April 28, 2006

I had one in 1986.: Four years later, in 1990, I thought I was too grown up and didn't get one. This morning, I saw a kid excitedly striding out of a shop having just bought one. Best of all, I've discovered that this year, you can be in one yourself if you really want to! [more inside]

posted by JJ to soccer at 10:12 AM - 6 comments

Dear JJ, We waited inside for you, but you never showed. We still love you.

posted by rocketman at 11:12 AM on April 28, 2006

Unacceptable. Or was he counting on us to do this and that's what he meant?

posted by yerfatma at 11:40 AM on April 28, 2006

Aww tits - that's what happens when you try to do eight things at once. I wonder does that mean I've just sent a lengthy diatribe on Panini sticker albums (with links) to the head of European business development at Goodyear? I really hope not. Diatribe to be re-enacted shortly (after I've phoned Brussels).

posted by JJ at 12:06 PM on April 28, 2006

OK, Brussels has gone home for the day and isn't answering its cell, so here goes: Panini have been producing collectable stickers and sticker albumns to commemorate football World Cups since 1970. When I was at school, no World Cup year got underway fully until you had your album and spent your lunch break swapping duplicates in the playground. I never finished one, but for those who did and held on to them, the rewards would seem to be rich indeed. Did you have one? Is this a British thing? (Brussels just called back - they've never heard of Panini stickers) I had other links, but to hell with it - it's Friday, it's 6:30PM and there's a whole city full of beer to be drunk.

posted by JJ at 12:26 PM on April 28, 2006

There's a piece by Roddy Doyle in a WSC collection from a few years ago called 'My Favourite Year'. It's ostensibly about Ireland in the 1990 WC, but he goes through the whole Panini sticker nostalgia thing. Wonderful.

posted by owlhouse at 01:28 PM on April 28, 2006

Hell, I'm a heathen American and even I know about Panini stickers. My album just had baseball players instead of socc- erm. footballers.

posted by Dayf at 08:28 AM on April 29, 2006

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