Recent Trading Card Releases Bringing ProRodeo to a Bigger Stage

A total of five rodeo athletes, many of whom are former World Champions, were featured as part of two different trading card sets that were released this summer.

Saddle bronc rider Zeke Thurston is one of five cowboys featured in the Upper Deck Goodwin Champions series that came out in early July | Alex Riley/@ByAlexRiley

Zeke Thurston’s eyes lit up as a stunned “Oh goodness” escaped his mouth. 

Presented with a small rectangular piece of cardboard in a protective case, the Big Valley, Alberta, native stared intently at a trading card with his face on it. Months back, Thurston had seen variations of these before they were placed into packs and released to the public, just not the version in his hand. 

“That’s bad to the bone,” Thurston said grinning. 

In early July, Upper Deck included Thurston and four other ProRodeo athletes in its Goodwin Champions release. Since its revival in 2009, the Goodwin product has featured an eclectic blend of athletes, celebrities, historical artifacts, and more.

And for the first time since 2021, rodeo was included in the set. 

“I know Upper Deck is where you get your Wayne Gretzkys and your Michael Jordans and Tiger Woods. Anybody that’s been somebody in athletics in their discipline has been on an Upper Deck card. It’s pretty cool to join that group,” Thurston said.

“I don’t think they’ve hardly had any rodeo guys on them. They came to select a few of us and asked us if we wanted to do it and be a part of it. I was honored to be one of the guys. I think it’s pretty darn cool to be on a trading card.”

In recent years, the trading card phenomenon has reached historic levels, particularly for mainstream sports like baseball, basketball, and football, as well as wrestling, soccer, and even entertainment.

Ultra-rare cards, either due to a limited print run, an embedded relic, an autograph or a combination of any three, routinely sell for thousands or even millions of dollars. 

Rodeo cards have existed, just rarely in products from major companies like Upper Deck or Topps. When the Goodwin set was brought back in 2009, two cowboys were included as autograph cards, with bull rider Don Gay and bareback rider Joe Alexander making the cut. 

Cowboy Cool

Between Upper Deck and Topps, there are a wide variety of cards featuring current five current PRCA competitors, including short prints and autographs. | Alex Riley/@ByAlexRiley

In the years since, the only cowboys to be immortalized were generally connected to Professional Bull Riders (PBR) competition. Silvano Alves was in the 2015 Goodwin set, while Jess Lockwood had cards in 2021. 

PBR previously worked with Press Pass in 2009 to make a nationally sold series called 8 Seconds, which featured names like Ty Murray and JB Mauney. The organization released another run of cards in 2024, this time partnering with Leaf Metal to showcase competitors like Trey Benton, Maverick Smith, and Cassio Dias.

The 2026 Goodwin installment marks the first time since 2009 that cowboys outside of bull riding have been in a nationally retail-marketed set. Thurston is joined by Shad Mayfield (tie-down roping), Stetson Wright (bull and saddle bronc), Ryder Wright (saddle bronc riding), and John Crimber (bull riding). 

Additionally, Mayfield was also part of the 2026 Topps Baseball Series 1. The set includes a series of cards called “First Pitch,” which features a photo of a celebrity making the ceremonial toss at their favorite team’s home game.

Mayfield was the man highlighted for the Texas Rangers this year. Along with that card, Topps also made an autographed variation card limited to just five copies featuring Mayfield in his rodeo attire. 

“It means a lot. It’s kind of showing how much the sport is growing and a lot of people are getting into it,” Crimber said. “It’s helping bring a lot more people into it. I think this is great and hopefully brings out more people.”

It’s his second time in a card series, as he was also featured in the 2024 PBR Leaf Metal set.

Bull rider John Crimber has been featured in two cards set during his career, most recently in the Upper Deck Goodwin Champions series. | Alex Riley/@ByAlexRiley

As part of their agreement to be featured, each of the cowboys was sent a box containing thousands of various cards and asked to autograph them. These were randomly inserted into packs and boxes for buyers to find. 

“I think I signed like 3,000 of them. It was a lot,” Ryder Wright said with a laugh. 

Added Thurston: “It was like having homework again – and I was not a good homework guy.”

While it might have resulted in some hand fatigue, being in the spotlight is a moment the cowboys are savoring. As rodeo’s popularity grows and payouts increase, having the opportunity to bring the sport to a wider audience is one the group isn’t taking for granted. 

And though it's unlikely their pieces of cardboard will reach the hype level of a Michael Jordan Fleer rookie or a Paul Skenes Pro Debut rookie-patch-auto, highlighting rodeo is something they're grateful for.  

Saddle bronc competitor Ryder Wright was a card collector as a kid, making his experience of having his own card a little surreal. | Alex Riley/@ByAlexRiley

“They contacted me in San Diego a couple of years ago. I didn’t really understand exactly what it was, but my agent told me there was only a handful of cowboys that were being selected. It’s pretty surreal,” Ryder Wright said. “I used to collect all the sports cards when I was growing up. So, to be able to see my face on one is pretty awesome.”