Video Pack Break: 1989 Action Packed Football

In 1989 the football card Hobby was beginning to change. For much of the 80s Topps was the only game in town. But in '89 the NFL granted licenses to three companies. Fresh off their success in baseball, the NFL gave Score a license. The other two went to two start up companies: Pro Set and Action Packed.

While Score and Pro Set produced traditional card card sets, Action Packed put out what could best be described as a test issue to demonstrate their bas relief printing process to The Hobby. It featured 30 cards from only three NFL teams: the Bears, Giants, and Redskins. (The first "Real" AP card set would not be released until 1990)

This was NOT Action Packed's first trading card set. A year earlier, they applied for an MLB/MLBPA license and created a six-card baseball test set. Ultimately, both MLB and MLBPA rejected Action Packed's effort and awarded the licenses to another start-up called "Upper Deck."

Each pack contained six cards (two from each team) and one of three stadium hologram stickers.