Football: Counterfeit Merchandise Seized
By Prof Dr Ian Blackshaw
It has been reported that counterfeit football merchandise, worth over £18 million (around €21 million), has been seized in the United Kingdom by the Police Intellectual Property Office during the World Cup, because of safety concerns.
One seizure involved 1,618 pieces of merchandise taken from a warehouse in Birmingham, which included replica merchandise of leading players such as Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland.
A Police spokesman stated:
"I understand why people want to buy these shirts, people love football and the incentive is the lower price - but these shirts, they're not regulated and could be highly flammable.”
And added:
"They have dyes in them which could be harmful to skin, particularly children's skin. While the cost is lower - and that's the attractive part - potential damages to you and the people making them is just far too high."
Driving the sale of counterfeit football merchandise is the low price.
Several websites sell them for as little as £12 (around €14), whilst, for example, the price of some official English Premier League merchandise starts at £85 (around €100).
Furthermore, the sale of counterfeit football merchandise is not subject to UK or EU health and safety regulations and may be the result of money laundering by criminal networks.
Prof Dr Ian Blackshaw may be contacted by e-mail at ‘
