The Beckham soccer jersey story ... or How not to be a chump when buying a hero Replica Jersey, Part II

Suffice to say, you need to be careful when buying soccer replica jerseys on eBay... especially careful when buying hero jerseys. Bottom line: If you buy from a less than reputable dealer, in a country other than your own, you're just asking for trouble.

Knockoff Beckham Jerseys are a brisk business on eBay. David may not have started a game for the LA Galaxy, but that hasn't stopped the bootleggers.

I bought this handsome Beckham Real Madrid replica jersey on eBay a few years back. I got it for a good price, from an honest eBay seller here in the States.



Looks pretty nice, doesn't it? My son's eyes lit up when he saw the Real Madrid Jersey and he was absolutely stoked when he turned it around to see the Beckham #23 on the back (the same number that Becks is now wearing with the Galaxy). But the kid wasn't so happy the next afternoon, when he came back from school. Much to his chagrin, the numbering had started to peel off the back off the jersey.



I wasn't worried about a little bit of mud splattered on the shirt (hey, it's a soccer jersey, after all), but I was quite dismayed that the numbering had started to peel off.

Here's a closer look at the peeling numbers:



Now I was fortunate to have purchased the Beckham jersey from a reputable eBay seller. I sent him an email to let him know what had happened and he immediately offered to replace the jersey, free of charge. Apparently, the numbering and letter wasn't properly applied.

We were greatly relieved to hear this. And I was very glad that I had purchased the Beckham jersey from someone right here in the states, and even more importantly, someone that cared.

I sent the peeling jersey back to the seller and waited. It took a little while for him to get back to us, but he did indeed patch things up ... a neatly done non-peeling jersey landed in our mailbox a week or so later. And the seller even included a nifty Real Madrid key fob, to boot.

Take a look at the Beckham auctions going on now on eBay and you're likely to find LA Galaxy, Real Madrid, England national team, and even some antique Manchester United jersey's with Beck's name and number. But be warned ... what looks like an official jersey, whether or not it has tags, may not be the real thing ...