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Eli Manning and the Giants Accused of Creating 'Game Worn' Memorabilia to Scam Collectors

Here is the link http://nypost.com/2014/01/30/eli-and-giants-created-fake-memorabili...

Tags: Collectors, Eli, Fake, Fraud, Game, Giants, Lawsuit, Manning, NY, Scam, More…Worn

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Permalink Reply by Steve Zarelli on January 31, 2014 at 7:27am

From the NY Post article:

A former Steiner Sports employee said Thursday that staffers of the memorabilia seller suspected that not all of the “game-used” gear was real.

“Specifically, from Eli we would see it and say, ‘Come on, this is not ‘game used,’ ” the source said.

CEO Brandon Steiner declined to comment.

Oh my... this does not bode well for Steiner. If the charges are true, it is hard to fathom why a company built on the concept of no-doubt authenticity would even take a chance if there was the slightest suspicion the material Manning was supplying was questionable. The money they made off these items had to be a drop in the bucket of their overall product offering. Why mess around like this?

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Permalink Reply by Null on January 31, 2014 at 7:37am

Yup I do not see why they would even take the slightest chance, especially when I'm sure Steiner pays very highly for these items (or I would assume based off of their prices)...

This is HUGE. On a positive note, I'm hoping with this being in the media people will be more skeptical about the industry and do their research before making purchases.

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Permalink Reply by Mike P on January 31, 2014 at 7:20pm

Some of Manning’s alleged fakes were sold through famed memorabilia house Steiner Sports, with whom he had an exclusive deal.

Steiner, believing its items to be authentic, sold them “to unwitting customers and sent them via the mail,” the suit says.

Angry buyers started to complain after noticing that markings on their items didn’t match those that appeared in pictures of Manning’s game-day duds.

But Manning told Steiner they were legit, and Steiner resold returned helmets to other buyers, the suit claims.

Inselberg did not put a dollar amount on compensatory or punitive damages. But he lost “well into the eight figures,” according to lawyer Brook, who filed the suit with Red Bank, NJ, lawyer Michael Kasanoff.

Very discouraging to hear these allegations even if false. I'm guessing if true, Eli "probably" did this to keep the items he used in games as his own mementos. Either way, it's wrong to do. Steiner shouldn't have resold anything that was returned for doubts with regard to authenticity; they charge enough as it is to be honest. Is the quick buck really worth the potential loss of reputation and business if the allegations are true?

I guess you can say some items are better off purchasing only if you really "see" them in person...

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Permalink Reply by Jason D on January 31, 2014 at 8:06pm

I don't know how it works with the Giants stuff but I do know that anything sold by Steiner as a "partnership" such as the "Yankees/Steiner collection" are items being sold by the New York Yankees through Steiner Sports and Steiner gets paid a commission on those items by the Yankees. I don't think they have a team relationship with the Giants so those items must come directly from the players however the team does own those items not the players so it would be interesting to hear how Steiner actually acquires those items.

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Permalink Reply by Jason D on January 31, 2014 at 8:38pm

You know what, this whole hobby is just turning into a big scam. It's disgusting that you cant even trust the apparent source anymore. Who do you trust anymore? All of the authentication companies screw up, the card grading companies screw up, now the players are apparently selling non game used items. Where does the madness end? Who do you trust? The card companies have been scamming collectors for years with their 1"x1" "game used" fabric and/or lumber cards, its all a scam. I'm going to start a new hobby, starting tomorrow morning I'm going to start collecting dirt, I'm going to go in the backyard and just start bagging dirt because at the end of the day it doesn't cost me anything and will be worth the same as this crap being sold. WORTH DIRT..

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Permalink Reply by Jason D on January 31, 2014 at 8:40pm

This is a post I made in another thread but wanted to paste it here as well so it doesn't mix the 2 threads up.

Tyler, MLB is the one that enforces the whole game used/game issued part of it when it comes to the Yankees, I know they have a whole process they follow. When it comes to the NFL I don't think they Police it as much. MLB has an actual office in the Yankee Stadium clubhouse just for this type of stuff. Another thing is the Players DO NOT own their jerseys, Pants or Hat, those items are team owned. The players themselves are responsible for everything else such as Bats, Gloves, Batting gloves, Cleats, wristbands and stuff like that. Now most players have sponsors like Nike, Adidas, etc that supply them with items to use during games but those do not belong to the team. I have no idea how that works with the NFL but I'm sure its somewhere along the same lines. I highly doubt the Giants are giving Eli a new helmet to use every game.

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Permalink Reply by Carlos on January 31, 2014 at 11:30pm

I'm not totally convinced that Eli is this stupid.
Also this Inselberg character has a known fraudulent history. He is trying to make a deal to get himself out of jail.
I wouldn't be surprised if this guy and the equipment manager were in on something but Eli? he can't be that stupid!