1988-1992
Junk-wax base design[2]
Thin stock, large checklists and team-colour borders define the first Score sets.
Active
Score
Score entered the market in 1988 with a low-cost baseball set, then became a defining football and basketball brand of the junk-wax era; it is now a Panini America brand.
Score at a glance
Score entered the market in 1988 with a low-cost baseball set, then became a defining football and basketball brand of the junk-wax era; it is now a Panini America brand.
Full history, sources and grading notes below. Last verified · Published · Confidence: Medium
Company history
1988 baseball and the 1989 football class[1][2]
Score entered the baseball market in 1988 with a low-cost, large-checklist set. It added football in 1989, and that set became one of the defining rookie classes of the era, including Deion Sanders. Score's price point made it accessible to mass-market buyers and helped fuel the late-1980s collecting boom.
Pinnacle, parallels and the Panini era[1][3]
Score was acquired by Pinnacle Brands in the 1990s and produced premium-adjacent inserts and parallels, including Artist's Proof. After the 1990s consolidation, the brand became part of Panini America, which continues to publish modern Score football and basketball products as a value tier.
Vintage Score is collected for its rookie classes and its place in the junk-wax story. Modern Score is a lower-cost entry product with colour parallels and autograph inserts, and it is graded on modern chromium and card-stock expectations rather than 1980s standards.
Timeline
Dated milestones with a source for each event. Hover a marker for the short label; the list below carries the detail.
View timeline events
| Year | Event | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Company founded | Score enters the baseball card market. |
| 1989 | Football debut | 1989 Score Football includes a deep rookie class and the Deion Sanders rookie. |
| 1993 | Pinnacle acquisition | Score becomes part of Pinnacle Brands. |
| 2009 | Panini era | Score becomes a Panini America brand. |
| 2010 | Modern Score | Score continues as a value-focused football and basketball product. |
- 1988Company founded[1]
Score enters the baseball card market.
- 1989Football debut[2]
1989 Score Football includes a deep rookie class and the Deion Sanders rookie.
- 1993Pinnacle acquisition[1]
Score becomes part of Pinnacle Brands.
- 2009Panini era[3]
Score becomes a Panini America brand.
- 2010Modern Score[3]
Score continues as a value-focused football and basketball product.
Brand identity
Design evolution
Image archive
Local, provenance-recorded images. Captions and source credits are part of the record; a missing section is shown as an explicit gap rather than filled with a placeholder.
Card fronts & backs
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Catalog footprint in PreGradeCards
Aggregated from the sets and products catalogued by this site. Counts describe our coverage, not the manufacturer’s complete output.
1sets catalogued
1database aliases matched
1decades represented
View data table
| Category | Value |
|---|---|
| 1990s | 1 |
- Hockey 1
View data table
| Category | Value |
|---|---|
| Hockey | 1 |
Notable sets
Grading notes
How this manufacturer's stock, cutting and production method affect the four grading pillars.
How to identify Score cards
1988-1992
The Score wordmark, team-colour borders and a large checklist; the copyright line names Score.
Modern
Modern Score cards carry colour parallels and a product/year code on the back.
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Frequently asked questions
Who owns Score now?
Score is a Panini America brand.
What is the 1989 Score Deion Sanders card?
It is Deion Sanders' rookie card from the 1989 Score Football set, one of the defining cards of that release.
Is Score a premium brand?
Historically it was a mass-market, value-priced brand. Modern Score remains a value tier within Panini's lineup.
Sources & methodology
Every factual claim in the profile is tied to the numbered sources below. Translated sources are tagged with their original language. Media provenance is recorded per image; images are stored locally and credited to their source.
- Wikipedia: Pinnacle Brands (accessed 2026-11-07 · EN)
- Cardboard Connection: 1989 Score Football (accessed 2026-11-07 · EN)
- Panini America (accessed 2026-11-07 · EN)
Unverified or incomplete
- Media collection is incomplete for this record-tier draft; the page stays unpublished until the media minimum is met.
Cite this profile
PreGradeCards Research. “Score.” Card Manufacturers Directory. Last verified 2026-11-07. https://pregradecards.com/manufacturers/score
Found an error? Report a correction with the source you are relying on.
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