other. An essential album, not exaggerated in terms of the number of stickers, which tells about football as it should be told without too many frills. Can it be an excellent album even essential? For us, yes, this Calciatori 2022 is a great product for us, pity only for the renewed problem with the card, perhaps not as widespread as last year, but still present. That the world leader in stickers doesn’t find or doesn’t want to find a solution is at least embarrassing.
box: 36 packets (4 stickers per packet) 0,50€ each
If the intention was to revive the “glories” of the Super Calcio albums we are far from the result, if the intention was to fight the competition (external, Champions, internal, Fifa365) the same. Certainly there is a lot of reliance on a somewhat appetizing combination for fans, Panini and Calciatori.
Mini album in every sense, not only the size of the binder but obviously the stickers and the interiors as well. Remember certain pirate albums that come from South America, where for some teams you only have 3 or 4 stickers. Surely the Panini marketing department has made an understandable reasoning: we have a product that sells, we use the name Calciatori as much as possible. Not only with this product but perhaps also with a subsequent one, as can be seen from an internal page.
But it can also have its own reason, the choice of doing it so limited has the simple purpose of not clogging the market and creating the conditions so that it can be completed at low cost and in a hurry, so as to leave free space for the real Calciatori album that will arrive as always in mid-December.
The graphic layout is very simple, the stickers portray the players in action, 4 per club plus general pages per position (goalkeepers, defenders, midfielders, forwards). There are no special stickers, the price of the packets looks good but in reality it is not, 0.50 for 4 mini stickers is not as cheap as it may seem.
Instead, we would have made an opposite product, giant, the same format therefore as the Calciatori, of a few pages but with the giant stickers of the players in action. No division by club, so it is bordering on annoying, but by role as the Super Calcio of the mid-90s were. Then go further, devote yourself to stickers that you know will not find space in the December album, from the history of football to maybe mascots and much more.
Honestly, there isn’t much more to add, “only for fans” albums and maybe not even for those. As with the cards, even with the stickers you cannot think of doing a thousand different things in the hope that people will always get hooked because they read Calciatori or Panini or both on the cover. Clearly no one is obliged to buy it, if with a box it is completed maybe it can only be seen as a way to sleep the voglino of the great December album. Here, probably the purpose is just that.
(EN)
CALCIATORI ADRENALYN 2021/22 (Panini Italy)
EDICOLA NEWS: LE RECENSIONI nr. 208
album: Calciatori ADRENALYN 2021/22 (Panini) cards: 465 (1-465) + limited edition starter pack: binder + 4 packets + 2 cards limited edition 8,50€ box: 24 packets (6 cards per packet) 1,00€ cad. tin box: cards 37 + 3 limited edition 11,99€ tin box platinum: cards 11 platinum + 14 basic cards esclusive 6,99€ special packets: Premium 5,00€, Premium Gold 10,00€ packets PLUS: from october with cards plus, specials and trainers 1,00€ limited editions: read article
Vintage with various curiosities and novelties. Starting with the same starter pack, which arrives on newsstands with a long delay compared with the packets, the opposite is often the case. Is it possible that Panini delayed everything to send the images to print without Cristiano Ronaldo? It’s really hard to believe that in the beginning there was no CR7 on the cover. We have no way to confirm, leave us in the pleasant doubt.
We were talking about news, not so much and certainly about graphics, if tradition is appreciated for the Calciatori stcikers, for cards this rather repetitive modus operandi a little (a lot?) boaring. The competition produces absolutely superior products, but Panini also knows how to do better. Much better than the Adrenalyn of the last Europeans, for example. The news is on some very interesting extra releases, at least as a basic idea.
For the recently reviewed “REWILD” collection, we also emphasized play, with Adrenalyn we honestly don’t know how much this aspect is considered by buyers, including children. Maybe in this area we have had clear improvements over the years, good for fans, we prefer to focus on the collection part. It is clear, year after year, that Panini’s goal is not so much to push to complete the album, but rather to follow North American collecting and direct interest on certain players and teams.
The official guide is always rich and full of information, essential for knowing all aspects of the collection. Almost all of them actually, the Instant ones, which were not very significant in the last season and in any case already started, are not mentioned here. On the other hand, many limited editions including some that will quickly become collector’s items.
Basic set of 360 cards, nothing particularly interesting, minimal graphics like the set. Subsequently the classic special categories, from the Idols (the choices always questionable, it would be curious to know what the fans of the various teams think) to the Diamonds, Goalkeepers, Defenders and Specialists. Added to these are the new Registi and Tuttocampisti. Idols apart from each category complete a binder page with 9 players.
Following the Stars, 18 players covering 11 Serie A clubs. Here we find some of the most important players in the Italian league: Vlahovic, De Vriij, Chiesa, Immobile, Zaniolo and Belotti. Several others are missing, but after all the various players must be distributed among the various categories, better than having the same athlete repeated several times (the Juventus fans will not be happy, but the departure of CR7 will allow for more different players).
In the second part of the Guide, we have the most interesting pages, those to study and mark in order not to miss outings: 5 Top Players (from 460 to 464: Muriel, Lautaro Martinez, for the last time Cristiano Ronaldo, Ibrahimovic, Insigne), 1 Invincible Card (the 465 to close the collection) and the absolute novelty of the Dreamers. On sale only on the Panini website as for the Instant ones but much more interesting than the latter, only 1000 copies (although not numbered ..) and all rookies, or players not yet represented in the Adrenalyn album. The multinational that runs after ebay sellers or similar who collect thanks to the first stickers of great champions? It could be said, let’s say he rides the fashion of the moment, how to blame him?
To close the list of limited editions, on sale as always in the special Premium, Gold packets, the different Tin Boxes and the Bomber magazine. The choice of adding great names from past football is excellent, the Premium cards by Paolo Maldini and Del Piero will be highly sought after among collectors: . starter pack (Felipe Anderson, Giroud) . Tin Box (Alex Sandro, Lozano, Pessina) . Premium packets (Bonaventura, Sensi, Morata, Rebic, Estebian Cambiasso, Paolo Maldini, Alessandro Del Piero, 3 card Premium A B C) . Gold Premium packets (Alexis Sanchez, Hernandez, Zaniolo) . Bomber magazine (september El Shaarawy, october Caputo e Rui Patricio, november Politano e Gabbiadini) . Tin Box Premium (14 platinum + 14 base esclusive)
Compared to last year we notice some improvements, first of all the farewell to that unfortunate choice of dividing the team’s outputs into two different types of packets (First and Second Half). The addition of a disproportionate number of PLUS had brought the collection to a very high number of cards. Too many. We hope this year will be more contained, even the infamous Instant, uninteresting, after a year where many have fallen into the trap, it is unlikely that this year Panini will be able to repeat the printing of as many as 29 issues.
In the guide there are other interesting details, including the prices of both the cards that can be ordered as missing, and those that cannot be ordered in Panini (including the Dreamers, for the simple fact that, like the Instant ones, they must be ordered at the time of the announcement, up to out of stock). Also interesting is the back cover, where it is announced that we will have a second album Adrenalyn, due out in Spring. In the middle, the arrival of the Calciatori stickers, we hope at least this year we will not have the pages left in our hands as we leaf through it ..
(EN)
ADRENALYN ACTIVITY ALBUM (Panini)
EDICOLA NEWS: THE REVIEWS nr. 200
album: CALCIATORI ACTIVITY ALBUM 2021 (Panini)
stickers: 72 (P1-P24, X1-X24, 24 shields + 18 game cards)
starter pack: album + complete set 9,90€ (plus 2 packets Gommmaglie, Tin Box Platinum Adrenalyn)
This very interesting product arrives on newsstands, we do not know how many have noticed it, having been released shortly before the Euro2020 Wembley final. It may seem anachronistic, being a product linked to the Adrenalyn collection, but of many extra releases, often useless, this one stands out.
First of all we have a question: is it part of the Adrenalyn collection or part of the Calciatori collection?!? For the writer, it applies to both and by collecting the traditional Calciatori album, this being in all respects an album of stickers to be attached, it is in effect part of the collection and therefore a “must have”!
Points of view, of course. The printed photos are the Adrenalyn cards, while the texts seem to come out of the pages of Bomber magazine. However, the detail remains, which is not a detail, that we are talking about stickers to be attached. The 18 cards are related to the game, they do not show images of players, let’s say they are the least attractive aspect of the product.
Often and always reluctantly we have to report the costs of Panini products, in this case we must instead report the excellent price, just 10 euros. A figure that can already be reached with the value of the extra material (Adrenalyn tin box + 2 Gommaglie packets), these products are really over the maximum time, in reality even without these objects the 10 euro would be well spent.
Inside we find four types of stickers:
The stickers numbered X1-X24 are round and reflect only the detail of the players’ faces, not all teams are represented, several Juventus players (including Cristiano Ronaldo, Chiesa and Dybala for collectors of the themes). The image is the same as in the Calciatori album. In recent years, rumors have been circulating among collectors about the idea of overwhelming graphics by inserting this particular sticker detail. Could it be a test bench for Panini to probe the moods of fans?
The stickers numbered P1-P24 are certainly the most interesting, 12 special glitter and 12 in action with completely real photos with the background of the playing field. Above all, they are mostly unpublished stickers, not re-proposed than what we have already seen in the Adrenalyn collection. All the more reason to buy this product. Unlike the X set, here are all the Serie A teams with Inter, Juventus and Lazio who have more stickers (among the top players here we have Belotti, Hakimi, Chiellini, Lukaku, De Paul, etc.)
In the oval stickers we find shields, Serie A logos and cups, not numbered. The reason is simple, they are created to be used to stick on the central page where we find the Game, so everyone can use the sticker they prefer. Of course most of us will leave the sticker sheet untouched, right? 🙂 Also because to play you would need to cut the album cover to get the pieces and the dice. If desired, Panini could add a detachable insert as it does for the card holder boxes in various albums. Given the overall price of this album, honestly you can’t fault the choice too much.
Waiting for Panini’s announcement on something related to Italy’s European champion (hopefully an album!), This unexpected release is a pleasure. Do you collect the Calciatori? They are stickers, for us it must be taken! Do you collect the Adrenalyn? They are not cards but it is linked to the collection, so for us it must be taken!
From any point of view you look at this pack, run to the newsstands before it is sold out
Welcome back Queen of Stickers! We like this album, Panini would have passed the exam again this year. Indeed, it would have done it better than in previous years, in our opinion, were it not for practical problems that affect the result. In fact, confirmation arrives from many parts that the quality of the album is very poor, so much so that the central pages are lost on the first breath. We hope Panini’s policy has not become that of distributing an album deliberately of poor quality for the benefit of other products on sale and this year we have even three: the priced (the exact same BAD quality of the free version album), the limited edition (not still out but announced as finely worked) and the hard cover. All beautiful, Panini is free to make an album in human skin, but the standard version that arrives in newsstands MUST be of good if not excellent quality. At least, by writing to Panini’s customer office (CONTACTS on the home page of the site) it is possible to request a new copy of the album, which however could have the same problem, often happens. Given the widespread disaster, a “mea culpa” and not this deafening silence would have been lawful, correct and dutiful. In addition, at least the priced version had to be reprinted, truly a fall in unimaginable style, especially in the year of the celebrations for the 60th anniversary of Panini.
Yes, this is an important year, 60 years of Panini, 60 years of Calciatori. Who knows what Panini had in mind if we lived in a different period. Maybe we would have had a Panini Tour full of surprises, not being able to do otherwise Panini tried to make an album that could satisfy both nostalgics and modernists, maybe many of you will not agree, but in our opinion they have achieved the goal. It is certainly not perfect, but the perfect does not exist and making everyone happy is impossible. Then, in the details, we have something to say, you will find it by continuing to read.
SERIE A
Four pages per club, as in recent years, with some differences. In the first two pages we find the rich squad of 22 players, in some cases with three goalkeepers present, perhaps the first time in a Calciatori album. The photo under the name of the club is splendid with a sort of “hall of fame”, to be perfect it had to re-propose only stickers, perhaps, but it remains a beautiful sight. The most important note, the most captivating aspect, are the stickers themselves, no more white background but a reference to the team colors.
We like the second part, only three stickers from the packets and a mysterious numbered P that we will find in the update set: “the most loved Panini”, makes us hope that in Modena they have found a way to get the stickers of great champions from the past authorized, one per team. Or it will be something else, let’s hope not. Last year’s bus were a nice novelty but repeating it would have been too much, just as reporting the team with a single sticker is an excellent choice. The trainers’s sticker is also back in its right place, a fundamental part of the clubs, right here and not in other parts of the album. The graphic impact is not bad, the most beautiful remains that of 2018/19 but not repeatable, inserting the tables of the players in these pages, as requested by many collectors.
We believe it is really too much to insert the photos of the eGamers, at least there are no stickers like for Fifa365. We would have preferred the photos perhaps of the most promising young players (those good with the ball, not with the joystick), certainly it is a marketing need linked to entice the younger generations or perhaps there are simply commercial reasons behind it, perhaps at the invitation of the Lega Calcio itself. . Avoidable, however.
The Serie A calendar closes, for the sake of the traditionalists and the nightmare of those who in 20 years will find perfect albums but with written results. Who knows if there will be blatant errors like last year, let’s leave the statistics lovers in control and indeed we invite you to report it to us, thanks! 🙂
SERIE B/LEGA PRO/WOMENS
Essential Serie B, well crafted, the team is just a printed image, the trainers as well, as necessary as for A in order not to make an album of 1000 stickers. Players always in blocks of three stickers, separated so as to make it more fun to complete the album. The great news is the return to the big badge also for B. Perhaps the graphics of the players could have followed the line of A, but being much smaller the effect was probably different. So Panini solved it by making the background of B as the stickers of the players of A.
In an album where not even the B has a team sticker, it is right that for the Lega Pro there are only the badges, but there are! We complained in all possible ways and occasions when Panini took them off years ago, now they are back for the second year and we hope they will stay forever!
There were rumors about the lack of women’s football, fortunately this is not the case. There are only the stickers of the teams, perhaps it would have been nice to add the badges, perhaps in double.
OTHER CONTENTS
The extras are an important part of the Calciatori albums, they are often a source of debate among fans, sometimes considered superfluous, sometimes useless, sometimes successful. After last year’s disasters, downsized, indeed restructured, the “Film del Campionato” chapter, the stickers are 29 (last year they were 28) but they are divided into two sections, great news are the MVPs, one per month, nine total, distributed three at a time with Sport Week as well as the Film del Campionato with 20 stickers.
The updates part is very rich, the new arrivals are the usual 48 but in the set we will also find the P stickers we talked about before and the X of the Top Teams, 23 players chosen by a jury of experts and fans. Maradona, Van Basten, Baggio, Zoff, Facchetti, Rossi, Totti .. we had never seen them all in the same album! As for the P’s, we are very curious to see what kind of Panini sticker will be able to propose. On the Top Team page there is also the space for a TIM sticker. For those who have the contract with TIM will arrive at home or it will be possible to collect it in stores, for all the others it will be ordered like any other missing stickers.
Already seen on other occasions but it is only fair that the album opens with the stickers of 60 years of Calciatori covers, this time in a silver version. It’s never exactly a repeat, over the years the covers naturally increase, so that’s okay.
We come to the most discussed page of the entire album, 22 stickers dedicated to the Italian Singers National Team. On our Facebook and Instagram page, many disputed the choice, we think differently. The reasons? We like it when (just sometime over the years) the Calciatori goes out of the standard and proposes something connected to football but which Calciatori is not exactly, we had appreciated the Disney stickers of a few years ago, for example. Right to celebrate 40 years of this reality that has been able to do a lot in the field of solidarity and awareness. We are biased since, taking into account the monumental differences, we in turn make cards of singers as players, in our case joking about them, inserting them within their favorite teams. Finally, if there is a phenomenon that moves the hearts of Italians at par if not more than football, it is Music, represented here by some of its representatives. Beside that, the stickers are not memorable, they could have come out better in colors and in the background (Music is anything but a white abstract ..), right to select various artists who have made the history of the National Singers in forty years, on the most recent more than a doubt about some selected ones. We would have linked this page to a specific solidarity initiative by inserting information, we imagine Panini contributed to the fundraising but it would have been nice to allow collectors to do the same. Page that maybe will be repeated in 10 years, good idea, at least for us.
THE STICKERS
We have already written about the novelty of the backgrounds in Serie A players. In general the stickers seem lighter than last year, the badges are beautiful, perhaps not very “special” but for this very reason beautiful, we like to call them elegant. The satin shirts are a nice novelty, among the stickers we really like those of the trainers.
No more Gift Boxes this year (60 packets for the price of 50), replaced by Tin Box with 15 packets. Nice idea, especially for the price. The boxes are well made with the album covers of the various decades in relief. Hundreds of thousands of them will have been made, but it is likely that they will run out (this does not mean that they will ever take value), so not really a new Gift Box but something different could appear later in the newsstands. The box with the 6 Tin Boxes contains the six variants.
Stop with “Gommaglie”! If Panini continues to make them, it will mean that they have their success, de gustibus .. Fortunately we saved ourselves from the extra stickers of last year where the badges were a mere repetition and the idols / mascots would have made sense only if put inside the album itself and as stickers. No points collection, coupons needed to vote for the Serie A champions and participate in the final draw. So good!
In general, it is a good album, higher quality paper than the horrors of the latest albums released on newsstands, but as written at the beginning of the review, there are major problems with the holding of the central page and related staples. Unfortunately not only limited cases.
Particular year, of transition, without the health emergency perhaps Panini had different projects in mind, probably also different commercial proposals, perhaps even less advantageous than the current ones, we will see what will happen in 2022. For now we appreciate Panini trying to propose something new and different, without ever abandoning that taste of classic and traditional necessary in our beloved football players.
(EN)
CALCIATORI ADRENALYN 2020/21 (Panini)
EDICOLA NEWS: THE REVIEWS nr. 136 cards: 466 (basic set 1-466) starter pack: € 8.00 binder + 4 packets + 2 limited edition cards packets: € 1.00 (6 cards) for the other planned release see below
“Let’s start well!”, opened the first packet of the starter pack and found the Tempesta Azzurra card, one of the rarest, so writes Panini. The detail is important, it means that Panini did not want to leave any detail behind, finally in the starter pack there are no more free version packets (with the usual cards repeated in infinity) but sales version packets and therefore with many more chances to find important cards, as happened to us. Now that “only € 8.00” makes sense.
In the most absurd year since the world war, at least one certainty is left to us, despite everything the sticker and card albums come out and will continue to do so. We like to think that this anomalous situation has pushed Panini to work at full capacity to improve the collection, after years, let’s say, rather repetitive. The news are so many. An absolute novelty, the teams are not in alphabetical order, but based on the rankings of the last championship, so we find Juventus first, followed by Inter and on to Spezia, third promoted by Serie B.
Nice idea, but as lovers of tradition, we hope it will not be repeated on the Calciatori stickers, in the year of the 60th it would be really a shock. The checklist does not contain the names of the players, a necessary choice given the chaos in which the transfer market still pours. On this point Panini builds a perfect album for the situation, no more classic packets and with the new year the plus players. The packets from today on newsstands are called “PRIMO TEMPO” and contain the first 233 stickers, at the beginning of October the “SECONDO TEMPO” will come out with another 233 stickers. Attention, it does not mean that now you will find the cards from 1 to 233, they are scattered and those present clearly will not be in the second release, where instead we will find the plus and the trainers cards. At the end of October third and last release with the “TEMPI SUPPLEMENTARI” packets, finally containing only the Plus and Trainers cards and not coming from the 466 already released.
Several new features also among the types of cards such as Bomber, Insuperable Defenders, Assist Man, Specialists, Super Combo (very useful for those who play as well as collect). Very beautiful are the new Diamonds with the tricolor flag in the background, dedicated to the Under21 Azzurri champions. In general, the graphics have improved, but Panini could be even more daring in the years to come, we are still far from quality of Euro 2020 cards. The game is more and more exciting with many new features, children will surely appreciate.
As always, the search for all the cards provided is not immediate, here is the list / summary:
Basic set: 1-466 (available in the “Primo Tempo” and “Secondo Tempo” packs); in the basic set among the rarest we have 5 Top Player, 1 Tempesta Azzurra, 1 Invincible Card, all of which can be ordered later directly from Panini, so it makes no sense to faint when buying them from private sellers
Set Plus + Trainers: from the end of October in the “TEMPI SUPPLEMENTARI” packets
Limited Edition: 45 cards (2 in the starter pack, 3 in the Tin Box, 25 in the Premium Tin Box, 7 in the Premium packets, 3 in the Premium Gold packets, 5 in the Bomber magazine from September to November)
Absolute new the INSTANT CARDS!
The Instant Cards are made to celebrate the top moments of the season, Panini does not announce how many will be made or the cost, we just know that you will have to be constantly connected to the web world to know when they come out. They are cards on demand, so only those ordered will be printed and the time to do so will be at a minimum. Here really, if you don’t want to leave your salary, it’s better to be careful and buy them gradually. They will not be ordered later and will certainly be very coveted pieces among collectors, especially among the most careless ones.
“When the going gets tough, the tough get going”, Panini still knows how to have his say, if he wanted to prove that he believed in his products he hit the mark. In the meantime, we hope, after certainly the great effort in making this album, you will finally remember to finally print those still missing stickers of the Championship Film to complete the Calciatori 2020. The longest collection in history!
(EN)
Calciatori RipartiAmo (Panini Italy)
EDICOLA NEWS: THE REVIEWS nr. 128
album: Calciatori RipartiAmo (Panini) stickers: 20 (R1-R20) album + complete set: € 9.90 (on sale ONLY on the Panini.it website)
comment: Panini’s good initiative in this difficult period with this release linked to Calciatori 2019/20 that seems to never end. In fact, it can be defined as complete only at the release of the latest “Film del campionato” stickers, scheduled for the end of August, when we will finally have all the verdicts (to date, the third promoted to Serie A is still missing and, potentially, we could still have an Italian team that wins a European cup)
The stickers feature one player per team depicted with the symbol or a monument of the city where he plays. While appreciating the initiative, the result is not always satisfactory, some did not turn out very well, Lukaku’s was not beautiful (is it possible in Milan that the photograph of Pirellone should be used? As monuments there is not only the Duomo, used for Milan). The sticker of Criscito/Genoa is probably real, to allow a full view of the Lantern, the exact opposite of Kevin Lasagna where perhaps only a Friulian can recognize the monument behind
Most have a nice emotional impact, however, a photograph of our country that we too often forget how full it is of treasures to visit, see and review. And be proud of it, from North to South, without any distinction.
Having seen this album the question arises: dear Panini, then you can take full-body photos of the players, why not use them for the 2020/21 footballers? Perhaps repeating this beautiful idea of monuments as a background. If you don’t know what we’re talking about, go and see the Calciatori 78/79 again; other times? Maybe, but the time for beautiful stickers should never go out of style
(EN)
CALCIATORI 2019/20 (Panini Italy)
EDICOLA NEWS: THE REVIEWS nr. 96
stickers: 903 (1-827, C1-C28, M1-M48) + 20 card
starter pack: € 3.90 (album + 5 packets)
packets: € 0.80 (6 stickers)
packet GOL: 1 shield + 1 card
box: 100 packets
deluxe box: 60 packets
extra from January: Gommaglie packet, hard cover album with box
comment: welcome back Admiralty! The world of stickers is varied, there are so many beautiful and important albums, but only for one is it possible to get up early in the morning (once you could sleep more) to go to the newsstand and get it fresh out of print, this can only be the CALCIATORI, of course! That we then have to take the car and go to our friend Luca’s to Edicola Birra because the one under the house barely knows what I’m talking about is a detail (NO COMMENT ..).
The concept “the richest album ever” is often used by Panini, in this case it could be really well chosen. Let’s start from the bottom, Panini has listened to fans and collectors and after a few years of purgatory, the Serie C schields are back! It is not something to be underestimated, there are few more stickers, 4 together, but there are and it is a great victory for those who in recent years have supported the cause of the “province” of Italian football.
Leafing through the album we can see how much Fifa365 has been a test bench to probe the moods, already from the graphics of the pages, in fact every player has the image of the face in half and beside the number of the sticker, interesting effect, attention only to attack the right ones! Four pages for each club, 22 stickers of footballers, schield, double team, jersey, absolute novelty and very nice the double sticker of the team bus! Nice and because when you think about it the designer buses have become famous, they are often the protagonists of the tv programms, since they are always filmed when they arrive and leave. It’s not over yet, we also find two vertical strip stickers with the top players in action. 28 Serie A club stickers, not bad!
We come to the captions, also here following the indications of the many fans, the career tables return in the pages of the teams. The space is to the detriment of non-fundamental stickers present in previous years and of graphics and printed images less large, not bad. The pages are even more compact.
The most significant news is the trainers but we will come back by browsing the album.
At the bottom of the second page always confirmed the Calciatoripedia notes, this year linked to the 90 years of Serie A, personally much appreciated, not only for the news and curiosities, but also and above all for the pleasure of reviewing the stickers of other eras and great champions of the past.
The calendar also returns (and with him the nightmare, in years, of finding someone who still fills it out …) at the end of the 582 (five hundred eighty-two) Serie A stickers and immediately after 28 Championship Movie (Film del Campionato) stickers. Here it will really take all your effort not to forget the outputs of the packets as there are 6 of them (3 stickers each) and that the last three, from C26 to C28 will be sent free of charge to all those who make a request for missing stickers (attention, only for those who make a request for missing stickers until June 20).
Stickers format Updates confirmed also for this year, with 48 stickers connected to the Sky “Calcio Mercato” program. Another nice news, the pages of women’s football, increasingly followed by fans, doubled the pages with a much more captivating graphics that also incorporates the top players team by team.
Serie B always has its classic space, shield, team and 18 players in 9 double stickers. Wikipedia also for the B series with an image of stickers of team of the past. The presence of the Serie B and in such a rich way is one of the reasons that makes the album Calciatori unique in the world, which for example makes it not comparable to the new Premier League, where however the equally important clubs of the Championship, the english Serie B.
The final part of the album is extremely rich and inviting, before we talked about the trainers, here they are, all grouped together, a novelty that will certainly not be appreciated by everyone, but on the other hand it also allows you to have the stickers of the cadet series trainers. Hazardous choice?
The Italian national team is back in everyone’s heart, Panini rewards her with two very nice dedicated pages, vertical stripe stickers with 30 players, beautiful! Moreover, the page of the Calciatori 2018/19 with the Under21 and Women stickers had been very appreciated, just to propose them again for the men’s national team.
The next page is the eyelet to the cards, it is not necessary for a game but here there is space for the Top Performers of the Serie A with the highest index of technical performance. Since we also find in the back of all the stickers. Personally not fundamental page but certainly it will appeal to the younger generations and to the lovers of statistics and data.
It is not over yet, other strip stickers with the protagonists of the Gran Galà del Calcio, 22 total stickers, equally divided between male and female. Congratulations to Panini for the choice!
The stickers? Of excellent quality, to the touch they seem lighter than last year, but perhaps it is only a feeling of 6.30 in the morning. Many specials, many infos on the Serie A stickers but not invasive, a white background not exactly idyllic but the writer dreams of the return of the stickers taken with behind the stadium, the trees or even (happened) the light poles, a solution no longer feasible because the photos are almost always provided by the clubs. Memories of different eras, more romantic without a doubt.
It really is the richest album ever, before a question came up it was about what extras there would be: will we have the GOL packets? Will we have the Gommaglie? Will we have Football Gifts? Well, “clamorous at Cibali”, there are all of them this year! GOL packets contain a scudetto and GREAT NEWS the Serie A mascot cards! Here too Panini listened to the fans, the mascots are the ones we have seen in recent months on the facebook page of Calciatori Panini, a highly appreciated design that, as was requested, has turned into a card! For copyright reasons it was not possible to make stickers and insert them into the album, Panini found a brilliant trick and frankly they are much more interesting than the usual 20 top players in other editions, where the real top players were genuinely very few. Please note that these extra cards cannot be requested from Panini, good hunting! UPDATE IMPORTANT: attention to the badges in the GOL packets are different from those of the traditional packets! They have an interior in GOLD while the normal ones have a SILVER interior, which is why .. attention to what you attach to the album!
Football gifts, Gommaglie, Hard Cover available only on order from January (book your copy at the newsstand), Panini Tour confirmed. Honestly, the higher cost of the packet for the benefit of an extra sticker (so from 0.14 we have gone to 0.13, cannot be defined as a price increase) is an absolutely superfluous detail.
The cover is perhaps the only neo (not exceptional), even if in real life it is less true than in picture. But it must be acknowledged to Panini to have listened to the collectors, with the Serie C badges, with the return of the tables in the pages of the teams, with the mascot cards, with the return of the Football Gifts and the same Gol packets.
We give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, there will always be criticisms but this album is simply pure joy.
comment:
while the flagship Calciatori travels towards the age of 60 (for the 2020/21
edition we expect great things, understood Panini ?? 😉), the prodigal son Adrenalyn celebrates its tenth anniversary. Ten
important years because, season after season, the success of the cards has
become increasingly significant, far from the biblical numbers of the stickers,
but it is absolutely unlikely that, sooner or later, we can even get
overtaking.
The
Adrenalyn collection was born under a different spirit than the stickers, it
does not have the complete squad of the Serie A and often had criticism for the
shirts worn by the players. In reality the need to leave at the beginning of
September entails the closure of the press at the end of July, with the result
that the photographs are taken in some friendlies match of the various teams
and often in the summer the clubs use away shirts. Of course it is really
strange to see Brescia in green jersey or Spal in a practically white jersey,
but better these “defects” than the wild use of Photoshop.
Furthermore
the Adrenalyn are a game, it has an average audience that is very young and the
search for completing the album does not have that final and absolute purpose
that has been valid since 1961 instead for the stickers. For the older
generations they are sometimes indigestible, actually the choice of Panini to
let them come out in September, then 4 months from the new Calciatori, allows
in many families to collect both.
As for the
presence of away and third jerseys, in many teams we have the presence of
players who have moved elsewhere or other champions are not present yet (Lukaku
for example). Having the updated teams would mean going out in November so you
can’t do otherwise, then the PLUS cards will come out to update the teams. As
well as the other cards that will bring the basic set probably updated to 520
total stickers.
From the
graphic point of view, the cards always remain of good quality, we don’t find
big news compared to the previous year, if not for some new captivating
sections like DIAMANTE (young promises) and BLITZ (new arrivals in Serie A).
Cards that have even more meaning when viewed in the context of the game and
not only of card collecting.
The news
are actually others, to celebrate the tenth anniversary Panini will realize a
special Tin Box Platinum with as many as 10 limited edition cards, cards that
will be found only in this package. They are special cards because they are
celebratory and present 10 players who were already present in the first
2009/10 edition (Buffon, Quagliarella, Criscito the names that have already
been announced). Furthermore, only in this box we will find 15 basic cards plus
that are not inside the standard bags. Virtually all 25 cards are limited
editions.
So this
year we have two tin boxes. The special premium packets and the limited cards
attached to the Bomber magazine are also confirmed. Possible that there will be
further additions.
Another
news, the TOP PLAYER cards, which had made the collectors go crazy last year,
this year can be ordered in Panini (Handanovic, Cristiano Ronaldo, Piatek,
Koulibaly, Quagliarella).
Very
appreciable that the cards follow the same logic of the stickers, in the basic
set each club has the same number of cards (18), this means that the UNBEATABLE
DUO card in some cases is really risky .. but in short, someone had to put it,
not ?
Important
detail, buying a box we found very few doubles, the free version packets that
instead are found in the starter pack often have duplicates (not in the same
packet, of course). Material, however, always good for exchanges!
In summary,
here are the outputs already provided with card limited:
Allan,
Under (in the starter pack)
De Vrij,
Luis Alberto, English (in the standard tin box)
Muriel,
Godin, Ramsey, Bennacer, Zielinski, Diawara, Murillo (in the premium packets)
Immobile,
Bernardeschi, Belotti(in the gold premium packets)
Freuler, Romero (Bomber magazine nr. 23)
Dijks, Berardi (Bomber magazine nr. 25)
Dragowski
(Bomber 26)
Godin,
Ramsey, Zielinski gold signature (in premium packets, 5000 copies per player)
Premium Tin
Box (contains 25 limited edition cards)
