News

Retailers and distributors tell ICv2 that 2026 is a strong year for gaming accessories. Sleeves and deck boxes climb in step with the card games themselves; one distributor sees this as proof that buyers play rather than only speculate.

Nov 2, 2026Financials

Bushiroad buys back 760,700 shares for ¥364 million in October 2026 (opens the original at gamebiz (Japan))

Bushiroad repurchased 760,700 of its own shares for ¥364 million on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in October 2026. Its buyback program of up to 8 million shares or ¥2 billion runs until May 12, 2027; 2,845,700 shares for ¥1.17 billion have been bought so far.

Nov 1, 2026Market

Cube Golem to supply trading card games to duo idee+spiel retailers from 2027 (opens the original at Meisenbach GmbH)

Retailer cooperative duo idee+spiel adds distributor Cube Golem as a contract supplier: from January 1, 2027, member stores can order trading card games and accessories from Cube Golem and settle invoices through central billing. The deal was agreed at Spiel Essen 2026.

Oct 30, 2026Leadership2 outlets

Konami Digital Entertainment names new card business and US branch heads (opens the original at KONAMI GROUP CORPORATION)

From December 16, 2026, Hiroshi Fukuda moves from Production Department 5 to lead Konami Digital Entertainment's Card Business Development Department, and Ken Kanetomo takes charge of the US subsidiary Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. as president.

Oct 30, 2026Organized play

Fantasy Flight Games moves judge and event staff training to Tabletop Academy (opens the original at Fantasy Flight Games (Asmodee))

FFG's new Community Education Program runs on Tabletop Academy, a learning platform of Collēctīvus Holdings, with certifications for judges and other event staff; onboarding opens November 12, 2026 and old judge certifications lapse on February 12, 2027.

Oct 30, 2026Organized play

Star Wars: Unlimited opens 2027 Galactic Championship ticket sales on November 13 (opens the original at Fantasy Flight Games (Asmodee))

Tickets in six tiers, from a basic General pass to a limited Prestige package, plus youth and single-day passes, are sold from November 13, 2026 for the May 21-23, 2027 event in Anaheim, California; early buyers get a promo card until January 15, 2027.

Oct 29, 2026Financials3 outlets

Konami Group H1 revenue rises 37.0% to ¥307,975 million, a first-half record (opens the original at KONAMI GROUP CORPORATION)

Digital Entertainment, the segment that includes card games such as Yu-Gi-Oh!, grew revenue 44.3% to ¥243,521 million in April to September 2026. Konami now forecasts ¥583,000 million in revenue for the year to March 2027.

Oct 29, 2026Financials2 outlets

Konami raises FY2027 revenue forecast to ¥583,000 million on eFootball and Yu-Gi-Oh! (opens the original at KONAMI GROUP CORPORATION)

Konami lifted its forecast for the year to March 2027 from ¥505,000 million to ¥583,000 million in revenue and from ¥150,000 million to ¥200,000 million in business profit, citing strong core titles such as Yu-Gi-Oh!. The year-end dividend forecast rises to 187.00 yen.

Moshi Monsters owner Mind Candy has licensed its franchise to Pocket Realm, which will develop and distribute the new TCG; a UK launch is targeted for spring 2028, with other markets later. Over 170m original Moshi cards were sold.

Oct 29, 2026Release

Jurassic Park TCG English launch slips to March 2027, distributed by GTS (opens the original at GCO, LLC (ICv2))

The English Edition of Young Cha's Universal-licensed Korean Jurassic Park TCG, first slated for the US on November 20, 2026, now comes in March 2027 with Outland Predator as its opening set; GTS Distribution supplies it via Cardmonster Inc.

Oct 29, 2026Market

Goldin's Pokémon 30th Anniversary auction tops $28 million with 18 records (opens the original at GCO, LLC (ICv2))

Goldin's Pokémon 30th Anniversary auction on October 25, 2026 totaled over $28 million in sales with 18 record prices; a PSA 10 Art Academy Mudkip promo sold for $4.88 million and a PSA 8 1997 Trophy Pikachu for over $3 million.

Oct 29, 2026Release

Bushiroad sets March 25, 2027 release for digital card game Weiß Schwarz Online (opens the original at gamebiz (Japan))

Bushiroad will release Weiß Schwarz Online, the first online-play digital version of its 18-year-old Weiß Schwarz card game, on March 25, 2027. Nintendo Switch 2 package preorders opened October 29, 2026 with physical PR cards included; eight paid DLCs are planned by autumn 2027.

Oct 28, 2026MarketSeries · 1 reports

TCGplayer One Piece price gains and understocked cards, week of October 26 (opens the original at TCGplayer, Inc. (eBay subsidiary))

TCGplayer posted downloadable rankings of singles and sealed items that buyers want but that have little listed stock on its marketplace, weighted by price, stock levels and demand trends.

Oct 28, 2026Release2 outlets

Bandai opens pre-registration for Digimon Card Game app DIGIMON ALYSION in 49 regions (opens the original at gamebiz (Japan))

Bandai began pre-registration on October 28, 2026 for DIGIMON ALYSION in 49 countries and regions on the App Store and Google Play; the App Store lists a December 23 release. The free-to-play app keeps the Digimon Card Game's rules, digitizes existing cards and adds app-only cards.

Oct 28, 2026Organized play

Magic schedules Star Trek release play, December CommandFests and a new RCQ round (opens the original at Wizards of the Coast)

Magic's Star Trek play calendar: Prereleases November 6–12, World Championship 32 at MagicCon: Atlanta November 13–15, December CommandFests run by Let's Play Games, eSports Admin and JK Entertainment, Eternal Weekends hosted by Hareruya and 4Seasons, RCQs from December 11, 2026.

Oct 28, 2026Legal

Wizards of the Coast re-engages anti-union consultants ahead of November 10 staff vote (opens the original at Network N Media)

Wizards of the Coast has again retained a firm described as a union avoidance consultancy as its D&D and Magic: The Gathering employees head toward a union election on November 10, 2026.

Oct 28, 2026Market

TCGplayer adds Pokémon Energy sorting and condition pricing to its Roca Sifter (opens the original at TCGplayer, Inc. (eBay subsidiary))

TCGplayer's October 2026 update for its Roca Sifter card sorter brings a separate sift for Pokémon Energy, prices by card condition for Magic and Pokémon, better holofoil recognition, support for new Magic and One Piece products and faster handling of high-value cards.

Oct 27, 2026Leadership2 outlets

Hasbro promotes D&D chief Dan Ayoub to run Wizards of the Coast from November 2 (opens the original at GCO, LLC (ICv2))

Hasbro appointed Dan Ayoub, head of Dungeons & Dragons, to lead Wizards of the Coast together with Hasbro Digital Games as president from November 2, 2026. He replaces John Hight, who left in July 2026, and will oversee Magic: The Gathering and Duel Masters among other brands.

Oct 27, 2026Market

Dodgers Luffy promo leads One Piece card price gains on TCGplayer (opens the original at TCGplayer, Inc. (eBay subsidiary))

TCGplayer's One Piece report covers Near Mint cards with ten or more sales from September 22 to October 22, 2026. The Dodgers x ONE PIECE Monkey.D.Luffy promo rose $283.57 to $1,710.99; among cards that started at $20 or less, Sugar (Parallel) from Royal Blood led with +$21.95.

Oct 26, 2026Organized play2 outlets

Riftbound sets 2027 organized play with ranked ladder and four Continentals (opens the original at Riot Games, Inc.)

Riftbound's 2027 program adds Ladder Points, a five-rank ladder and Grandmaster titles for the top 50 annual players, four three-day Continentals (Dallas, Melbourne, London, Toronto), three-day Regionals and 30-40 Showdown Series events per season.

Oct 23, 2026Market2 outlets

Star Wars: Unlimited wins Game of the Year and three more prizes at the first TCG Awards (opens the original at Asmodee Group AB)

Fantasy Flight Games, an Asmodee studio, won four prizes for Star Wars: Unlimited at the first TCG Awards at SPIEL Essen (October 23, 2026): Game of the Year, Newcomer of the Year, Set of the Year for A Lawless Time and Event of the Year for the Galactic Championships in Las Vegas.

Oct 23, 2026Deal2 outlets

Spin Master adds Paramount Pictures horror properties to its Hellbreak TCG (opens the original at Toy World Magazine (UK))

Spin Master has added Paramount Pictures as an IP partner for Hellbreak, bringing characters from Smile, A Quiet Place and Sleepy Hollow. The first set, developed with Ghost Galaxy, has more than 200 cards and goes on sale in January 2027 in hobby game stores and on Amazon.

Oct 21, 2026MarketSeries · 3 reports

TCGplayer Hyperia City best-sellers, Lorcana price gains and top bulk Pokémon cards (opens the original at TCGplayer, Inc. (eBay subsidiary))

TCGplayer's report of the costliest Rare, Uncommon and Common Pokémon cards since Temporal Forces, priced on October 13, 2026, is led by the Stellar Crown Slowpoke reverse holo at $4.50; thin listings keep several commons expensive.