The reference to the Badlands and losing ships is a precursor to Star Trek: Voyager (1995) which premiered a year later. Voyager was stranded in the Delta Quadrant for 7 years after being lost in the Badlands.
This episode marks the first appearance of the Maquis, whose origins are rooted in the events of Journey's End (1994). The Maquis, who appear in quite a few DS9 episodes, also appear in Preemptive Strike (1994) and Star Trek: Voyager (1995).
Quark mentions that there are 285 Ferengi Rules of Acquisition.
The Maquis are named after the French Resistance against Nazi occupation, 1940-1944. However, their predicament is more similar to that of French citizens caught in Algeria during that country's war with France in the 1950s.
The conversation that Sisko has with the admiral was actually included in the script, even though it was not heard.