Those who want to buy Iceland national soccer team replica jerseys must wait.
Iceland’s unexpected success at the 2016 UEFA European Championship has caused demand for jerseys to soar beyond its ability to supply them to all the new fans, ESPN reported Friday.
“Based on the number of emails and Facebook messages we’ve been getting, yes, we are sold out,” Iceland press officer Omar Smarason told Agance France-Presse, according to ESPN. “Demand is 1,800 percent over what was predicted, which is good on one hand but bad for everyone who has not got the shirt they wanted yet.”
Iceland earned global fame this week by upsetting England in Euro 2016’s Round of 16. The victory created a host of new Iceland fans, particularly among fans of England’s biggest rival: Scotland.
“Since the win, we have had many orders from all over the world for the Iceland kit,” Rosa Sembronio, head of marketing for Iceland’s uniform manufacturer, Erra, told Scotland’s Daily Record, according to ESPN. “But by far the greatest surge of orders has come from Scotland, Glasgow and Edinburgh in particular.
“We are determined to satisfy all the requests, and we now have our staff working day and night to satisfy demand.”
Iceland’s population is just 333,000, making it the smallest country to ever compete at a European Championship or FIFA World Cup. But the power of the sport has swollen the ranks of its supporter base. That and ancient, deep-seeded animosity between Scots and Englishmen and their enduring wit.
Thumbnail photo via YouTube/UEFA.tv
