WHEN Panini launched their first World Cup sticker album in 1970, even they couldn’t have known the phenomenon they’d create.
Some 48 years later, kids and grown-ups around the world are still gathering their “swapsies” before a ball is even kicked.
Based in Italy, Panini was set up by two brothers in the 1960s.
Since then, they’ve been known to generate a revenue of up to £650m in a World Cup year.
There’s no doubt about it, Panini is big business.
In fact, last year a Panini sticker album from the Mexico 70 World Cup fetched an astonishing £5,050 at an auction.
Now, with the World Cup just months away, Panini have released their 2018 World Cup sticker album.
Join SunSport in learning a bit about the history of brand, as well as some useful facts you can spout to your mates down the pub.
Where it all began…
Panini was founded in Modena, Northern Italy by Benito and Giuseppe Panini in 1961.
But a year before that they were running a newspaper distribution service.
That’s when they found stickers with flowers and plants that a company from Milan couldn’t sell.
Deciding it would be a good venture, they bought the stickers and sold them in packets of two for ten lire each (that’s one pence in our money at the time).
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Incredibly, they sold three million packets and decided to try and make and distribute stickers on their own.
In their first year of operation they sold a staggering 15 million units.
They almost doubled that in 1962, selling 29 million packets.
It really was a family business…
Italians do love keeping it the family, and this is no different.
Often Benito and Giuseppe were joined by their mum who kept an eye on the books for the business in the early days.
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Later, following their instant success, their two other brothers Franco and Umberto joined Panini in 1963.
Even sisters Veronica, Maria and Norma were involved at one point to make sure the company ran smoothly.
When did they make their first foray into World Cups?
After scoring success in Italian football in the 60s, Panini launched their first World Cup sticker album for the Mexico World Cup in 1970.
That said, because of the European Trading Laws, a Panini album wasn’t actually launched in the UK until 1978.
Since then, and without fail, Panini has delivered a book for every World Cup.
Because the Mexico 70 album wasn’t released in the UK, it’s a massive collector’s item for Panini enthusiasts.
Panini’s collectors have created their own language…
When Panini captured the zeitgeist of kids in the school playground in the 1980s and beyond, a new lexicon was created.
Phrases such as: “Got, got, got, need” could be overheard as boys shuffled through their packs of “doubles” for “swapsies” to trade.
Later on, as sticker technology advanced, the sort-after “Shinies” enabled you to convince your mates that you could trade one of those for two or more normal stickers.
But it’s an expensive business…
The fact that the latest batch of stickers are going for 80p won’t deter collectors one bit.
In an auction in 2017, a complete Mexico 70 album cost one punter £5,050.
The fact that it was signed by Brazilian legend Pele probably drove the price up, but still.
According to research, the last album Panini brought out for a big football tournament (Euro 2016) cost an average £374 to complete.
And Panini’s Mexico 86 album went for £811 on eBay back in 2014.
How many countries do Panini’s albums reach and how many stickers do they produce a year?
So far, Panini has distributed to 125 countries around the world, which they achieved during the 2014 World Cup.
On average, they’ve produced one billion stickers every year.
And they are believed to rake in about £655million a year from the business.
The first sticker they ever created was of Bruno Bolchi, a former captain of Inter Milan.
There’s a reason why they have a knight on their logo…
Panini boss Giuseppe was a huge fan of crosswords and puzzles.
He would often invent his own crosswords for publications under the pseudonym “The Knight” hence the logo.
Alongside their sticker albums, there was also a magazine specifically for collectors.
It’s testimonial was written by a character called “Pipino The Knight” which was… Giuseppe.
And they invented their own technology…
Fifimatic, anyone?
Well, while that shouldn’t completely resonate with you, it’s a technology that Panini created.
In fact, it was the automatic packaging system that was devised by Umberto Panini.
Basically, it’s a machine that gathers stickers and then packets them.
The machine then distributes the packets with all the stickers inside.
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But don’t mention Merlin…
Too late, we’ve said it.
In the 1990s, Panini lost out to Merlin who won the official rights to make stickers for the Premier League.
What added salt to the wounds was the fact that Merlin was set up by two former Panini employees.
Peter Dunk, the Panini editor and the sales director Kelvyn Gardner helped Merlin establish a foothold in the market.
However, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger…
Enjoying something of a resurgence, they became the sticker album of choice for World Cup once again in 2014.
That book was their biggest ever seller, and they have a new innovative digital sticker album online, as well as an app.
This will allow collectors to swap duplicates for stickers they need.
Also, you can get extra stickers and special badges through redeemable codes from Coca-Cola products.
Welcome to the 21st century.
Get your official album from Panini right now.
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