Every year the Football Association invest more than £100 million into the game at every level, from international football to grassroots. Without the income generated from commercial activity such as sponsorship, licensing and merchandising, this would not be possible.  

Brand abuse and counterfeiting negatively affect the revenues we can generate, and therefore the monies the Football Association can invest back into the game.  

We therefore take the protection of our brand seriously and have implemented a brand protection strategy to tackle the issue of counterfeit merchandise and brand abuse. 

What is brand protection?  
Brand Protection is the action we take to prevent those persons or organisations from using our intellectual property rights without permission. Amongst other rights, the Football Association own and have invested in a range of trade marks that are registered throughout the world. Only our official partners, sponsors and licensees are authorised to use these marks. 

What is counterfeiting? 
Counterfeiting is the deliberate attempt to deceive consumers by copying, manufacturing and marketing goods bearing well known trade marks. We are proud to have such passionate fans who follow us across the globe and who wear the Three Lions badge with pride to show their support. Unfortunately, this loyalty is sometimes exploited by individuals and companies who unofficially use our name, image and marks to sell and promote their own products.  

Our Intellectual Property Trade Marks 
Our trade mark portfolio includes registered protection over the following logos:

Why protect our brand? 
Our aim is to protect football fans and protect and enhance those monies that we can reinvest back into the game. Brand abuse and counterfeiting undermines these efforts. It is therefore crucial we protect the exclusive rights of our official partners/sponsors and our merchandise revenues. Furthermore, the provenance of counterfeit goods is negative and something which the Football Association do not wish to be associated with. In addition, counterfeit product is usually of poor quality, meaning fans receive substandard product. This can lead to disappointed consumers, safety concerns and limited consumer rights, which we want to avoid. 

Who do we work with and what do we do?  
We are committed to tackling counterfeiting and brand abuse and work with a range of stakeholders, who include our legal team, Trading Standards, Customs, the Police and our brand protection agency Back Four Ltd. We proactively look to police the physical and online market places for infringing product and initiate action.  

How can you help? 
Firstly, if you intend to buy merchandise that is associated with the Football Association, please invest in official product. That way we can continue to invest and support football in this country. Secondly, if you are aware of any counterfeit Football Association merchandise, or activity, whether it be online or on markets or in retailers, please let us know so we can take action. We appreciate any information our fans provide and this will be treated in the strictest confidence. 

Should you wish to get in touch please contact us below:

Contact us  

If you wish to use any Football Association intellectual property, you will need authorisation. Unless you have authorisation you are not permitted to produce, distribute or sell any products that bear Football Association marks and this includes the production of samples to show manufacturing or product capabilities.  

We thank you for your continued support.