Signs & Large Format Print
What sells, and what is better given away
Club merchandise has two completely different jobs, and it pays to separate them at the planning stage.
For sale in the club shop or on matchdays – things fans will pay for because they want to identify with the club: T-shirts, hoodies, caps, neck tubes, mugs, flags, calendars. Design and build quality matter here, because fans compare with what they see in big clubs' shops.
For giving away – at the season opener, to academy children, to new season-ticket holders, in sponsor promotions: lanyards, stickers, wristbands, team posters, pens. Unit price and quantity matter here.
The most common mistake small clubs make: ordering a big run of one product 'because it is cheaper per piece', which then sits in boxes for three seasons. Better to pay more per piece and reorder than to freeze the budget in a storeroom.
Prices of popular club merchandise
| Product | Indicative price | At a quantity of | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| A4 print on a T-shirt | approx. €3.30 / €2.35 / €1.90 | 20–49 / 50–99 / 100+ pcs | print price, T-shirt extra |
| Print on a hoodie | approx. €4 | from 20 pcs | hoodie extra |
| Print on a cap | approx. €2.60 | from 25 pcs | cap extra |
| Ceramic mug 450 ml | from approx. €6 | 100 pcs | 1-colour print |
| Bottle 750 ml | from approx. €3.05 | 100 pcs | good for academies and races |
| Steel flask 500 ml, engraved | from approx. €7 | 100 pcs | a gift for sponsors |
| Cotton bag | from approx. €2.10 | 100 pcs | 1-colour print |
| Printed pen | from approx. €0.35 | 500 pcs | for giving away |
| A2 team poster | approx. €0.85 | 100 pcs (approx. €85) | 170 g gloss art paper |
Lanyards, wristbands and neck tubes printed in club colours can be configured and priced instantly in our online shop printstrap.com. Clothing and printing are covered in more detail on the promotional clothing and textiles page, and mugs and bottles on the branded mugs, bottles and flasks page.
Flags, stand flags and stickers
A flag in club colours needs no explanation. We make flagpole flags (e.g. 150 × 90 cm, hemmed, with clips – approx. €45 net each), hand flags for fans and large flags for the stand.
With flags there is one important technical decision:
- Dye-sublimation – the dye goes through the fabric with approx. 80% show-through on the reverse, so the flag reads from both sides. The standard for waving flags and flagpoles. Approx. €12–21 net per m².
- UV print – cheaper (approx. €10–18 net per m²), but the reverse is noticeably paler. Fine for flags hung on a fence or wall.
- Double-sided flag with a blockout liner – two different sides, full opacity, approx. €28–44 net per m². For prestige flags.
Large stand flags are sewn from strips in our own sewing room – priced by size. The differences between technologies are explained in our guide UV-printed or sublimated flags.
Crest stickers for cars, laptops or lockers are the cheapest giveaway. We contour-cut them around the crest from monomeric vinyl (approx. €6–12 net per m²) or from polymeric vinyl for outdoor use (approx. €9–16 net per m²), plus contour cutting charged by line length. The price per piece follows from the crest file and the quantity.
Club materials for the season
Beyond merchandise, a club needs several printed items every season that fans also collect:
- Match posters and a squad poster – for shops, schools and noticeboards. A2 in a run of 100 is approx. €85 net.
- A club calendar with team photos – sold before Christmas, with space for sponsor logos. Priced by number of pages and run.
- Season tickets and match tickets – numbered and perforated. 55 × 170 mm tickets in pads, 1000 pieces, approx. €75 net.
- Matchday programme or club newsletter – a few pages with line-ups, a preview and sponsor ads.
- Knitted scarves are made to order – a separate technology with a longer lead time and a higher minimum quantity than printing. As a cheaper alternative we suggest neck tubes, sublimation-printed in club colours.
We can design all of this in-house in one consistent style (crest, colours, typeface) so the materials look like they come from one club, not five different sources.
- 24 hexpress printing (UV inks need no drying)
- approx. 3 daysstandard lead time
- up to 14 dayslarge and custom projects with installation
Plus courier delivery. Tell us your date — we plan production around it.
Before you order – a few practical tips
- The crest as a vector. A crest drawn years ago by a fan in a photo editor causes problems with every print. Vectorising a crest costs approx. €26 net with us – it is done once, and the file then serves for everything.
- Club colours as numbers. Decide once exactly what the colour is (e.g. a Pantone number), because red comes out differently on a T-shirt, a mug and a banner in each technology.
- Clothing sizes – for the first order, run a pre-sale or ask fans on social media. M and L sell most, but do not forget children's sizes – parents happily buy shirts for academy players.
- Rights to logos – the crest belongs to the club, but a league or sponsor logo on merchandise for sale needs the owner's consent. Get it in writing.
- Shop income – selling merchandise is an activity the club has to account for in line with its constitution and local regulations. Ask your accountant how to organise it for your club's legal form.
A full overview of what we make for clubs (from perimeter boards to merchandise) is on our sports clubs page.