New Fernando Torres memorabilia available

Fernando Torres recently conducted his sixth signing for icons; we are delighted to have a new range of products available.

Fans will be excited to learn we have photos from two of Liverpool's greatest victories last season, showing Fernando's celebrations after scoring against both Real Madrid and Manchester United.

We also have a limited edition of embroidered Euro 2008 Spain shirts. There are currently no more of these shirts available on the market so it is unlikely we will be able to offer this product again in the future.

Check back soon when we will be unveiling a new, very limited edition shirt signed with his special El Nino signature.

Work for Icons

Customer Service Executive

We require someone to join our rapidly-expanding signed memorabilia business. We have ambitious plans in a World Cup year and we require a Customer Service Executive to join the existing core team.

Responsibilities
# Dealing with customer enquiries, on the phone, and online
# Packing and fulfilling orders
# Arranging the logistics for player signings
# Managing and updating parts of the website
# Checking stock levels
# General office administration

There is a limited opportunity to meet the players themselves at one of regular signings

Skills and job requirements
# Perfect written and spoken English
# Love for, and in-depth knowledge of, football
# Excellent phone manner
# Computer literate: Word, Excel, Outlook and an ability to use a basic content management system
# Numerate
# Great attention to detail and extremely diligent

Salary and Benefits
# cf £18,000
# Ideally full time
# Permanent
# 25 days holiday a year
# Based in Camden, London

The role will report directly to the Tom Rollett, our Operations Director. Send your CV and covering letter to tom@icons.com before Friday August 28.

Arsenal memorabilia prices slashed

The icons sale is in full swing and we've decided to slash our last few remaining Emmanuel Adebayor signed products even further.

Signed Arsenal shirts are down £110 to £39.99, signed photos down £45 to £19.99, while signed canvases are an incredible £120 off at £29.99.

We're clearing this stock so we can bring some incredible new names to you in the new season.

Grab a summer sale bargain while you can.

Bargain football memorabilia in the icons summer sale

The icons summer sale starts today and there's never been a better time to pick up a great deal on our superb football memorabilia.

We've knocked £50 off our Cristiano Ronaldo signed Champions League shirts and with Ronnie nearing the Old Trafford exit door this is likely to be the last time any Man Utd shirts are available from an official signing session. At only £149.99 they are likely to be a sound investment.

Also reduced from Ronaldo are signed action photographs of him celebrating his goal in the Champions League final - down from £99.99 to £79.99, a saving of 20%.

If you're after Chelsea memorabilia then Deco shirts at £39.99 are an incredible bargain, while Spurs fans can get 20% off Jimmy Greaves shirts at £79.99.

Keep checking back for the latest special offers.

Man United's best ever players

Is Cristiano Ronaldo only the 50th best player ever to play for Manchester United? Not even as good as Andy, sorry, Andrew Cole?

The Times released their list of the 50 best footballers to play for Manchester United this week, and as always with these lists there were some surprising choices.

Sir Bobby Charlton headed the 50 at number one: survivor of the Munich air crash, inspiration at Wembley 68 and chief protagonist behind bringing Alex Ferguson to Old Trafford, it's hard to argue against those credentials.

George Best, one of the most charismatic and skilful players not only of the Sixties but of all time, was second, with Munich victim Duncan Edwards at number three.

The enigmatic Eric Cantona came in at fourth, with captain marvel Bryan Robson at five, while record appearance holder Ryan Giggs was ranked seven.

Icons has a great choice of Man Utd memorabilia available from the players. Number is where they came in the Times ranking.

50 Cristiano Ronaldo memorabilia
42 Jaap Stam memorabilia
35 Teddy Sheringham memorabilia
8 Denis Law memorabilia
7 Ryan Giggs memorabilia
5 Bryan Robson memorabilia
4 Eric Cantona memorabilia
2 George Best memorabilia
1 Bobby Charlton memorabilia

Ten per cent off Ronaldo and Messi memorabilia

Tonight's Champions League final has all the makings of a classic. Manchester United and Barcelona have both already wrapped up their domestic titles, in the two strongest leagues in Europe, so whoever wins will truly be able to call themselves the Champions of Europe.

It also pits against each other the two best players in the world right now, Leo Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, in what Fabio Capello has dubbed the unofficial contest for the Ballon d'Or.

Icons has decided to celebrate this momentous occasion by offering 10 per cent off all our Ronaldo and Messi stock for 48 hours.

That's Manchester United home shirts, Barcelona home shirts, Portugal shirts, Argentina shirts, and all signed photographs.

Get yourself a bargain while you can.

Leo Messi signs for Icons

We're delighted at icons to have completed our third official signing session with Barcelona and Argentina striker Lionel Messi.

Alongside Cristiano Ronaldo, Messi is currently regarded as the world's best footballer and we are pleased that they both choose only to sign merchandise with the world's fastest growing and most reputable sports memorabilia shop online.

Leo was in fine form when we met him in Barcelona the day after the club's frustrating goalless draw with Chelsea. Although not naturally gregarious, he was joking and chatting throughout, and has clearly become comfortable carrying the weight of expectations from fans of both Barca and Argentina. Three years ago he was shy and quiet - now when he was mobbed by fans in the hotel lobby, he seemed to find it amusing.

He was confident the Catalans could get a result at Stamford Bridge; and Iniesta's injury-time goal proved him right.

Leo signed a range of shirts for us; Barcelona home, Barcelona away, Argentina home and Argentina away. He also autographed a number of photos for us, including a reprint montage of his Maradona wonder goal, which sold out so quickly last time.

We also have a very, very limited number of signed Leo Messi boots available. These are not yet for sale on the shop, so ring customer services now if you want to secure one for yourself.

You're never going to believe us... they're going to win the cup

The 128th FA Cup Final will be contested on May 30 at Wembley between Chelsea and Everton. That was confirmed over the weekend with respective victories over Arsenal and Manchester United.

Frank Lampard was instrumental in the Stamford Bridge side's progress on Saturday, setting up goals for Florent Malouda and Didier Drogba. Meanwhile, with Sir Alex Ferguson putting out a second-string side on Sunday, Everton progressed thanks to a penalty shootout after a dull 0-0 draw.

Sadly there was nothing to match the drama of Man Utd v Arsenal in 1999 when Ryan Giggs scored probably the greatest FA Cup goal of all time, or Gazza's free-kick for Spurs against Arsenal.

Cup finals are always special occasions, and over the years have thrown up a variety of heroes. Ricky Villa scoring the best ever Wembley FA Cup final goal against Manchester City, Charlie George's winning celebration against Liverpool in 1971, Trevor Brooking's diving header against Arsenal in 1980... the list goes on.

Icons has plenty of great FA Cup memorabilia in store, just check out the following:

Ossie Ardiles And Ricky Villa Signed Tottenham Hotspur 1981 FA Cup Final Shirt
Eric Cantona Signed Manchester United 1996 FA Cup Winners Shirt
Bobby Charlton Signed Manchester United 1963 FA Cup Final Shirt
Allan Clarke Signed Leeds United 1972 FA Cup Final Shirt
Steven Gerrard Signed Print - Gerrard's Final
Glenn Hoddle Signed Tottenham 1982 FA Cup Winners Shirt

Is this the best England shirt ever?

The new England kit was unveiled with great fanfare on Saturday as the national team thumped Slovakia 4-0 at Wembley. Opinions on it vary - some like the clean styling and lack of fuss, some think - however hard Rio Ferdinand stares in the promotional shots - it looks like a 10-year-old's PE Kit.

Either way, it's the shirt that England will wear to the 2010 World Cup finals, which it looks very much like England will be travelling to, topping their group with a 100 per cent record as they do.

And it's the shirt that in years to come, if England should win the World Cup collectors like us will be getting signed by the heroes of the hour.

So which is your favourite England shirt? Here are Icons' favourites:

5. The 2006 version. The one David Beckham scored his free-kick against Greece in. Subtle red cross. Nice.
4. The 1982 Admiral version. Looked perfect with a perm.
3. The 1996 version. No red on this design, but it evokes an incredible summer when football came home.

2. The 1990 umbro version, which Gazza wiped his tears on.
1. The classic red 1966 England shirt. For obvious reasons really.

Man Utd 1 Liverpool 4 - Torres shirts reduced

It's maybe an exaggeration to say that Liverpool's 1-4 win at Old Trafford blew the title race open, but at the very least it gave the Merseyside faithful some bragging rights.

Fernando Torres took his goal superbly to level the scores after Cristiano Ronaldo's penalty and you have to wonder how many points the Anfield side would have accumulated had El Nino been fit all season.

Liverpool FC achieved the result wearing their grey away shirt and any fan wishing to remember the great day should act quickly to bag themselves one of our limited-edition signed Fernando Torres Liverpool away shirts.

To mark the victory we've knocked £14 - yes, that's ONE FOUR - off the price. Fernando signed only ten of these at our last session with him, so these signed shirts are a fantastic item of sports memorabilia.

Usain Bolt should just have come to icons

The fastest man in the world, Usain Bolt, is going to have to come all the way to Manchester from Jamaica just to get a signed Cristiano Ronaldo shirt. And not only that, according to the Daily Telegraph, he's going to have to give C Ronaldo running lessons.

It would have been so much easier if he'd just visited the icons shop, where he could have bought himself a signed Cristiano Ronaldo Man United home shirt for just £199.99; representing a massive saving on a standard transatlantic air fare.

With the money he'd saved he could have even got himself some signed Ronaldo pictures and any other number of football collectables.

If anyone knows Usain, then tell him about us. He's a massive fan of sports memorabilia
apparently, and as he builds his collection, we could save him a fortune.

Deco sets the right example

It's good to see one Chelsea footballer using his fame for good, even if his team-mates seem determined to court publicity of a different kind. While Ashley Cole has been garnering more unwanted press with his recent arrest, Deco has been trying to draw attention to his charitable organisation, The Deco Institute.

The institute aims to help children in the Brazilian city near Sao Paolo where Deco grew up. “We really wanted to change something and if you want to do that, you have to start where you live,” he said in the Times. “All countries have social problems, but in Brazil they live in a place with many difficulties — they are offered drugs at 10, 11. This gives them the chance to be someone.”

Deco may have had a frustrating season with a series of niggling injuries, but as the season nears the business end, and with Chelsea still in contention in the Champions League and FA Cup, the stage is set for him to recapture the early season form that saw him make such an impact at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea memorabilia signed by Deco is available at the Icons shop, including the 2008-09 home shirt and 2008-09 away kit. If you prefer signed football photos then take a look at Deco's First Goal For Chelsea, or Deco In Action For Chelsea.

King Eric completes fourth memorabilia session for icons

Last week Icons completed its fourth private signing session with Manchester United legend Eric Cantona.

Icons travelled to Paris to meet with the mercurial Frenchman, where he signed a new range of shirts and photos for us.

Le King put his name to a replica 1996 FA Cup final shirt commemorating the May day when his solitary strike sent arch rivals Liverpool to 1-0 defeat at Wembley.

He also signed two new photographs for our Cantona range. The first shows him, arm aloft, having inspired Manchester United to a vital win over Wimbledon. Newcastle led United by 12 points and this victory began the fightback as they defied the odds to claw back the deficit.

The second is from the same season, and shows Cantona and Roy Keane celebrating Eric's sixth-minute strike against Manchester City in April that year which put United neck and neck with Kevin Keegan's Newcastle. The Geordies crumbled under pressure and Fergie's young side went on to achieve an incredible double.

Fergie had offloaded Mark Hughes, Paul Ince and Andrei Kanchelskis in the summer leading Alan Hansen to remark famously that "You'll never win anything with kids." But a youthful team including Ryan Giggs, David Beckham, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and the Neville Brothers spectacularly proved him wrong.

Check out the icons shop now to buy these superb items of sporting memorabilia.

Mourinho rates Giggs the best ever

So Jose Mourinho reckons that Ryan Giggs is the greatest ever Premiership player, better than Thierry Henry, Alan Shearer and Eric Cantona.

The Special One should know a thing or two given the number of trophies he won with Chelsea and the way his Inter Milan side are running away with this year's Scuddeto.

But is he right? Here is Icons' top five Premiership players:

5. Steven Gerrard. They say that no player is bigger than the team. Have they not heard of Stevie G?
4. Frank Lampard. Still holds the record for an outfield player of 164 consecutive appearances. A phenomenon.
3. Eric Cantona. Turned Manchester United into the all-conquering force they are today.
2. Alan Shearer. 260 Premiership goals. Will anyone ever beat that?
1. Ryan Giggs. Well no-one ever won an argument with the Special One did they?

We've had our turn. Now it's yours...

Is Ronaldo the best free-kick taker of all time?

Cristiano Ronaldo sent Manchester United well on their way to a third successive Premiership title with another phenomenal free-kick at the weekend.

His trademark delivery in the 60th minute at Old Trafford left Blackburn Rovers goalkeeper Paul Robinson helpless, and with Liverpool only drawing, leaves Utd seven points clear at the top.

It was yet another unstoppable free-kick and you have to ask - is he the greatest free-kick specialist of all time?

Here is our list of top takers:

5. Roberto Carlos. Never seemed to score, apart from that screamer against France in Le Tournoi 1997, but was always fun to watch.

4. Paul Gascoigne.Who can forget that free-kick against Arsenal in the FA Cup?

3. Alessandro del Piero. Better scoring percentage than Ronaldo, (and Beckham) so maybe unlucky to miss out on second spot.

2. Cristiano Ronaldo. The way they dip and swerve they're unstoppable; he's even created his own technique adapted to the modern ball. Genius.

1. Diego Maradona. The greatest of all time. Just watch this. No argument.

OK, so no David Beckham. We all remember that winner against Greece but how many remember the dozens he ballooned over the bar earlier in the game when a chip to the big fella at the back stick would have done the job?

We'd love to hear what you think below...

Cristiano Ronaldo signs again for Icons

We're delighted to announce that we've completed our fourth signing session with FIFA World Player Of The Year Cristiano Ronaldo.

Icons has been working with Cristiano since May 2005 and it is only because of our close relationship with him that he continues to work with us, and no other memorabilia companies, in official signing sessions.

Cristiano invited us into his home for this session and after a lunch of squid followed by pasta we got down to work.

Cristiano signed a range of shirts for us including Manchester United home shirts with both Premiership and Champions League numbering, and a very limited edition of the blue away shirts with badges marking the 40th anniversary of the European Cup win over Benfica at Wembley.

Also now available are a range of signed photographs; lifting the Premiership, lifting the Champions League trophy, and with arm aloft after scoring the goal that put Man Utd 1-0 up against Chelsea on that incredible night in Moscow.

Another real favourite of the icons team is the photo we've called The Unstoppable Free-Kick, which shows Cristiano striking one of his trademark dead-balls. Signed in silver pen, these are going to sell out faster than, well, faster than a Cristiano Ronaldo free-kick.

Kaka for City?

Manchester City are reportedly sending a delegation to AC Milan today in an attempt to secure the signature of Kaka for £103 million.

Rest assured that if Kaka signs for City, Icons will be quick to line up a signing session with the magical Brazilian.

We have already completed two signing sessions with the former World Player of the Year, most recently in October 2007 in Milan. Stock, however, has completely sold out.

Sign up now to our newsletter to be the first to learn when we have new Kaka products in stock.

Autographs are safer than savings

Investing in celebrity autographs is safer than stocks or savings, the Sun reported yesterday. The value of Sir Paul McCartney's signature has risen from £125 ten years ago to £1500 today.

Stamp specialists Stanley Gibbons, who were behind the index, said: "People see autographs as something tangible."

Read the full story here.

If you want to invest in football memorabilia, then we suggest our England 1966 replica shirt, signed by ten of the winning team, including the late Alan Ball. Stocks are dwindling and for obvious reasons will never be replaced.

Giggs signs again for Icons

Ryan Giggs completed another signing session for us on Tuesday in Manchester. Ryan was in fine form after his man-of-the-match performance against Chelsea at the weekend. As always, Ryan had time to stop and chat to his fans before getting down to business.

Ryan, who has been working with icons since 1999, signed a number of shirts, boots and photos for us, which will be available for sale shortly. Look out for the blue away kit with the special badge commemorating the European Cup win over Benfica 40 years ago, when of course, United wore the same colours. Only 10 of these were signed, making this a very rare piece of sports memorabilia. Ring our order line now if you want to reserve one of these for yourself.

Ryan also signed a number of photos of his amazing solo goal in the 1999 FA Cup semi-final against Arsenal. This classic image always flies off the shelves – there's something about the way he waltzed through the Gunners' famous back five before revealing the hairiest chest in football that Utd fans love – and for the first time it is available in a larger size of 20 inches by 16 inches.

Buy signed Ryan Giggs merchandise here

Giggs to sign rare blue kits

Great to see Ryan Giggs putting in a man-of-the-match performance against Chelsea yesterday. The 35-year-old was making his 549th appearance for Manchester United and is set to reach the 550-mark if he plays against Wigan on Wednesday.

Ryan has agreed to meet us for another signing session tomorrow, where as well as more memorabilia from the 2008 Champions League victory, he will be signing some rare blue kits with badges commemorating the 40th anniversary of United's first European Cup win over Benfica. Only ten will be signed, so be quick off the mark to get yourself a genuinely rare item of memorabilia.

Sir Alex Ferguson was effusive in his praise for Ryan after the 3-0 victory. He told MUTV: "Ryan was fantastic. I kept him particularly for this game, I rested him. I told him two weeks ago he and Darren Fletcher would play against Chelsea.

"I thought this game was made for them, given Ryan's ability to hold the ball and beat a man in midfield with that left foot. Ballack couldn't live with him really. It could have been a mistake – it's very easy to make a mistake when you've got a squad of 23 players. Genuine mistakes of course because you want to pick a team that wins and the supporters understand that. But today it worked and I'm glad it did."

Cantona shirts reduced

Our remaining stock of signed Eric Cantona shirts are now down to £99.99, reduced from £199.99. Unfortunately, due to a printing problem there is a slight pink tinge to the name and numbering, which is why these are such a bargain. Our money-back guarantee applies as always though.

Buy a signed Eric Cantona shirt here

Great bargains in the Icons January sale

Christmas is over and icons hope that Santa brought you everything you asked for. If like us, however, you got soap on a rope and slippers again you'll be delighted to know our January sale is now in full swing. There are some great bargains to be had, including Ryan Giggs and Henrik Larsson prints for £39.99. Pele Brazil shirts are down £50 to £149.99 and all signed Pele prints are available for under £100.