Discover the 2024-25 Topps Chrome® UCC Messi Grail Card
For the 2024-25 Topps Chrome® UCC release, few cards carry the weight, ambition, and artistry of The Messi Grail. Designed as a nine-card subset that forms a single panoramic image, this collectible centerpiece honors Lionel Messi not just as a player, but as a legend whose legacy transcends clubs, borders, and eras.
Making its much-anticipated second appearance, Grail no. 7 in the nine-card Grail sequence can now be found in 2024-25 Topps Chrome® UCC. This marks a pivotal moment in The Grail chase — a thrilling journey that spans multiple Topps soccer products across 2025.
To redeem your code and create your profile for The Messi Grail, visit The Grail page and get in on the action.
At the core of the design is a golden chalice, symbolizing the “grail” Messi has become in the world of football. The stained glass backdrop evokes a sacred space, framing Messi in a burst of color, energy, and reverence.
“When designing The Grail, we play off of the idea of rarity of skill and talent of our featured athlete,” said Topps Art Director Ryan Lee.
Each of the nine cards connects seamlessly, but they also function as standalone pieces of art. That duality was Lee’s favorite part of the project. “The opportunity to create a nine-card subset that combines into a single image makes for a fun, creative challenge,” he said. “While we design The Grail as a whole, the challenge of making sure any one of these nine cards still makes for a compelling design by itself helps to push my creativity.”
Color plays a central role in telling Messi’s story across this subset. Every panel was designed to align with the team he’s representing. “The colors of the stained glass backgrounds are designed to complement the team colors worn by Messi,” Lee explained. “We have red and blue panels for his FC Barcelona imagery, green and blue panels to contrast against his PSG kit, and light blue and yellow panels to contrast against his Inter Miami CF kit.”
With Topps Chrome technology enhancing the print finish, color saturation and contrast become even more important. “Color contrast examples are blue and red, green and red, and blue and yellow. Colors that contrast together to create a more dynamic color palette,” said Lee. These bold combinations keep Messi visually centered while allowing the background to glow and shift depending on the lighting.
Depth is built through light and shadow, giving dimension to the design. “Our brains naturally perceive things that are darker to be further away,” Lee said. “So by having items progressively casting shadows on elements that are to be perceived as further away, we build in dynamic depth into a flat trading card.”
In the 2024-25 Topps Chrome® UCC release, card no. 7 is here. Two cards have now surfaced — seven remain. Each card contributes to a greater story. Each detail points back to one truth: Messi is the grail.
