The World Cup is gaining steam as group play is almost over and the remaining teams are getting ready to duel in the elimination rounds. [Annoying for many, but not for me] vuvuzelas (have you checked out the new youtube vuvuzela button yet?) are not the only fan feature of the tournament. As with any other major sporting event – it is hard not to notice the many hundreds of thousands of fans clad in their national teams gear.
However, you have to wonder how those jerseys, hats, t-shirts, scarves, and other memorabilia are making their way on the backs, heads, and shoulders of the fans?
Trade in counterfeit soccer gear, it seems, is thriving on the continent that is hosting the World Cup. And in other parts of the world as well. Just how does it all happen? Take a look at this Yahoo Sports piece on counterfeit Ivory Coast jerseys, which follows Gaoussou Traore, who has gotten quite good and popular in making jerseys of national and club teams on his own sewing machine:
Gaoussou Traore makes the jerseys by hand on his beat-up sewing machine, copying the patterns from photos downloaded from the Internet. He’s not the only tailor in Abidjan making counterfeit jerseys for the World Cup, but he’s earned a strong following for the quality of his work and his prices. He will sell a jersey for as little as $5, if it’s ordered in bulk.
Making counterfeit shirts seems like a no-brainer for most in the developing world (and for many in developed economies as well). Official prices of $50-$100 for a jersey are prohibitive for most of the fans, especially in countries where that sum equals a monthly income or even more.
Any market in any developing country will have plenty of stands with soccer jerseys (I am yet to go to one that didn’t have it). In the lead up to the World Cup, more than 100,000 counterfeit jerseys were sold in China alone. The bottom line – soccer jerseys are a very popular global product. The question is, however, is this piracy actually hurting developing countries?
Hint: look beyond one national team soccer jersey sold on a street and think of broader implications of trade in counterfeit and illicit goods. What about counterfeit medicines? Spare parts for cars? Manufacturing equipment? Moises Naim provides a good starting point.
Published Date: June 25, 2010