NFL, NBA and Baseball Advent Calendars: Sports Countdowns Compared

Sports advent calendars come in two main kinds: mini figure calendars such as Funko’s NFL and NBA Pocket Pop! sets and Party Animal’s NFL TeenyMates, and trading card calendars such as Topps’ holiday baseball calendar. Check the door count, since the NBA set runs 14 days, and the age label before you buy.

Sports advent calendars compared

The two formats suit different fans. Figure calendars suit a fan who plays with or displays things, and card calendars suit a collector.

Football figure calendars: Funko and TeenyMates

NFL fans have the most choice. Entertainment Earth lists an NFL 2026 Edition Funko Pocket Pop! calendar with 24 unique mini figures and accessories, each about 2 inches tall.

Party Animal’s TeenyMates are smaller figures. The 2025 Gold Box Edition, listed by ToyWiz, holds 24 figures: 23 of the league’s star players with Christmas touches and one Santa referee. The Pro Football Hall of Fame shop sold a 2025 Legends version that also includes a fold-down stadium play mat and a 24-piece field puzzle, with a puzzle piece behind each door. The current listings are 2025 editions, so check the year printed on any box.

Basketball: the 14-day NBA countdown

Funko’s NBA Pocket Pop! calendar is a 14-day countdown rather than a full Advent run. Retailers name Jayson Tatum, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Luka Dončić among its 14 player figures. Entertainment Earth gives the figures as about 2 inches tall and Hot Topic as about 1.5 inches, so expect small desk-sized pieces.

Baseball card advent calendars from Topps

Topps makes a holiday baseball advent calendar for card collectors every year. Checklist Insider lists the 2026 calendar box as 24 packs of five cards, drawn from a 200-card base set of veterans and rookies with garland, ribbon and ornament borders. Each calendar box also holds two Chrome Plaid parallels that come only in the calendar format. The release date is October 21, 2026.

The 2025 box was laid out differently: Topps listed 20 five-card packs, a three-card Evergreen pack, two stamped original cards and one original pack. Match the year to the listing, since the two boxes look alike. Collectors often want the calendar sealed, because opened boxes may have had their best cards pulled.

Which sports calendar suits which fan

Each format suits a different kind of fan, so start from how they follow the sport.

The young fan who plays with figures. A Funko or TeenyMates calendar gives a figure a day, and the TeenyMates Legends set adds a play mat and puzzle. Check the age label first (see the safety section below).

The fan who displays things. Pocket Pop! figures are small enough to stand on a shelf or desk. A league calendar gives a spread of teams, so it suits someone who follows the whole league.

The card collector. The Topps calendar is built for collectors, with packs and calendar-only parallels. Keep the box sealed if it is a gift, since the pull is part of the fun.

The fan of one team. League-wide calendars cover many teams, so a team-specific gift may suit better. You can also fill a reusable advent calendar with small team items.

Hockey, soccer and other sports

Hockey and soccer fans have fewer ready-made choices than football, basketball and baseball fans. A team-branded calendar is worth a look if one exists for their club, but a homemade calendar filled with small team items such as pins, keychains, stickers and pucks or mini balls often works better. Our advent calendar filler ideas list more small gifts that fit the pockets.

Age labels and small parts

Sports figure calendars are toys with small parts. Federal rules ban toys with small parts for children under 3, and toys with small parts made for children aged 3 to 6 must carry a choking hazard warning. A figure calendar should not go to a toddler or sit where one can reach the pieces, even if an older sibling is the fan.

Card calendars hold no small toy parts, but they are collector items rather than toys.

Buying a past-season sports calendar on eBay

Past-year sports calendars stay popular with collectors, because the figure and card lists change every season. Before you buy one:

• Read the year on the box. TeenyMates and Topps calendars look alike from year to year, so match the year to the listing title.
• Check that it is sealed. For card calendars, an opened box may have had cards removed.
• Compare the figure or card list with the maker’s listing for that year.

For other calendars for younger fans, see our advent calendars for kids guide. Grown-up fans may also like the picks in advent calendars for men, or start from the best advent calendars of 2026.