By Ashley Mergen (originally posted on Free Enterprise)

Whether you want the Red Sox or Cardinals to win, everyone is against pirates (not of the Pittsburgh sort, of course). Before the first pitch is thrown in tonight’s World Series match-up, counterfeiters will be on the hunt, looking to exchange their fake goods for your real money.

There are no winners when it comes to counterfeiting tickets and sports apparel. Fans, teams, and cities all lose out when dollars are diverted from legitimate retailers to shady counterfeiters, who are often based overseas and rip off the jobs of Americans by mass-producing low quality gear. Last year, a quick sweep by enforcement officials around San Francisco’s AT&T Park netted $32,000 worth of baseball caps and t-shirts.

Major sporting events like the World Series or Super Bowl are cash cows for both street corner and online counterfeiters capitalizing on the zeal of fans. But there are tips to help consumers spot fakes. Major League Baseball, in coordination with local, state, and federal enforcement agencies, issued tips for dodging counterfeiters and scalpers:

• Look for the hologram sticker or holographic hangtag with raised red baseball stitching design.
• Look for a sewn-in or screenprinted label or notice identifying a licensee that has been authorized by Major League Baseball Properties to produce “official” merchandise.
• Shop at MLB-authorized retail locations, such as the Official Team Store and MLB.com, the official web site of MLB – rather than buying items from itinerant street vendors, flea markets, or other questionable sources.
• Beware of ripped tags or irregular markings on apparel.

For more tips on how to avoid fakes, please visitwww.theglobalipcenter.com/DangerousFakes. Next year, let’s keep the pirates (again, not Pittsburgh’s) out of the playoffs.