Atletico Madrid fans could retire their homemade signs asking for a player’s match shirt, after the club announced it has inked a partnership with new memorabilia platform AC Momento.
It's a modern phenomenon for fans in the stands to take signs asking for a player's shirt.
But not all fans are keen on the tactic. In fact, even some clubs are starting to clamp down on it, with Ajax going as far as banning the signs from the Johan Cruyff Arena.
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Whilst part of the Dutch side's reasoning behind the ban was the signs being a fire hazard, Atletico players will be ignoring the signs for a whole different reason.
Fans can still bring their cardboard to the Wanda Metropolitano if they wish - but there’s a much easier way for them to bag their favourite player’s shirt now through AC Momento’s ‘football shirt auction house’, Momento Market.
AC Momento has bagged rights to auction off match-worn shirts from the first half of select matches.
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John Brennan, CEO & founder of AC Momento, said: “We’re all football fans at AC Momento and there is no way we want to get in the way of some of the great traditions of the game, including players swapping their shirts with other players or giving them to fans who have come to watch them play.
“Football is a global game. Imagine if you’re a die-hard Atletico de Madrid fan based in Los Angeles or Mexico City - it's going to be tough to get to the Metropolitano. With AC Momento, that fan now has the opportunity to get their hands on a Koke or Griezmann shirt, something that just wasn’t possible before.
“I’ve been collecting football memorabilia for years, and decided to start AC Momento in an effort to give fans like myself more opportunities to collect match-worn, and to be able to do so directly from their favourite clubs and athletes. Bringing these partnerships to life took a lot of creativity, especially from our club partners, but we believe we’ve managed to create a model on Momento Market where everybody wins: clubs, players, and most importantly, fans.”
"Thanks to this association, the club's new partner AC Momento will be in charge of organising this season the auctions of the shirts worn by Atletico Madrid players during a selection of the season's matches," a statement on the club's website said.
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"To access this unique opportunity, fans will have to download the Momento Market application and through it they will be able to opt for live auctions during the matches.
"With the start of the new football season, Momento Market will offer all fans this option from the start of the match until after the final whistle."
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It might not actually be such a bad idea for fan and player interaction to be limited at Atletico after defender Mario Hermoso ended up trying to fight some fans following last weekend's loss to Villarreal.
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Fans may only have one more year to get Antoine Griezmann's shirt, with the player's loan not looking as likely to turn into a permanent move as it once was, with Barcelona worried Atleti aren't playing him on purpose.
Of course, not all fans' signs for player's shirt are actually bad, as one Newcastle United supporter recently proved when getting Miguel Almiron's shirt.
The sign referenced Jack Greliash's mocking of the Newcastle player at last season's trophy celebration, and it came at the perfect time after the two side's drew 3-3, with Grealish not even in City's squad, due to injury.00:00:21
"With the start of the new football season, Momento Market will offer all fans this option from the start of the match until after the final whistle."
Topics: Atletico Madrid, Spain, La Liga
Ryan Sidle