Spain's new two-star jersey: Official price hits €100

The double-star jersey: €100 official, €20 on the street

How much does Spain's new two-star jersey cost? It depends on who you buy it from. The official version launched this August 4th priced at €100, rising to €150 for the exact replica worn by players. But there is an uncomfortable fact for Adidas: the two-star version was already being sold in the parallel market for €20 since July 20th, two weeks before the manufacturer made a move.

Two official versions and a price chasm

Adidas has fragmented its offer as modern marketing dictates. For €100, the fan gets the 'fan' version, a jersey with different fabric and differently embroidered crest. For €150, the 'authentic', the same one used by players, with technical fabric and high-competition finishes. The total catalog range starts at €75 and peaks at €160.

The question is inevitable: if both are official, why the difference? The short answer is that the technology of the 'authentic' version costs more. The long answer is that the margin of the fan version also counts, and Adidas knows it.

The parallel market plays in another league

While the official one was presented in stores, in unofficial channels the two-star jersey had already been hanging for two weeks. Some found it for €20, with a code from a known 'influencer' for €18. And a detail that stings: they are manufactured in the same country as the official ones, Bangladesh, according to analysis exchanges.

The coincidence is not casual. Bangladesh's textile industry produces for major brands and, occasionally, the same factories generate surpluses that end up in the grey market. The quality difference, if washed cold and by hand, is hard to appreciate. The print holds up if the washing machine isn't abused, both in the official one and in the street vendor's top.

Adidas's margin under scrutiny

Here comes the painful data: the manufacturing cost of such a jersey is around €0.75, according to estimates circulating among those who have peine a textile income statement. With a selling price of €100 to €150, the margin is enormous. This explains why some speak of a 'historic scam' while another, more moderate sector defends that the price includes marketing, sponsorship and, above all, the right to crest exclusivity.

There is a third stance, the most pragmatic: everyone spends what they want. If the jersey is bought once every five years and the buyer isn't drowning, €100 is not ruin; if it is financed or done weekly, it is another story.

Whims and their tricks

Among those who don't intend to open their wallets, imaginative solutions abound. One proposed buying a loose star for €2 and sewing it onto the previous jersey. Another, more foresighted, took directly the three-star one to save the 2030 World Cup one. And some fathers confess they paid for the official one because there is no way to explain to a child why not.

The underlying issue is not the price, but what the jersey represents: an identity symbol bought and sold like any other. Meanwhile, the street vendor already has the two-star version; Adidas, the official one. The difference is only €80.