Tag: FC Barcelona

Why We Love Ronaldinho, The Smiley Samba Star

June 9, 2017
Why We Love

Let’s face it, everyone loves Ronaldinho.

The former Paris Saint-Germain, FC Barcelona and AC Milan legend is one of our heroes here at Icons.com. The Brazilian embodied the samba style that defined a generation, while winning UEFA Champions League and FIFA World Cup winner’s medals with that trademark grin on his face and a song in his boots.

Because it wasn’t just his outrageous skill and unstoppable flair that made him great. Oh no. It was the way he played the game as if still on the rough streets of Porto Alegre, dribbling the ball past his dog Bombom or scoring 23 goals for his local youth team. He made seasoned defenders in the prime of their distinguished careers look like schoolchildren. He baffled goalkeepers.

So, to celebrate the launch of our brand new and exclusive range of Ronaldinho signed items, we’ve compiled a short list of what it is we love about him. Of course, there are innumerable reasons why football fans adore the man who for a period in the mid-noughties was the hero of every street footballer, but we’ll leave it to you to tell us what we’ve missed from our list…

He’s good at football in all its forms

Table football is a real thing and of course Ronaldinho is good at it.

He set up Leo Messi for the Argentine’s first ever goal

It shouldn’t have been legal for Barcelona to have these two on the same team.

He’s scored some pretty outrageous goals himself

The goal of a lifetime for most; just another standard, gravity-defying overhead kick for this man.

Some of them will stay with us forever

Even today’s stars struggle to re-create the Ronnie magic…

His control of the ball was absolute

This deserved more than simple applause, Frank. Come on.

No, seriously, footballs obeyed his every command

This is what Ronnie called ‘a warm up’.

He was pretty good from dead ball situations

Simply unstoppable.

But he still found joy in scoring the simplest of tap-ins

That poor, poor keeper.

He’s still got and will probably never lose it…

Hands up if you think a 37-year-old Ronnie could still do it for your team…

Shop from our full range of 100% authentic Ronaldinho signed items by visiting our dedicated R10 page…

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Anatomy of An Icons Signing: Behind The Scenes With FOOTY.com

July 1, 2016
Signing Sessions

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Earlier this year we invited our friends from the football price comparison site FOOTY.com to come with us to a signing with one of the world’s best footballers. It just so happened that player was Barcelona‘s Argentinean superstar and global phenomenon Lionel Messi. From the FOOTY.com blog, here’s what Michael Lowdon thought of one our sessions with the world’s best…

As I drove down the A1 in torrential rain to FOOTY.com HQ, another wet day in the North East lay ahead. Or so I thought. By 10pm I was in Barcelona, enjoying a warm night, as the atmosphere of the UEFA Champions League clash with Atletico Madrid spilled out of the Nou Camp and onto the city’s streets. Our friends over at Icons.com had given us an invite to join them in the Catalan capital to get an insight into the workings of a player signing session. The player in question: Mr Lionel Messi.

Home of one of the best club sides in the history of the game, with arguably the greatest player to have kicked a football, the journey to the airport required regular pinching.

Being a frequent visitor to the Icons.com website, I was intrigued to see what goes on behind the scenes at a signing. After meeting Ali and Ben at Heathrow, the first task was to help with checking in of a number of packed suitcases, all of which were full to the brink with Messi memorabilia to be signed. From his latest adidas boot collection to a range of Barcelona and Argentina shirts, UEFA Champions League balls and glossy photo prints, the Icons team took a wide range of products ready for the Argentine’s penwork.

Once we had landed in Barcelona, the breathless Catalan commentary of the night’s match blared through the taxi’s radio, as we used our best broken Spanish to get the driver on our side. The hotel Icons put us up in was a stone’s throw away from the Camp Nou, meaning towards the end of journey the surrounding streets were filled with endless queues of mopeds, carrying relieved and joyous Cules late into the night. After more trolley pushing and the hotel bellboy’s help, we retired to the hotel bar, filled with the debate between fans. A quick night cap and a briefing for the next day’s signing rounded off a day which had started with a quiet, rainy morning in the office.

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FOOTY.com check out our signing photos – a key for authenticity

With signing day upon us, there was no time for a lie in and we were locked away in the hotel’s store room, preparing the cases and deciding what needed to be taken as a priority. It was the “less glamourous side of the signings” I was told, but as a Messi disciple and football merch geek I was like a pig in muck! Selections of football shirts and boots were asking to be jumped into and drooled over. Composed and professional, I managed to hide my excitement, just. As the deadline loomed, we met player liaison officer Jesus, Icons Founder Edward and CEO Dan outside of the Barcelona training ground and dissected Atleti’s defensive resilience, which would help them later progress to the semi final. Bumping into Pep’s superstar agent brother Pere Guardiola and a handful of other important figures, the team were escorted into the training centre to get the session underway.

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Messi is delighted to receive a shirt signed by fellow Icon Wayne Rooney

Having been signed to Icons for over a decade, making it one of his longest running commercial relationships, Messi knows what to expect when he’s faced with another Icons memorabilia signing session and he quickly got about his business. Icons exclusively produce the official Messi signed range as part of their license with the Argentine superstar. He breaks from the rhythm of signing to get his photo lifting a signed Wayne Rooney shirt that he’s received from the England captain, smiling with that grin we’ve come to recognise after more than 500 career goals.

The session draws to a close with Messi needed elsewhere – those five Ballon d’Ors won’t polish themselves you know. With yet another successful session in the bag, we retreat back to the hotel bar as the team celebrate. Messi is just one of a glittering list of current players which sign for Icons, including Neymar Jr, Luis Suarez, Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale, Sergio Aguero and many more. Not a bad forward line to have on your books! As the dust settles from the Messi signing, we relax with a meal in the shadow of La Sagrada Familia, unwinding as each Wolfsburg goal against Real Madrid raises a roar from the locals. We could get used to this!

Icons and FOOTY.com join the fans outside the Barcelona training ground

Icons and FOOTY.com join the fans outside the Barcelona training ground

It’s been a whirlwind 48 hours for FOOTY.com, but for Icons it’s simply another day at the office. They’ll do it all again before long, as they met Eric Cantona in Lisbon and Gareth Bale in Madrid before April comes to end. The team also reveal which players are on their radar to sign next, what affects their choice and whether the enigmatic Ronaldinho is within their grasp.

From logistically planned trolley runs to preparing products for smoother signings, it’s all in a day’s work, in the crazy job that is chasing footballers around the world. As FOOTY.com has come to realise, there’s a story behind every signing. We can’t thank Icons enough for inviting us along to their private signing session with the most in demand footballer on the planet. The care and effort they put into organising every aspect of the signing, from their planning, unrivalled authenticity they strive for and their relationships with players is something to be inspired by.

FOOTY.COM is the UK’s leading price comparison when it comes to everything football. We specialise in searching the web to bring you the best prices and biggest savings on products from boots to balls and everything in between. Shop with FOOTY.COM to pay less and play more!

Shop from our full range of official Lionel Messi signed items here.

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How to buy a genuine Lionel Messi signed shirt: A guide to avoiding fakes & unofficial dealers

April 15, 2016
Guides and FAQs

When searching through Ebay and around the web for a Lionel Messi signed shirt you will be presented with a wide range of items and sellers. Naturally, without the proper experience or research, there can be many potential pitfalls involved in buying signed football memorabilia. So, here are some handy tips to abide by…

The most obvious of which is to be sure of the authenticity of the item. Many sellers will tell you a player has genuinely signed their product. But how can you know for sure that you are not purchasing a fake or printed signature? The techniques used by fraudulent sellers can be very convincing and it is not always easy to identify a fake. So, when you buy a signed Lionel Messi shirt from Icons, we try to put your mind at ease by providing you with the following:

  • An Official Messi Signed Merchandise certificate – Icons is the only place you can buy officially licensed Lionel Messi signed memorabilia. All of our products are supplied with a hologrammed Certificate of Authenticity, which provides key information and shows a photo of Lionel Messi signing the item.
  • Photo proof – We are happy to provide a wide range of photos that clearly show Messi at a closed signing session arranged and conducted by Icons.
  • Video proof – Icons have a unique style of authentication video, which showcase both our products and our connection to the players who sign for us.
  • Signing date & location – We know exactly where and when our items were signed and we’re more than happy to disclose this information for the sake of authentication. All our items come from closed signing sessions, ensuring not only the authenticity but also the quality of each autograph.

When you are looking for Lionel Messi signed shirts online, you should use these points as a checklist from which to compare other sellers. If they can’t provide any of these things, ask yourself why not?

More information about Icons Shop Ltd

Icons Shop Ltd is the world’s leading football memorabilia company and Icons is the most trusted brand in the game. Authenticity is everything to us, as it is everything to our customers.

In 2014, Icons launched the first ever individually licensed memorabilia range: the Official Lionel Messi Signed Merchandise collection. We are the only company Lionel Messi and his management team trust to work with and the 2015-16 season marks the tenth year of Icons’ working-relationship with the Argentine superstar. In fact, we signed with him when he had just broken into the Barcelona first team, way back in 2006.

All Icons products come from private signing sessions in which the player is paid a fee for their service. We never, ever accost players outside the training grounds and we never, ever buy products from companies who do this. We deal directly with the players’ trusted representatives. Very often the players will donate the fees to either a charity of their choosing or a foundation to which they are directly associated. And because we have worked with the players and their agents for many years, they trust us and often personally recommend us to one another.

For all these reasons and more, you can rely on Icons as a trusted source for signed memorabilia, so if you’re looking for a Lionel Messi shirt that has been signed by the man himself, we suggest you look no further.

Click here to view all our officially licensed Lionel Messi signed memorabilia.

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Why We Love Messi’s 300 La Liga Goals

February 18, 2016
Why We Love

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With the opening goal of FC Barcelona‘s 3-1 victory over Sporting Gijon on Wednesday evening, Lionel Messi became the first player in the history of La Liga to reach 300 league goals. So, to celebrate Messi’s landmark achievement, the staff of icons.com have picked their favourite of Messi’s now 301 goals in the Spanish topflight.

But, with over 300 efforts to choose from, it’s inevitable that we would leave out a number of amazing goals. So, let us know if we’ve left out your favourite goal by getting in touch on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. And don’t forget, we have a wide range of official Lionel Messi signed memorabilia available to buy on icons.com right now. So check it out and grab yourself a wonderful item from one of the greatest players in football history.

Goal Number 1 (vs Albacete, May 1st, 2005)

This is where it all began. Lionel Messi‘s very first goal for Barcelona was a classic. Sent clear by Ronaldinho, a 17-year-old Leo steadies himself, sizes up the onrushing goalkeeper and cooly lobs it into the back of the net to get off the mark in La Liga. Everything is perfect here, from Ronaldinho’s awesome dinked pass to the fact it seals the points for Barca in the dying seconds of a typical Camp Nou victory. Simply historic. – Alistair Hunter

Goal Number 78 (vs Real Zaragoza, March 21st, 2010)

Similar to his Copa del Rey goal against Getafe, this solo effort is just incredible. It’s a goal that reminded me of Diego Maradona’s against England because Messi has the ball for so long and I don’t think I’ve ever seen so much skill and control in an individual effort. It’s also great because he shows tremendous strength to win the ball in the first place and then the quickness in his feet to take past that first opponent is magical. Superb stuff. – Edward Freedman

Goal Number 158 (vs Getafe, April 10th, 2012)

Has there ever been a midfielder-striker partnership as good as Andres Iniesta and Lionel Messi? I think this goal, with the quality of the one-two between Andres and Leo, shows off what was and still is an incredible duo. The neat interplay between the two is amazing to watch, but then there’s the power of Messi’s finish. This is a goal of real style and class. – Ben Soley

Goal Number 276 (vs Almeria, April 8th, 2015)

If you rush to him, Messi dribbles past you. If you stay put, the Argentine magician does this. Defensively, there is not much more Almeria could do. But Messi makes top level footballers look like amateurs on a weekly basis. The nonchalance with which he impossibly bends the ball around well-placed defenders is something only one player on Earth could do. With a phenomenon like Messi you can’t really win. That’s why Messi is Messi and the rest just trail in his wake. – Jack O’Neill

Which of Messi’s La Liga goals is your favourite? Let us know by checking out this incredible video of all of his 301 La Liga goals.

Shop from our full range of official Lionel Messi signed items here.

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CLOSED | WIN a Nike boot signed by Cristiano Ronaldo Or Neymar Jr!

February 5, 2016
Giveaways & Competitions

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It’s competition time! To celebrate the birthdays of global football superstars Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar Jr on Friday February 5th, Icons are giving you the chance to win a signed boot from one of these two awesome players.

All you need to do to be in with a chance of winning this incredible prize is to head over to our Facebook page and give us a like or follow us on Twitter and keep an eye out for our posts and tweets relating to the competition. You’ll need to like or retweet one of those related posts as well as like or follow us on Facebook or Twitter to be in the draw for a boot. When the draw closes on Friday February 12th at 12pm GMT, we’ll be picking one lucky winner from both Facebook and Twitter.

Good luck!

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Terms & Conditions
1) The promoter of this competition is Icons Shop Ltd, whose registered office is at Highgate Business Centre, 33 Greenwood Place, London, NW5 1LB, UK. 2) Employees of Icons Shop Ltd, their family members or anyone else connected in any way with the competition or helping to set up the competition shall not be permitted to enter the competition. 3) There is no entry fee and no purchase necessary to enter this competition. 4) Closing date for entry will be Friday February 12th at 12pm GMT. After this date no further entries to the competition will be permitted. 5) No responsibility can be accepted for entries not received after the closing date for whatever reason. 6) The promoter reserves the right to cancel or amend the competition and these terms and conditions without notice. Any changes to the competition will be notified to entrants as soon as possible by the promoter. 7) The promoter is not responsible for inaccurate prize details supplied to any entrant by any third party connected with this competition. 8) No cash alternative to the prizes will be offered. The prizes are not transferable. Prizes are subject to availability and we reserve the right to substitute any prize with another of equivalent value without giving notice. 9) Winners will be chosen at random from all entries received and verified by Icons Shop Ltd and or its agents. 10) Winners will receive one signed boot from a player of their choice between Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar Jr. 11) Entry to this competition constitutes either one of the following; the entrant must “like” the official Facebook page of the promoter and “like” one or more “post” relating to the competition on Facebook or; “follow” the official Twitter page of the promoter and “retweet” one or more “tweet” relating to the competition on Twitter. 12) The winner will be notified via the social media channel from which they entered the competition within 28 days of the closing date. If the winner cannot be contacted or does not claim the prize within three days of notification, we reserve the right to withdraw the prize from the winner and pick a replacement winner. 13) The promoter will notify the winner of how the prize can be collected. 14) The promoter’s decision in respect of all matters to do with the competition will be final and no correspondence will be entered into. 15) By entering this competition, an entrant is indicating his/her agreement to be bound by these terms and conditions. 16) The competition and these terms and conditions will be governed by English law and any disputes will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England. 17) The winner agrees to the use of his/her name and image in any publicity material. Any personal data relating to the winner or any other entrants will be used solely in accordance with current UK data protection legislation and will not be disclosed to a third party without the entrant’s prior consent. 18) Entry into the competition will be deemed as acceptance of these terms and conditions. 19) This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook, Twitter or any other Social Network.

Go Behind The Scenes Of Our Signing With Andres Iniesta With Our Brand New Video

December 4, 2015
Signing Sessions Videos

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Andres Iniesta is one of Spanish football’s greatest ever players. When Barcelona manager Luis Enrique called him “a national monument” after the team’s 4-0 thumping of Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu in November 2015, few could argue with him. That’s because, put simply, Iniesta is one of the very best in the game today.

So is it any wonder the midfield maestro is one of our most popular Icons?

Now you too can go behind the scenes of our latest signing with Andres with our fantastic new signing video, which showcases our close connection with the Barcelona superstar, who has signed with us since 2011.

In his fourth session with Icons, Andres happily signed a wide range of Barcelona and Spain shirts, home and away, as well as a selection of action photos and his very own Nike boots.

For the full range of Iniesta signed shirts, boots, balls and photos, head over to icons.com today and don’t forget to enter the discount code “JAN16SALE” for 20% off on selected items throughout January.

andres-inesta-signed-barcelona-shirt_1_andres-inesta-matchworn-signed-spain-shirt For a full report on our signing session with Andres, click here. Photos courtesy of Matt Hardy. For more images of Icons’ visit to Barcelona, visit www.matthardyphotography.co.uk.

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Icons Visits Barcelona’s Training Ground To Meet Luis Suarez

December 1, 2015
Signing Sessions

Having met with Lionel Messi and Andres Iniesta on Friday and Sunday respectively, Icons rounded off a fantastic weekend of signings by spending Monday morning with fellow FC Barcelona superstar Luis Suarez at the club’s training ground, La Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper.
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The Icons team arrived shortly before the players’ first session of the day and were greeted by flashing cameras as eager fans tried to snap a photo of their heroes going to work.

Setting ourselves up in a private room within the impressive facilities, Icons eagerly awaited an in-form Luis, who arrived ten minutes later, wearing Barca’s blue and yellow training kit and a cheeky smile on his face.FCB

Although the signing was brief, we still found time to chat to Luis about La Blaugrana’s title hopes and the team’s upcoming trip to Japan for this year’s FIFA Club World Cup. Having expressed his excitement for the rest of the season, Luis also revealed the statue of himself that is to be erected in his hometown of Salto in Uruguay would be ready in March.

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Signing a host of products including the 2015-16 Barcelona home shirt, Luis also added his signature to a photo already signed by Lionel Messi and Neymar Jr. The excellent photo shows “The Three Amigos” celebrating their famous UEFA Champions League triumph in Berlin last season.Luis-Suarez-Icons-Signing-Photos

It was a remarkable season that saw the Uruguay, Argentina and Brazil forwards score a staggering 122 goals, as Luis and Neymar both scored in the showpiece final against Juventus to securea historic treble. The photo is available in our Official UEFA Champions League framing style and with just ten of these items in the world; it’s a product that is not to be missed.

It seems that almost as soon as Luis is with us, he’s whisked away again, back to training before a litany of media appearances on a busy day as Barcelona prepare for Wednesday’s Copa Del Rey clash with Segunda side Villanovense. Luis-Suarez-Icons-Signing-Photos

With that Icons’ long weekend away with the Catalan club’s superstars is over. Flying home in high spirits, the team is ready and raring to dispatch orders from our massive Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales. So, keep your eyes glued to icons.com for our brand new range of signed products.

For our full range of Luis Suarez products, including shirts, photos, boots and balls, check out icons.com now!

Photos courtesy of Matt Hardy. For more images of Icons’ visit to Barcelona, visit www.matthardyphotography.co.uk.

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