venerdì 24 novembre 2023

Panini FPC 2007 - Copa Mustang II

 

FPC 2007 - Copa Mustang II is probably the rarest Panini album of the Colombian football. It was released for the second part of the tournament (Torneo Finalizacion), following the album FPC 2007 - Copa Mustang I, which was released for the Apertura tournament of the same year.

The collection includes the clubs of Primera A and Primera B, with a total of 380 stickers. Behind a colourful cover, the sticker collection is introduced by the foreword, the table of contents, and two metallic stickers: the logos of the DYMAIOR and the Colombian football association. The 18 clubs of Primera A are then shown in alphabetical order; for each club there are 18 stickers displaced over two pages: the metallic club badge, the team photo, and 16 players.

Right after the Primera A, the album presents the 18 clubs of Primera B, with three stickers dedicated to each club: the club badge (not metallic) and the team photo composed by two stickers. The album ends with no other sections with stickers and there are no updates for this collection.

In 2007, Atletico Nacional won the Copa Mustang II defeating La Equidad in the finals (3-0, 0-0). Dayro Moreno (Once Caldas) was the top goalscorer with 17 goals.























Back cover of the album

The striker Jackson Martinez (40 caps and 8 goals for Colombian) and the lateral defender Pablo Armero (who played in Italy for Udinese, Napoli, and AC Milan)

Zuniga (62 caps and 1 goal for Colombia) played for Napoli from 2009 to 2016, whereas Ospina (here 19 years old, 127 caps for Colombia) was the goalkeeper of the same team from 2018 to 2022

Album details:
Full name: FPC 07 - Futbol Profesional Colombiano - Copa Mustang II
Publisher: Panini
League: Colombian (Primera A and Primera B)
Year: 2007
Number of clubs and stickers per club:
  • Primera A (18 clubs, 18 stickers)
  • Primera B (18 clubs, 3 stickers)
Other sections:
  • Introduction (2 stickers)
Updates: No

Total number of stickers: 380















mercoledì 22 novembre 2023

Panini Futbol Colombiano 2005


After 14 years Panini is back to Colombia with the sticker collection of the local league. The album Futbol Colombiano 2005 follows the style of the period, being therefore very different from the last edition (Futbol 91).

The layout is straightforward, with and introduction without stickers (foreword, table of contents and checklist with numbers), followed by the presentation of the 18 clubs of Primera A and Primera B, without any additional section with stickers. 

The collection includes the clubs that took part into the Torneo Finalizacion 2005, also named Copa Mustang II. Deportivo Calì won the title defeating Real Cartagena in the finals (2-0 and 1-0). Hugo Rodallega (Deportivo Calì) and Jamerson Renteria (Real Cartagena) were the top goalscorers of the tournament with 12 goals. The sticker album features 19 stickers for each club of Primera A: the shiny club badge, the team photo, the coach, and 16 players.

The section dedicated to the Primera B includes just the team photo sticker for each of the 18 competing teams. In the collection we find the stickers of familiar faces (Zapata, Ospina, Riva, Jackson Martinez), who played in Europe during their careers. 

















Back cover of the album

Cristian Zapata and Nelson Rivas played in Milan in different times: Zapata for AC Milan from 2012 to 2019, whereas Rivas for FC Inter from 2007 to 2011

Zuniga (20 years old) played for Napoli from 2009 to 2016, Jackson Martinez (Porto, Atletico Madrid) made 40 caps and 8 goals for Colombia)

Album details:
Full name: Futbol Colombiano 2005 - Copa Mustang II
Publisher: Panini
League: Colombian (Primera A and Primera B)
Season: 2005
Number of clubs and stickers for each club:
  • Primera Division (18 clubs, 19 stickers)
  • Primera B (18 clubs, 1 sticker)
Other sections: No
Updates: No

Total number of stickers: 360



 

giovedì 16 novembre 2023

Panini Closer to the Red Devils - 2022 (Belgium)

 

For the World Cup 2022, Panini produced a sticker album of the Belgian Red Devils distributed in the Carrefour supermarkets. The same initiative was taken for the two previous World Cups (2014 and 2018). This time, however, the album focuses less on the Belgian squad and more on the life and interests of the football players. In fact, the sections of the album describe various aspects of the players, like education, family, hobbies and fun facts. On the plus side, the hardcover album is stylish with good quality paper and also the women's players are included this time. On the other side, the structure of the album is confusing and there are many unrelevant stickers, some with just a QR code to discover new contents.

The album features a total of 132 stickers. After an introductory page with the logo stickers of the Belgian Red Devils (men) and Red Flames (women), the sections describing life aspects of the players are shown one after the other. The stickers are portraits or in action, with different styles and backgrounds. The only exception is given by the "Cook off" section, in which the players are taken in action in the kitchen, and the last page of the album ("If Belgium wins"), which includes the caricature stickers of five players (Praet, Dendoncker, Mignolet, Lukaku, E. Hazard). There are no updates or extra cards associated with this collection. In the following we show the photos of all pages, whereas a complete checklist of this album is not available. 



















Back cover of the album

Kevin de Bruyne stickers

Thibaut Courtois stickers


Album details:
Full name: Closer to the Red Devils
Publisher: Panini/Carrefour
Year: 2022
Team: Belgium National Team (Men/Women)
Sections with stickers:
  • Introduction 
  • Jeunesse et éducation 
  • Amour et famille
  • Fier de ses racines
  • Hobbies et talents cachés
  • Amusement et style de vie
  • Curiosités
  • Cook off
  • Alimentation et bien-etre
  • Inspirations et modèles
  • Faits divers
  • Le chocolat préféré des belges
  • Si la Belgique gagne
Hardover album: Yes
Updates: No

Total number of stickers: 132