April 29, 2021
Tom Brady Tops NFLPA’s Merch Sales List - Again
It’s a record fourth time the seven-time Super Bowl champ has topped the year-end rankings.
Another day, another record for Tom Brady.
The seven-time Super Bowl winning quarterback is also apparently the NFL’s emperor of branded merchandise. Brady has topped the NFL Players Association’s year-end Top 50 Player Sales List for a record-breaking fourth time. Perhaps as impressive, he’s been among the top three sales generators in the NFLPA’s quarterly sales lists 23 times since the inception of the rankings in 2014.
The Top 50 List reports on sales of officially licensed NFL player products. The tally is based on sales of player merch sold from online and traditional retail outlets. More than 75 NFLPA licensees contribute sales stats. Products sold include everything from jerseys, hoodies, T-shirts and bobbleheads, to plush toys, socks, face coverings, headbands, figurines, wall decals, backpacks, pennants, drinkware, pet products and more.
ICYMI: We dropped the year-end Top 50 player sales list. Leading the way across licensed player products is @TomBrady + @PatrickMahomes. One notable jump came from @A_kamara6 who went from No. 37 to No. 22 📈 More data here: https://t.co/YKNIIM6dhF. pic.twitter.com/oy5gEiczNS
— NFLPA (@NFLPA) April 28, 2021
“Tom Brady broke the Fanatics record for most jerseys sold in a single season,” the NFLPA noted. “Additionally, the quarterback’s product accounted for 19% of all Tampa Bay Buccaneers championship sales in the four days after the Super Bowl.”
While Brady ruled the roost yet again, it was a good year for NFLPA licensee sales in general. They generated record retail revenue of $2.17 billion for the fiscal year, which ran from March 1, 2020 to Feb. 28, 2021.
“We’ve got a licensee base in place that meets the growing demand,” Steve Scebelo, president of NFL Players Inc., the marketing and licensing division for the NFLPA, told Sportico. “As players enter the league and they become active members of the players association we want to make sure that we’re helping open the doors to those partnerships so that those partners can maximize it.”
Tom Brady is the king of the NFL and its merchandise sales. His jersey sold the most all time in a season and his merch accounted for 19% of the Buccaneers championship sales four days after the Super Bowl. 💰 #NFL | #TomBrady | #SportsBiz
— Randall Williams (@randalIwilliams) April 28, 2021
https://t.co/FfZzDm2jG2
For the year ended Feb. 28, quarterbacks dominated sales again, taking eight of the top 10 spots. The exceptions were San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle and Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott. Second overall in merch sales went to Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes II. Mahomes also lost to Brady and his Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Super Bowl. Notably, two rookies cracked the Top 10 – Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow and Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa.
Word on the merch sales comes as the NFL again takes center stage in the sports world, with the NFL Draft beginning Thursday, April 29. In case you were wondering, there appeared to be some swag for that, too.
NFLPA Top 10 In Merch Sales
1. Tom Brady, QB, Tampa Bay
2. Patrick Mahomes II, QB, Kansas City
3. Lamar Jackson, QB, Baltimore
4. Tua Tagovailoa, QB, Miami
5. Aaron Rodgers, QB, Green Bay
6. Joe Burrow, QB, Cincinnati
7. Russell Wilson, QB, Seattle
8. George Kittle, TE, San Francisco
9. Josh Allen, QB, Buffalo
10. Ezekiel Elliott, RB, Dallas
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