Icons.com was launched in 1999. To give you a sense of how long ago that was, Google had gone live just a few months prior. Back then, the plan was to share stories from the players themselves while simultaneously delivering the world’s best signed sports memorabilia from a tiny office in Camden in North London directly to the doors of fans all over the world.

Twenty-six years later, we’re still doing what we do best — though now from a state-of-the-art warehouse on the south coast of the UK. That said, we’ve long since left the business of blogging to others.

In 2010, ahead of the FIFA World Cup in South Africa, we decided to make our first real push into America, having been appointed FIFA’s official memorabilia partner. We teamed up with a soccer-specific agency in the U.S., Gilt Edge Soccer Marketing, whose Managing Partner, Scott Hutchison, became our man on the ground. It was as much of a shame then as it is now that he was and is a Chelsea fan — but you can’t win them all.

I joined Scott and our chairman Edward on a two-week road trip across the States, meeting with brands, retailers and media partners. It was scrappy but exciting and full of potential. And it worked. Our U.S. presence was up and running.

Over the years, we built lasting partnerships, ran standout campaigns, supported thousands of customers, and made some unforgettable memories along the way.

Like the time in 2014 when Scott and I found ourselves in the away end at Anfield with our now Director of Sales, Ben (a Liverpool fan like me) just in time to watch Gerrard slip, Ba score, and Chelsea spoil what we thought would be a title-clinching day. Scott celebrated like José Mourinho; Ben and I kept our heads down. Brutal stuff.

Those kinds of moments — the wins, the losses, the stories — are what make this more than just business. We’ve been at this together for a long time and there have been challenges.

Turns out running both iconsusa.com and icons.com was confusing search engines more than it was helping us so, sadly, our partnership with Gilt Edge came to a close. We needed a reset.

As the great Bill Shankly once said: “If you are first, you are first. If you are second, you are nothing.” We’ve always aimed to lead and now, with more experience and a sharper focus, we’re taking another shot at getting this right.

So, here we are: launching Icons Authentics USA. It’s a fully-incorporated U.S. business, led full-time by Scott. It marks a fresh start and a renewed commitment to the game in America.

Soccer in the U.S. is booming. It’s diverse, youthful, and it’s everywhere. The momentum isn’t just about the upcoming FIFA World Cup — which, at the time of writing kicks off in less than a year — it’s what comes after that truly matters.

And it’s fitting that our biggest icon, Leo Messi, now calls the U.S. his home too. As his exclusive global memorabilia partner, we’re ready to bring his story closer to American fans than ever before.

So, America, here’s what this means for you. You’ll still find us on Icons.com, but now you can shop in U.S. dollars, speak to a customer support team based in the U.S., and receive items shipped from within the States. That means no customs, no duties and no surprises. Just a faster, smoother service — and all the usual fully-fledged authenticity you expect from us.

We’ve been at this for 26 years. We’re not going anywhere. I’ll just need to get used to calling it “soccer” and wearing “cleats” not boots.

For U.S. enquiries and business-to-business opportunities call Scott Hutchison on 773-504-7788 or email him directly on scott@icons.com. For U.S. customer support, call 630-857-9043 or email customersupport@icons.com.