As well as identifying counterfeit product in the marketplace and removing it, Back Four are dedicated to reducing demand for fake product, by educating consumers about the harms of counterfeiting and how to differentiate between fakes and the real thing. If you took part in our latest competition, you’ll have had some fun guessing the real products from the fakes but also learning how deceiving some fakes can be.
And even if you weren’t the winner this time, we hope you’ll win in the future by avoiding counterfeits!
Have a look below at which products were fake and why – how many did you get right? We’d love to hear thoughts @backfourbp
Day 1: Sew on team badges
 | Football clubs don’t sell sew on badges. If they did it would undermine official sales of club merchandise. |
Day 2: Premier League football
 | Official Premier League footballs are produced by Nike and therefore Nike branding (the famous Swoosh mark) should be visible. In addition, you wouldn’t find the old and new Premier League logo being used. Did you spot the two different Premier League Lion marks on this ball? |
Day 3: Peppa Pig in a Wolves kit
 | You won’t find any clubs producing merchandise using cartoon or film collaborations such as Peppa Pig or the Simpsons. And really, would Peppa be a Wolves fan, no she’s supports Hamchester United? |
Day 4: West Ham United t-shirt
 | This real West Ham T-shirt stumped a few of. We recommend always looking for club branded presentation logos, swing tags and a hologram. Counterfeit products don’t tend to have any of these. |
Day 5: Manchester United lighter
 | Not only does this one have a glaring spelling mistake (UNNITED), Man Utd do not offer any smoking paraphernalia. |
Day 6: Chelsea replica shirt
 | As well as the poor design, Chelsea’s kit manufacturer is Nike, which means the Swoosh mark should be visible on the left-hand side of the chest. |
Day 7: Southampton baby grow
 | Don’t be mistaken by its cuteness, counterfeiters will copy any product. This piece of merchandise contains no club branded label in the neck area – which is the giveaway. |
Day 8: Newcastle United lighter and ashtray set
 | Although it may surprise you, some clubs do offer smoking accessories. Although none of them offer anything like this! If they do offer this type of product it will be found in official Club branded packaging with labels and a hologram. |
Day 9: England mug
 | Another tough one? This mug is real. You can tell by the official packaging and hologram. Counterfeiters can be lazy and won’t always spend time replicating either of these things. |
Day 10: Bournemouth hat
 | Surely this one was obvious! The terrible printing quality gives this one away and the item doesn’t bear the current club badge. |
Day 11: Arsenal flip flops
 | This got you talking! This product bears no official club packaging and you wouldn’t see the brand name ‘SPORT’ being used on product. |
Day 12: Premier League trophy keyring
 | This trophy keyring seemed pretty confusing to us. Firstly, the Premier league don’t offer trophy keyrings and if they did they wouldn’t have FIFA and UEFA branding on them. |
Day 13: Arsenal/Manchester United fidget spinner toy
 | Brand collaborations like this just wouldn’t happen. Did you spot the Red Devil mark being used in the background under the Arsenal logo? What would Ferguson and Wenger think? |
Day 14: Manchester City mobile phone case
 | This product is official merchandise as it bears official branded packaging and the colours are consistent with those used by the club. |
Day 15: Leicester City retro top
 | The label inside shows ‘Gildan’ branding. You are unlikely to see ‘Gildan’ or ‘Fruit of the Loom’ branding in any official products. |
Day 16: Premier League hair growth product
 | Did this one leave you pulling your hair out! With the exception of footballs, the Premier league don’t offer any official merchandise, especially not hair growth products! |
Day 17: Aston Villa pop up stadium card
 | This product doesn’t bear any official packaging and bears the old Aston Villa badge. The word ‘PREPARED’ does not feature on the current badge. |
Day 18: Liverpool keyring
 | This one might have thrown you, as the counterfeiter has made efforts to replicate packaging and club colours/branding. However, the glaring mistake is the use of the Premier League logo. This should not be found on any official Club packaging and therefore a great indicator. |
Day 19: Watford mobile phone cover
 | An easy one. A horrific brick wall design and no official club branded packaging. A counterfeit product for sure! |
Day 20: Manchester United air freshener
 | Another easy one, again this item has no official club branded packaging. |
Day 21: Manchester City iRing
 | You’re getting to grips with this now – excuse the pun! No official club branded packaging and the product bears the old Manchester City club badge, rather than the current one. |
Day 22: Pin badge board
 | You’ll never find use of the Premier League logo on product packaging and many of the club names have spelling mistakes. It’s unusual to find official product bearing multiple club badges. |
Day 23: Fulham mobile phone stand
 | This one is not packaged in official branded club packaging, so it’s a counterfeit! |
Day 24: Everton ceramic boot money box
 | This money box doesn’t bear any official club packaging and the club badge used on the product is incorrect. |
Thanks so much for playing along. We hope you were able to spot all the counterfeit products and if not have learnt a thing or two about how to avoid buying fakes. Tell us how you got on @backfourbp and don’t forget to keep up to date with all our news, tips and tricks on our social pages.