In the midst of the World Cup, some football shirts can be as difficult to obtain as the trophy itself.
The centerpiece of the supporter's panoply, the jersey in the colors of a team arouses the envy of football aficionados.
At each competition, the clothes are redesigned, with an adaptation of the cut, logos, details and colors.
That of the French team, unveiled in September, presents as its main novelty the gilding of the back flocking.
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And the excitement around national team t-shirts is growing as teams progress through the competition, with shirt sales being strongly correlated to team performance.
Hence the difficulty for jersey sellers: orders are a real gamble, as risky as gambling.
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Sports stores plan their stocks ahead of the competition, between "
one year and six months in advance
", specifies the Go Sport group, because it is almost impossible to obtain restocking according to the course of the competition due to production deadlines.
“
Risk-taking is important
,” explains Guillaume Payen, marketing communication and brand director for Intersport France.
It is indeed a question of estimating the performances of the 32 teams of the competition, but also the qualification of the 210 participating teams.
Thus, Go Sport had ordered Morocco jerseys when the country was not yet qualified.
Stores must therefore bet on the competition, based on their previous results and the fervor of their supporters.
Intersport even has a team that makes projections sent to stores, which then adapt their orders, and can decide to commit more to a nation.
Sometimes this bet turns out to be a loser.
“
The premature elimination of a nation puts a stop to sales
,” explains Guillaume Payen.
Unsold items are then sold off since “
even after elimination some supporters remain loyal to their team
”.
This is especially the case for that of Germany whose selection was eliminated in the group stage to everyone's surprise.
Same observation for Portugal, on which Go Sport had nevertheless chosen to bet big.
"
As soon as the nation is eliminated
", the brand therefore seeks to quickly dispose of surplus jerseys and even to "
have suppliers take over stocks
".
The players' jerseys are also affected by this phenomenon: the sales of those flocked in the name of Benzema have thus taken the lead in the wing with the injury of the sportsman, before the start of the competition.
Complicated start
However, retailers are suffering from seasonality, as this world championship is the first to take place in December.
Difficult, indeed, to proudly wear a short-sleeved T-shirt in the middle of winter.
Moreover, the decision of the municipalities not to set up fan zones diminishes the collective enthusiasm.
"
We are not on the history of previous World Cups
," concedes Go Sport.
Still, the brands benefit from the good performance of the French team, which will play the final against Argentina on Sunday.
On the Intersport side, "
sales started more slowly than for a summer world cup, but the beautiful course of the Blues made it possible to return to the usual standards
".
The group is now approaching 100,000 jerseys sold.
Some players are particularly popular: the jersey of Kylian Mbappé, world star of the national team, is taken by storm, so much so that it is out of stock in some Intersport stores, says Guillaume Payen.
Fortunately for the supporters, the sports equipment manufacturers had aimed wide for the jerseys of the Blues.
On the other hand, Morocco took them by surprise.
No one could have anticipated the historic performance of the Atlas Lions, except a few Intersport stores who had made this risky bet, rejoices Guillaume Payen.
Faced with reduced stocks, very high demand and the impossibility of restocking, Go Sport decided to concentrate the products on the group's website in order to "
favor as many fans as possible
".
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However, it will be necessary to be patient for those who would prefer to buy a Blues jersey adorned with three stars: sports equipment manufacturers still do not know when it will be available, if there is one day.
