Fake England World Cup shirts worth up to £250,000 seized in Northampton raids

Police seized fake England shirts worth up to £250,000 after raiding an address in Northampton on the days before the World Cup kicked off in Qatar.

Six people were arrested in swoops across the country led by City of London Police. Officers seized four tonnes of counterfeit football shirts adding up to an estimated loss to the industry of half a million pounds. Officers searched four premises in Leeds, and seized a large quantity of counterfeit England shirts, FIFA World Cup badges and £2,000 in cash.

In Sheffield, officers seized counterfeit football shirts from a storage facility and £10,000 in cash from a residential premises. The merchandise found in Leeds and Sheffield is thought to be worth an estimated loss to the industry of £250,000. A further £250,000 worth of counterfeit shirts were seized during raids in Bristol and Northampton.

Detective Sergeant Matthew Hussey, from City Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) said: “The increased demand for merchandise from fans who want to show support for their team makes major sporting events like the World Cup a lucrative opportunity for counterfeiters.

“We regularly see links between the counterfeit goods trade and organised criminal groups. Counterfeiting is one of the primary methods used by these groups to make money, and enables them to fund serious offences such as drugs trafficking and money laundering.

“We would always urge fans to think twice before buying fake merchandise, and will continue to work with our partners to take action against those who sell it.”

A spokesman for City of London Police confirmed all those arrested have since been released under investigation.

England kick off their Group B campaign against Iran at 1pm on Monday (November 21).

Marcus Evans, Deputy Director of Intelligence and Law Enforcement at the Intellectual Property Office, said: “As football fans get ready to support their favourite team at the World Cup, criminal networks are seeking to exploit their loyalty for their own financial gain by targeting the market with illegal counterfeit products – with little or no regard for their quality or safety.”