Fifa, the governing body of world soccer, has reached an agreement worth nearly US$1 million with Panini that will see the Italian company manufacture trading cards and sticker album collections for the next six years.

The deal, an extension of a long-running agreement between the two parties, covers the 2010 World Cup in South Africa and the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, likely to be the two most-watched events in world sport over the next five years.

"FIFA is proud to work with our long-term licensee Panini for the 2010 and 2014 FIFA World Cups, especially after the success story of Germany in 2006," said Thierry Weil, FIFA's director of marketing.

The 2006 World Cup saw Panini run the most successful collectable campaign in history. Panini, which made profits of almost US$1 billion last year, sold its products in more than 100 countries around the globe.

"The Panini Group is privileged to have been appointed the exclusive collectable sticker and trading card licensee again," said Panini's Peter Warsop.

"Fifa's decision to re-appoint us as its licensee is a great reward for the investments made previously.

"We are already in discussions with our promotional partners and are committed to continuing the positive trends we have already seen across all product categories."