EBay is blocking sales of fake versions of the new 150th anniversary Scotland football shirt. The counterfeit jerseys are available on the auction site just weeks after a Record probe discovered thousands of fakes for sale online.
Our investigation resulted in the bogus versions - which come from China and cost as little as £10 - being axed from the website AliExpress. The site removed all suspect listings of the jersey after shirt manufacturer Adidas revealed it would be investigating the cut-price counterfeits.
The genuine dark blue tops retail at £70 for kids and £90 for adults. But now more Chinese replicas, which are still being sold on website DHgate, have shown up on ebay for just under £30.
Cheeky sellers are using official pictures of the genuine jersey to plug the copycat tops. One listing described the top as a “Replica” and said: “This shirt is a copy and not bought through JD Sports”. Another described it as a “Replica” and said: “Fully tagged & in Adidas bag”.
An Adidas spokesperson said previously, when made aware of the tops on DHgate and AliExpress: “We are aware of the issue and will be investigating. As always we work hard to address any incidents of counterfeiting to make sure fans are always getting genuine Adidas products that have been extensively tested and created using premium materials.
“We would always recommend to purchase through Adidas destinations or through our trusted retail partners.” And, yesterday, after the ebay listings were brought to their attention, the spokesperson added: “All counterfeits we are made aware of will be investigated. Thanks for bringing this to our attention.”
An eBay spokesperson said: “eBay proactively blocks millions of counterfeit items from being listed every year. We use multiple layers of technology, professionally trained eBay investigators, and buyer protection programs to ensure goods sold on our platform are authentic.
“We also created the VeRO Program for intellectual property owners so they can quickly and easily report suspected counterfeit listings to us. Once a listing has been reported, our team will investigate and take action, which may include ending or cancelling listings, lowering seller ratings, and, if necessary, suspending seller accounts.
“If we receive a report related to these items from the rights owner, we will investigate and take the appropriate action, as per our VeRO Program.” DHgate was approached for comment.
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