The Best Football Card Boxes of the 2025-2026 Season

The football season is in full swing, and that means a whole new slate of rookies that’ll come out on the other side as seasoned, tested pros. If you’ve been waiting to dive in and pick up the season’s best, now’s the time. 

Beat the early adopters and find the ultimate hobby boxes with this Giant Sports Cards guide.

The Best Card Boxes of the Season

2025 Panini Prizm Football

When it comes to the best football cards of 2025, Panini’s sports cards are the ones to watch. This late-year licensed release is one of the year’s most anticipated, bringing everything from Prizm parallels to rare inserts you can’t find anywhere else, including:

• Color Blast and Color Blast Duos
• Emergent and Prizm Break cards
• Fan-favorite Manga cards

The 2025 Panini Prizm football hobby box is a must-have for the season, especially if you’re looking to pick up one of the last few Panini releases before the license switches over to Topps/Fanatics.

2025 Panini Phoenix Football

Panini Phoenix is a safe bet if you’re hunting for the best football cards of 2025. This fan-favorite release goes heavy with a strong focus on rookie autographs and patch cards, but what really stands out are the incredible Color Blast inserts you just don’t see with other football hobby boxes.

Looking for the best NFL cards to buy in 2025? Look out for this set’s Rising Star and Mythical Material autographs, Pandora patches, and Paragon inserts.

2025 Panini Absolute Football

Panini Absolute is always a pleasure to open. The designs are off the wall, the backgrounds pop harder than virtually any other release of the season, and hey, Patrick Mahomes autos are back! 

This year’s Absolute release features some of the best football cards of 2025, including Absolute Memorabilia concepts like Ground Hoggs and Absolute Heroes.

But, the huge chase this year is the Kaboom inserts. These inserts will return with their vibrant comic-style designs and new Super Bowl-themed Kabooms!

Absolute is also notable for featuring the next big addition to Patrick Mahomes’ autograph collection, celebrating his new Super Bowl MVP achievement. 

2025 Panini Optic Football

Panini Optic is back in a big way in 2025, and no set celebrates football quite like them. This year’s hobby boxes will feature elusive Downtown inserts and vibrant colorful parallels.

This set is a particularly great pick for collectors who want one of the best visually-appealing football cards of 2025 for both rookies and football veterans. If you can collect the right players before they go pro, you’re looking at a real gold mine.

Dominate The Season

The best NFL cards to buy in 2025 are all right here at Giant Sports Cards. Collect the best of the best with the ultimate sports card store and Unbox Your Love Of The Game™ with the Giant Rewards Program. 

Enjoy free shipping on US orders over $199 and competitive prices when you shop today.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the best football cards of 2025?

In terms of rookies, you’re looking for players like Cam Ward, Travis Hunter, Jaxon Dart, and Ashton Jeanty. You can find these players and more with popular hobby boxes like the Panini Prizm set.

What are the best football cards to invest in?

It depends on what you’re looking to get out of these cards. If you’re looking to invest for long-term profit, you’ll want to look for high-potential rookies. Other collectors might prefer buying tried-and-tested cards of established players.

What is the best football card brand in 2025?

While it all comes down to preference, the current go-to brand for collectors is Panini, considering they currently hold the NFL license for now.