Tag: FIFA World Cup

Icons and Diego: The Story of Maradona’s Exclusive Signing Partner

October 2, 2026
From Our CEO Uncategorized

Forty years after Mexico 1986, Diego Maradona is still the player every great is measured against. Icons.com was his worldwide exclusive signing partner; the last contract Diego ever signed was with us, and today we still hold the exclusive licence to sell his signed memorabilia. This is the story behind our Diego Maradona signed memorabilia.

Icons and Diego

Diego Maradona and Edward Freedman

Our relationship with Diego ran for almost two decades. When our CEO Dan Jamieson and our late chairman Edward Freedman met him in Buenos Aires in May 2010, Icons.com already held a worldwide exclusive signing contract with him.

That first meeting is part of Icons history. Late one night, the call came, “Diego will see you now”, and the team grabbed every item they could carry and headed to, of all places, his mum’s house. He was manager of Argentina at the time, weeks away from taking Lionel Messi to the FIFA World Cup™ in South Africa, and he even added a dedication for Wayne Rooney. Two more sessions followed after he moved to Dubai, where Dan was a guest at Diego’s house.

It was never simple. One session took a full week because Diego had let his whole team go and wasn’t seeing anyone. A later attempt to bring him back left us holding boxes of unsigned shirts, boots, and photos for three years. We waited.

The last contract

In July 2020, at the end of a 20-month negotiation, Diego re-signed a worldwide exclusive contract with Icons.com. The world was in lockdown, and we couldn’t be in the room, as we usually are, so the shirts, boots, photos and footballs were shipped directly to him. On 5 August 2020, the confirmation arrived: photos and videos of Diego signing our products, cigar in hand.

A second shipment followed in September. After his brain surgery that November, Diego spent part of his rehabilitation signing the rest of our products. He died on 25 November 2020, aged 60, with the work all but finished.

“We must be proud that it was the last contract he signed, and that he worked on it to the end.”
Sport & Life, Diego’s agents

Read Dan’s full account in From Our CEO: The Inside Story of Diego & Icons, or browse the Diego Maradona signed collection.

Mexico 1986, forty years on

This summer marked forty years since Diego captained Argentina to the FIFA World Cup™ in Mexico. Against England in the quarter-final at the Azteca, he scored twice in four minutes, the second a solo run later voted FIFA’s Goal of the Century. Two more followed against Belgium in the semi-final, and he set up Jorge Burruchaga’s winner in the 3-2 final against West Germany. He left with the Golden Ball as the best player at the tournament.

At club level, he made Napoli champions of Italy twice, in 1987 and 1990, and won the UEFA Cup in 1989, after spells at Boca Juniors and Barcelona. His standard still holds: in July, Jude Bellingham became the first player since Diego in 1986 to score twice in consecutive World Cup knockout matches.

Proof in every piece

Icons.com holds the exclusive licence to sell Diego Maradona signed memorabilia. Every Maradona piece on Icons.com is hand-signed by Diego Maradona and comes with a certificate of authenticity from Icons.com and our lifetime guarantee. Our 2020 signings were recorded in photos and video of Diego at work.

“Icons is the only place to buy genuine products hand-signed by Diego.”
Dan Jamieson, CEO of Icons.com

The collection

Available now:

As the Home of Messi signed memorabilia, we’ve also brought Argentina’s two World Cup-winning captains together in one piece: the Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi official FIFA World Cup™ dual frame.

Explore the full Diego Maradona signed collection.

We keep memorabilia to stay close to the people whose talent made us love the game. Bringing Diego closer to his fans, from Buenos Aires to Naples and everywhere in between, remains one of the proudest parts of our story.

Official. Authentic. Exclusive.


Icons and Jude: Inside Bellingham’s First Exclusive Signing

Jude Bellingham Icons
September 23, 2026
Announcements

Ahead of the FIFA World Cup™, Jude Bellingham signed a new memorabilia partnership with Icons.com. Days later, he began the tournament of his life, scoring seven goals and winning the Bronze Boot. The pieces he signed for us in Madrid, at the first signing session of his career, are available now on Icons.com and nowhere else.

Icons and Jude

Announced in June, ahead of the tournament, the partnership makes Icons.com the exclusive home of official hand-signed Jude Bellingham memorabilia. It puts him alongside Lionel Messi at the heart of Icons: two generations of the game, both signing exclusively with us.

“I’m pleased to partner exclusively with Icons.com ahead of such a huge moment in my career. Connecting with fans around the world is incredibly important to me, and this partnership gives supporters the chance to own authentic pieces that celebrate some special memories.”
Jude Bellingham

“Jude is one of the defining footballers of his generation. We’re thrilled to welcome him to the Icons family and look forward to bringing fans exclusive products during the FIFA World Cup 2026 and beyond.”
Dan Jamieson, CEO of Icons.com

The first signing

By the time the deal was announced, Jude had already sat down with us. On 22 May 2026, at a private signing session in Madrid, he held the first signing session of his career. With the World Cup on the horizon, England came first: 2026 home and away shirts and official FIFA World Cup™ adidas Predator boots. He also signed UEFA Champions League footballs and Real Madrid home shirts from 2023-24 and 2024-25, his first two seasons at the club.

Proof in every piece

Every item is hand-signed by Jude Bellingham and TripleLock™ authenticated, our authentication system developed with Crane Authentication, the world leader in brand protection. Each piece comes with a certificate of authenticity from Icons.com carrying a photo of the moment it was signed, stamped with the date and location, plus our lifetime guarantee.

A tamper-proof hologram on the item matches the one on its certificate, and an encrypted NFC tag lets you tap your phone to see its full authentication record. Three independent checks, linking the piece, the certificate, and the record for life.

Browse the Jude Bellingham signed collection.

From Birmingham to the Bernabéu

Bellingham made his Birmingham City debut at 16, and the club retired his number 22 shirt when he left for Borussia Dortmund in 2020. Three seasons in Germany ended with the Bundesliga Player of the Season award, and in June 2023 Real Madrid brought him to Spain.

He won La Liga and the UEFA Champions League in his first season at the club, and was named La Liga Player of the Season. The Ballon d’Or’s Kopa Trophy followed in 2023. For England, his stoppage-time overhead kick against Slovakia at UEFA EURO 2024 is already one of the great Three Lions moments.

At 23, he is the player Real Madrid and England build around, and a modern Icon of the game still writing his story.

A summer to remember

Bellingham scored in the group stage wins over Croatia and Panama, then twice against Mexico and twice more against Norway, becoming the first player to score twice in consecutive World Cup knockout matches since Diego Maradona in 1986.

The semi-final brought England face to face with Lionel Messi’s Argentina, who came from behind to win 2-1 in Atlanta. Bellingham added his seventh goal in the third-place win over France, as England finished third, their best World Cup for 60 years.

He left North America with the Bronze Boot and a place in the FIFA Dream XI, and along the way became the youngest England men’s player to win 50 caps. Seven goals, more than any Three Lions player has ever scored at a major tournament.

As the Home of Messi-signed memorabilia and Jude’s exclusive signing partner, we’ve brought our two partners together in one piece: the Messi and Bellingham official FIFA World Cup™ dual frame.

The collection

Signed at the Madrid session, highlights include:

Explore more from England and Real Madrid, or the full Jude Bellingham signed collection.

Official. Authentic. Exclusive.


Gracias, Capitán: Messi Retires from International Football

September 2, 2026
Announcements

There will never be another chapter like it. After more than two decades in the famous number 10 shirt, Lionel Messi has announced his retirement from international football — closing the greatest individual story the international game has ever seen.

It began with a teenager so slight the shirt seemed to wear him, and it ends with the most decorated player in Argentina’s history: a FIFA World Cup™ winner, a multiple Copa América champion, his country’s record goalscorer and its most-capped player. Between those two points lie twenty years of moments the sport will never forget, and a few heartbreaks that made the triumphs mean more.

The Long Road to Qatar

What made Messi’s international career so beloved was that it wasn’t easy. There was the agony of the 2014 final in the Maracanã, defeats on penalties in successive Copa América finals, and even a brief retirement in 2016, reversed because Argentina simply refused to imagine the shirt without him.

Then came the golden years. The 2021 Copa América, his first senior international trophy, was won in Brazil of all places, followed by the night that completed football: 18 December 2022, Lusail, the World Cup final for the ages. Messi lifting the trophy in Qatar wasn’t just Argentina’s third star; it felt like the game itself settling a debt.

He gave it one final summer in 2026, captaining the holders all the way to the final on American soil at the age of 39. It wasn’t to be; a brilliant Spain side saw to that, but the ovation that followed him around stadiums in the United States, Canada and Mexico all tournament long said everything. The world knew it was watching him in the albiceleste for the last time.

Our Twenty Years with Leo

At Icons, this moment lands differently. We have worked with Leo since he was 17 years old, before the Ballon d’Ors, before the trophies, when he had only just broken into the FC Barcelona first team. He is not simply an incredible player; he is the longest partnership in our history, and the heart of everything Icons has become.

Across two decades and several signing sessions every year, we have watched that famous hand sign thousands of shirts, balls, boots and photographs. In 2014, together, we launched the first officially licensed memorabilia range ever created for an individual player, Official Lionel Messi Signed Memorabilia, and we have been his exclusive signed memorabilia partner throughout the era that took him from prodigy to world champion.

Some of those signatures now sit in collections on every continent. Every one of them tells the same story: an authentic connection to the greatest of all time, made in person, pen on fabric, the closest a fan can get to the moments he gave us.

The Shirts That Say Argentina


Leo will keep playing club football, and we will keep working alongside him as we always have. But the Argentina chapter is now complete, and the signed shirts, World Cup pieces and framed displays created across our partnership have become something new today: artefacts of a finished masterpiece.

From signed Argentina 2022 World Cup shirts to dual-signed displays alongside the next generation, the Official Lionel Messi Signed Collection is where that story lives on.

Gracias, Capitán. It has been the honour of our lifetime to sign alongside you.


Play the Icons Predictors

Icons_Predictor
August 13, 2026
Announcements

From the World Cup to every gameweek: play the Icons Predictors

Last summer, football fans didn’t just watch the FIFA World Cup™ — almost 50,000 of you predicted it. Our free-to-play World Cup Predictor became one of the most-played things we’ve ever put on Icons.com. And it turns out you can’t have just one. So we’ve built a whole line-up of football predictors, and there’s a hand-signed shirt to win in every single one.

It started with the World Cup

The 2026 FIFA World Cup™ Predictor was simple: fill in the full bracket, call the daily scorelines, and pick your Golden Boot and Golden Ball — all for free. 49,157 of you entered, played along through every round to the final, and watched Spain lift the trophy after a 1–0 win over Argentina.

Two players walked away with the top prizes. Chan Pak Hong submitted the most accurate bracket of the lot and won a hand-signed Lionel Messi shirt. ABiliouris finished at the top of the Daily Scores leaderboard and won an official FIFA World Cup signed and Hero Framed shirt.

Missed it? See the results and winners →

The predictors are back — for every competition

The World Cup only comes round every four years. Football doesn’t stop, and neither do the predictors. Here’s what you can play right now.

Champions League Predictor

Pick your final four: who lifts the trophy, who they beat in the final, and the two teams they knock out along the way. Lock it in before the league phase kicks off. Call it right, and you win a signed shirt from a Champions League winner — and as the home of official UEFA Champions League® memorabilia, we’ve got the shirt to match. [Make your prediction →]

Ballon d’Or Predictor

Reckon you know who’s taking the game’s biggest individual award? Build your top five, from the winner down, before the ceremony. Icons.com is the home of official Ballon d’Or™ memorabilia, and there’s a signed shirt from a Ballon d’Or winner up for grabs. [Make your prediction →]

Gameweek Predictor — Premier League, Serie A and LaLiga

This is the one you play every single week. Each gameweek, we pick the six biggest fixtures, and you predict the exact scores. Nail the scoreline, three points; get the result right, one. Points stack up on a season-long leaderboard, and whoever finishes at the top in May wins a hand-signed shirt from a title-winning club. Pick your league:

Free to play. Real shirts to win.

Every predictor is free, takes a couple of minutes, and puts a hand-signed shirt on the line. Make your calls, climb the leaderboards, and while you’re here, take a look at the official signed collections behind the prizes.

Shop signed football memorabilia →


The Road to B Corp Status

The Road To B Corp Status
December 30, 2025
From Our CEO

The Road to B Corp Status: Icons Shop Ltd’s 10-Step Journey Toward Certified Sustainability
By Dan Jamieson, CEO

When we started Icons.com, our mission was to connect fans with authentic pieces of football history. But as we’ve grown, so has our responsibility to the communities and planet that make this beautiful game possible.

That’s why we’ve embarked on one of our most ambitious goals yet: achieving B Corp certification.

B Corp status isn’t just a logo; it’s one of the world’s most rigorous certifications for social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency. Only companies that meet the highest verified standards earn it.

Our journey hasn’t been easy. From overhauling our supply chain and packaging to restructuring governance and employee wellbeing programs, we’ve transformed how we operate at every level. We’ve audited our carbon footprint, introduced community initiatives supporting grassroots football, and committed to full transparency in our impact reporting.

In the video above, I walk through all 10 steps we’ve taken, the challenges we faced, the changes we made, and why this matters for a sports memorabilia company.

Because if we’re going to profit from the sport that brings millions together, we have an obligation to operate with integrity, give back to communities, and protect the planet for future generations.

Watch the full journey above, and join us as we work toward certification.

For any enquiries or updates with B Corp, please contact customersupport@icons.com


FROM OUR CEO: Messi Is In America. Now We Are Too.

June 18, 2025
Announcements From Our CEO

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.

Myself (centre), Scott Hutchison (left), and Ben Soley (right) at the infamous Liverpool v Chelsea clash of 2014
Scott Hutchison celebrates “like José” at Anfield in 2014

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.


Icons Features in HPP Business Podcast on Global Success

High Performance Podcast
May 30, 2025
From Our CEO

We’re pleased to share that our CEO, Dan Jamieson, recently attended a special panel recording of the High Performance Podcast, focused on the theme of successful exporting in business.

Dan was personally invited to the session, following Icons’ participation in a High Performance Away Day — an experience where our team worked directly with Jake Humphrey and Damian Hughes to sharpen our team dynamics, refine our business strategy, and push ourselves to be the very best. It was a powerful experience that helped shape our culture and vision, and continues to inspire us to build a truly iconic place to work.

Held before an invited audience, the episode features a lively and insightful discussion on the challenges and opportunities of expanding brands into international markets. Representing Icons, Dan posed a question to the panel at around 34:50 🎧 Listen to the full episode here:

Spotify – HPP Exporting Business Special

As Dan mentioned during the session, Icons.com exports to over 110 countries worldwide — a testament to our global reach and appeal. Icons is now a registered US business, with a dedicated team, warehouse, and operating facility in place, and a dedicated US website launching soon. It’s a major step forward in expanding our global presence and improving service to our customers across North America.

2026 is set to be a landmark year for Icons.com, as we head into the FIFA World Cup as the exclusive licensee for signed memorabilia, delivering the world’s largest collection of autographed items from football’s biggest names.

With over 1.4 million followers across our brands, we’re proud to be the most followed memorabilia company on the planet.

Thanks to the High Performance Podcast for having us on. We’re always proud to be part of the conversation around building bold, export-ready brands, and getting our deserved recognition on platforms like this helps reinforce Icons’ growing profile as the world’s leading football memorabilia company.

Shop The World’s Best at www.icons.com


ANDY BRASSELL: World′s Best XI

November 29, 2024
Discounts and Sales

World football expert ANDY BRASSELL talks through our selections for the World’s Best XI, introducing some of the incredible icons whose shirts are 50% OFF on Icons.com throughout our Black Friday sales event.

From Gianluigi Buffon to Cafu, Zinedine Zidane and, of course, Lionel Messi, Andy takes us through each icon and why they’re a part of our World’s Best XI sale.

Get 50% OFF each player in our World’s Best XI sale on Icons.com until Monday December 9th with regular substitutions adding new icons and more amazing savings!