The Big Ol' Counterfeit Jersey Thread

[BBTV]

The letters on the NOB are too close, and possibly a little too thick. Also, the "it's OK to support IP theft because I'm just a college student" argument is absurd.

[TornadoGTS]

You should see the front of his, the Titans wordmark is horrible, dead giveaway.

[BigDmo]

^Its true

Also the NFL Equipment logo

[AnythingChicago]

Pick mine apart

Mine, too.

[hockey week]

I never thought that counterfeit jerseys were much of a problem until when I recently went to a Steelers game and saw so many fakes...and not even that many good ones. Apparently this trend is not limited to my experience either, as evidenced by previous comments. In hockey, I haven't seen fakes at Penguins games until recently, post-reebok switch when price structures changed and the difference between replicas and authentics became noticeable. In my opinion, and I'll admit I have an anti-corporate bias, it would seem that the jersey companies need to lower their prices or risk becoming quaint "higher quality" versions of the fakes that only the wealthy and snobbish buy. The market is speaking, and they don't seem to care to listen. Very interesting.

[FiddySicks]

I have a pretty big jersey collection, and two or three of them are counterfeit. No matter if it's supporting the wrong cause, or it's criminal, or whatever you want to call it, spending $30 on a jersey that is so close to an authentic that most won't even notice (and those who do have to look pretty close) is a much smarter investment than spending nearly $80 on a cheap screen printed shirt that'll fall apart in the wash in less than a year. You can knock counterfeit jerseys all you want, I still find it to be less criminal than the prices they charge for the real ones.

[OMMF]

You can knock counterfeit jerseys all you want

Now I have a good reason to fire some of the employees at work. "If someone can do your job cheaper, and no one will notice the differences, I'd be stupid not to fire you. It's all about saving money. Oh, and my personal sense of entitlement."

[BigDmo]

This should be an agree to disagree situation. But I'm sure the thread will keep going with the back and forth arguing trying to justify each side.

[ElwoodCuse]

spending $30 on a jersey that is so close to an authentic that most won't even notice (and those who do have to look pretty close)

But this isn't true at all. It's super easy to spot these fakes. The numbers and letters really are that bad. You can spot them a mile away, especially for teams that have anything more than standard block fonts.

[BlueSky]

spending $30 on a jersey that is so close to an authentic that most won't even notice (and those who do have to look pretty close)

But this isn't true at all. It's super easy for uni freaks like CCSLC members to spot these fakes. The numbers and letters really are that bad. You can spot them a mile away, especially for teams that have anything more than standard block fonts.

FYP. Most of the general public will never notice the difference.

Whatever one's position on this, someone pointed out an ironic truth in another thread where this was debated: the "authentic" $250-300 version of these jerseys probably comes from the factory down the street from the one doing the fakes, the difference being that the authentics are put together better and subjected to more QC than the fakes. The employees are likely working in the same conditions and making the same 20 cents an hour or whatever.

We'll never know the one variable that would enable me to finalize my position: the NFL's cost to produce an authentic. Their markup has to be ridiculous.

[DG_ThenNowForever]

I have a pretty big jersey collection, and two or three of them are counterfeit. No matter if it's supporting the wrong cause, or it's criminal, or whatever you want to call it, spending $30 on a jersey that is so close to an authentic that most won't even notice (and those who do have to look pretty close) is a much smarter investment than spending nearly $80 on a cheap screen printed shirt that'll fall apart in the wash in less than a year. You can knock counterfeit jerseys all you want, I still find it to be less criminal than the prices they charge for the real ones.

The NFL charges too much for a terrible product and the market has responded accordingly. There are tons of free market warriors on this board -- I would imagine this would be example A of how markets work. Chinese manufacturers have provided an alternative to the official, overpriced NFL jerseys (and we're only talking about the terrible replicas) and, given the attendees at NFL games, people are buying them. I guess the NFL is still making enough on their official versions not to care, but I wonder how long that will be the case.

I'll also say that you don't see this same problem as much with other sports. This is in part due to popularity of the NFL, but I think it has more to do with price. NHL replicas are pretty close in quality to the real thing and are a better value at their price point. NBA authentics seem kind of pointless to me and replicas are good enough. I don't know enough about MLB replicas, but they seem to be more or less in the same boat as the NHL.

[IceCap]

The NFL charges too much for a terrible product and the market has responded accordingly. There are tons of free market warriors on this board -- I would imagine this would be example A of how markets work.

Except counterfeiters are not responding to the demand via legal means. They're 1) infringing on copyrights and 2) in most cases trying to pass their fakes off as the real thing, thus deceiving the costumers. One can be "pro-free market" and still see the legal and moral problems with counterfeit jerseys.

grown men shouldnt wear jerseys anyway.

Thanks for the insight Mr. Blackwell.

Wear what you want, but he's got a point. Everytime I see a grown-a$$ man in a jersey (especially a customized one) I just think he's some big kid who is imagining that he's actually on the team by putting on the jersey, like he's fulfilling some childhood fantasy. It's all a big game of pretend. If you're actually at the game, maybe you get a pass, but it's still kind of corny for adults to wear the jerseys of other adults.

Ice_Cap's guide to wearing sports jerseys....

1) Only acceptable when at a game or watching a game, or if you're out the day/night of a game. You just look silly wearing a jersey when you're out grocery shopping. Just my opinion, but you do.

2) Wearing a jersey with your own name/number is only acceptable if you're age 10 or younger.

3) Blank jerseys are preferred over jerseys with the name/number of a player, but that latter is still acceptable.

[illwauk]

We'll never know the one variable that would enable me to finalize my position: the NFL's cost to produce an authentic. Their markup has to be ridiculous.

This is my sticking point as well. Artificially high mark-ups are just as unethical as outright counterfitting. Besides, it's hard to feel for these same "privately-owned" sports franchises that play in taxpayer-funded palaces.

And they really can't cost that much to produce. When I was growing up there were tons of places that would make "authentic" Packers jerseys for cheaper than what you can buy a licensed replica for now.

Ice_Cap's guide to wearing sports jerseys....

1) Only acceptable when at a game or watching a game, or if you're out the day/night of a game. You just look silly wearing a jersey when you're out grocery shopping. Just my opinion, but you do.

2) Wearing a jersey with your own name/number is only acceptable if you're age 10 or younger.

3) Blank jerseys are preferred over jerseys with the name/number of a player, but that latter is still acceptable.

1) Agreed.

2) I make an exception if the customization is something that would CLEARLY never make it on the field/floor/ice (like an obvious nickname or a 3-digit number). I used to know a guy called Ugly that was known for wearing his "UGLY 00" Packers jersey to the club (back in 2002 when you could still rock jerseys at the club). To me, that's different from the 5'9, 250 lb. guy with his own (real) name who insists on a receivers number on top of everything else.

That said... I'm personally more than content with a team-logo hoodie.

3) For hockey and baseball, sure... but even for football and basketball jerseys?

[FiddySicks]

spending $30 on a jersey that is so close to an authentic that most won't even notice (and those who do have to look pretty close)

But this isn't true at all. It's super easy to spot these fakes. The numbers and letters really are that bad. You can spot them a mile away, especially for teams that have anything more than standard block fonts.

Sure maybe if my grandma were to buy me a jersey that'd be a problem, but the only time I buy fakes is when it's hard for me, someone who is obsessed with this stuff and roams these boards daily, to even tell the difference. I have an Alstott fake where the numbers are so damn close to the authentic I have that side by side it's hard to tell which one is real. The logos are a bit off and that's the dead giveaway, but it cost me like 10% of what the real one did. I also have two fakes that are the Manning brother's Super Bowl jerseys. Those were even harder to spot (only the cut, which is BARELY off is wrong), and are of awesome quality. The guy who sold it them me made them out to be the real deal. I don't think he was purposely trying to rip me off, the price was too low for that to be the case. I just think that unlike us, he was closer to the general public when it came to spotting jersey fakes. But still, if you had the choice to drop three bills on an authentic jersey and miss your team's game because it's blacked out, or 30 bucks on something close, and actually have money to go to one of the team's games, wouldn't you normally choose the second option? Hell, in that case, the NFL has ZERO room to bitch!

[dhamen0420]

After all this talk about the jerseys, can anyone list the sites where they are available? You have sparked my interest and I want to check them out for myself, the pictures don't list price or cost of shipping. I am still a little nervous about the scam aspect of ordering from one of those sites.

[IceCap]

Ice_Cap's guide to wearing sports jerseys....

1) Only acceptable when at a game or watching a game, or if you're out the day/night of a game. You just look silly wearing a jersey when you're out grocery shopping. Just my opinion, but you do.

2) Wearing a jersey with your own name/number is only acceptable if you're age 10 or younger.

3) Blank jerseys are preferred over jerseys with the name/number of a player, but that latter is still acceptable.

1) Agreed.

2) I make an exception if the customization is something that would CLEARLY never make it on the field/floor/ice (like an obvious nickname or a 3-digit number). I used to know a guy called Ugly that was known for wearing his "UGLY 00" Packers jersey to the club (back in 2002 when you could still rock jerseys at the club). To me, that's different from the 5'9, 250 lb. guy with his own (real) name who insists on a receivers number on top of everything else.

That said... I'm personally more than content with a team-logo hoodie.

Fair enough. Yeah, those are fine, in and in many cases, pretty funny.

3) For hockey and baseball, sure... but even for football and basketball jerseys?

D'oh! Was in a hockey mindset. Obviously player name/number jerseys are ok for football and basketball.

[Darth Danielus]

People wearing jersey's out on the street doesn't bother me one bit. I have a pretty sizeable collection of hockey jerseys...couple baseball and basketball ones aswell. I don't wear them out often, almost never, but if the mood strikes me, I will. And while I would never do it myself, I find nothing really wrong with one's own name on the back either. We're mainly on this board cuz we think some of this stuff looks great....the colours, the stripes, the logos. Why wouldn't we want wear them? Its all just fun -- so weather you think its cool, you wanna identify yourself as a fan to others, or to support the team, I see absolutely no harm in it.

Like I said -- I virtually never actually wear my jerseys, unless I'm playing road hockey or something....again, just for fun. My favorite time to wear a jersey is to a road game of a team I'm supporting. Love the comments, and anger it seems to illicit. Love seeing, and being a part of, the sea of leaf jersey's out in the streets for games in places like columbus, pittsburg, buffalo. I almost never wear jerseys if its a home game. Seems pointless and redundant.

[hockey week]

http://community.post-gazette.com/blogs/emptynetters/archive/2008/12/16/jersey-fouls-a-working-guide-12-16-08.aspx

This seems to be the best address of wearing jerseys I've ever seen. Really covers everything, the 10 Commandments of Jerseys, if you will

[Waleslax]

This argument is ridiculous. It is like saying "if I don't have enough money, it is ok to counterfit money or rob a bank." It's not ok. Illegal is illegal and no one should be arguing the metits of the illegal things they are doing/producing/buying.

[The Nation]

Here's my $0.02. I am a big soccer supporter, and soccer clubs in Europe change their uniforms every year. So why spend $120 every year to buy a new jersey, when I can just buy a fake from China or Malaysia for $30? And yes, there are some glitches, and errors on the jersey, but whatever.