Stocks of Women's Euros stickers are low across Brighton

As England play a blistering campaign, having smashed Norway in an 8-0 thriller at the Amex on Monday, the demand for Women’s Euros stickers has shot up.

But an investigation by The Argus found shops are woefully stocked, with just four of 18 retailers surveyed in Brighton selling the stickers for the women’s competition.

Stickers for the Women’s Euros, Premier League and men’s World Cup are manufactured by Panini.

England won 8-0 against Norway

We found that 15 of the 18 stores had stickers for either the Premier League or men’s World Cup, despite neither league having yet started.

Shopkeepers said supply for the Women’s Euro’s stickers has not kept up with demand. One said: "Good luck with that one – you can let us know if you find any."

Avid collector Holly Lewis, from Brighton, said when she began collecting stickers for the Women’s Euros earlier this year they were readily available but now stocks have almost entirely dried up.

“It’s just a classic,” she said.

“Women’s football is really an afterthought. They’ve tried to bring it to the forefront, and they’ve done really well in some respects, but in others it just seems like token visibility.

“The fan park and the banners, it’s nice to go and see, but if you can’t even buy stickers in a host city, then what’s going on?

Holly, who plays for a women's club, said sticker books were being handed out free at the Women's Euros fan zone in the Old Steine, Brighton, earlier this week.

“If they’re going to commit to doing something, they have to realise they can’t just make the book, make the stickers, and think they’ve played their part.

Men's World Cup starter packs are widely available in stores

“If there’s no infrastructure around it, then they’re not providing anything. They’re handing out the sticker books, but if there’s nowhere to buy the stickers, then you’ve just got this redundant book.

“If you’re a kid, the fun is going and spending your pocket money on a pack of stickers in the shop.

“You can buy them online, but it’s not as fun as going to the shop. The whole point is having something physical to keep, so you want to have that physical interaction of going in to buy them.

“Why aren’t the shops getting the stickers in? Why hasn’t that been pushed? It’s because people aren’t thinking about it – it’s not at the top of their agenda.”

The lack of Women’s Euros stickers is not limited to Brighton, as Chelsea Women’s manager Emma Hayes recently criticised Smyths Toys for its lack of stickers.

In @SmythsToysUK and not a single @OfficialPanini womens euros 2022 sticker album on sale. How can we push when the sport is still not visible enough. Our girls deserve to be seen. pic.twitter.com/RhDNvlmYwU

— Emma Hayes OBE (@emmahayes1) July 4, 2022

In one shop she visited, she said there was “not a single women’s Euros 2022 sticker album on sale”.

“How can we push when the sport is still not visible enough. Our girls deserve to be seen,” she said via Twitter.

Responding to the lack of stickers across Brighton, Rebecca Smith, head of circulation at Panini, said: “We track daily sales of the major retailers and will replenish stock when supplies are running low.

Stickers for the Women's Euros are missing from many stockists in Brighton

“What we can’t control is any theft or if a retailer has the stock in a cupboard and not on display.

"We don’t have data for the independent retailers, and we rely on them ordering more from their supplying wholesaler, which they know that they can do.

“We monitor wholesale stock holding across the country, there are seven in total feeding the retailers, and the national sell through picture. We reorder stock if national sales are looking too tight.

"Essentially, we put in a lot of work to ensure there is broad availability of stock across the country when the demand dictates.

“We’ve had an overwhelming positive response from retailers wanting to stock the Official Women’s Euro 2022 Sticker Collection. We’ve been publishing both the Euro and World Cup tournaments for a number of years and each collection grows in popularity, distribution and sales.”