World Cup year is the time when the sale of products linked to the World Cup and the national team gain prominence. But it is also a period of increase in the circulation of counterfeit products.
In addition to shirts, caps and other themed items, stickers from the official album are the target of piracy and irregular sales in public spaces and on the internet.
In São Paulo, sales consultant Camila Marta, 32, says she thought she was getting a good deal when she bought packs of stickers for R$5 each from a street vendor at the Sé Metro station. The price, lower than the R$7 charged by the publisher Panini, which produces the album, caught attention.
The suspicion that the stickers were fake arose when she started opening the envelopes and finding several identical images. “When I opened the first package I didn’t understand, but then I saw that it wasn’t normal”, he says.
According to Camila, the figurines had an irregular finish, matte printing and poorly made cuts. “There were one of each size. Some didn’t even have the correct album number.”
Panini recommends that consumers prioritize purchasing at authorized points of sale, physical or online, and be wary of offers with prices well below the official value. The publisher also claims that it offers a sticker pack that is evenly sealed all around, which should be a point of attention.
The São Paulo Metro press office states that it carries out continuous patrols to stop the irregular sale of products in stations and trains, as street commerce is prohibited on its premises. The company also reports that it has already seized stickers sold without authorization within the transport network, although in smaller quantities.
The ABCF (Brazilian Association to Combat Counterfeiting) says that Brazil is experiencing a growing illegal market in the country, resulting in record losses for companies and public coffers.
Last year, losses related to counterfeiting, smuggling and piracy exceeded R$514 billion, according to the 2026 Counterfeiting Yearbook, published in May by the association.
According to the survey, alcoholic beverages lead the ranking of losses, with R$89.5 billion, followed by clothing, with R$55 billion. Fuels (R$30 billion), perfumery (R$22.8 billion), agricultural pesticides (R$22 billion) and medicines (R$16.8 billion) also appear among the most affected sectors.
In May alone, an operation by Deic (State Department of Criminal Investigations) seized around 85,000 counterfeit World Cup albums and stickers, in addition to 2,000 national team shirts. The material was found in popular shopping areas in the capital of São Paulo.
The mission of completing the album also generates significant amounts. Collectors estimate that the cost of the stickers varies between R$1,200 and R$1,400 to complete an edition of the World Cup, considering the purchase of packages and the need for exchanges. Without exchanges, the value can reach R$7,362.90.
Some cards have a higher value on the parallel market, where cards are sold individually. Report from Sheet showed that special stickers of superstars, such as the Portuguese Cristiano Ronaldo and the Argentine Lionel Messi, can be advertised for up to R$2,000 on sales platforms.
In addition to physical products, experts warn about the spread of online scams. A survey by the cybersecurity company Kaspersky identified a 720% increase in the number of fraudulent websites that simulate the sale of World Cup stickers. Until mid-May, the company counted at least 164 fake domains, compared to around 20 registered in April.
According to Kaspersky, the websites reproduce the look of official stores, including a shopping cart, shipping calculation and related product sections, to convey credibility. Some even use CNPJ, physical address and fake contacts in the footer.
A survey by NordVPN, a provider of virtual private network services, says that 34% of Brazilians who use the internet reported contact with fraud related to the World Cup in the last two years.
How to identify a fake sticker
One clue is the price. Panini sells envelopes with seven stickers for R$7. When selling counterfeit products, however, offers for lower prices or promotions that promise big discounts are common.
It is also possible to observe differences in the finish. Fake packaging usually has thicker, more porous paper, more opaque printing and irregular seals.
Financial administrator Leandro Fonseca, a sticker enthusiast for over ten years, says he has received fake items without realizing it immediately. According to him, differences in numbering and the absence of codes present in the original versions are among the most common signs.
The quality of printing is usually one of the main differences in relation to original products, says delegate Victor Tuttman, from the Police Station for the Repression of Crimes against Intangible Property. Printing errors, size variations, low resolution and finishing problems may appear.
