North West

Sports memorabilia is big business - especially when it comes with an autograph.

Collectors will pay hundreds of pounds - sometimes thousands - to get their hands on a rare item of memorabilia. And they're prepared to pay even more if it's been signed by a team or sports star.

These days you don't have to go to auctions or memorabilia shops to get what you're after - it's all on the net.

You can get anything from a signed Pele shirt to an autographed Lennox Lewis boxing glove - all of it signed, all of it the genuine article - or so you're led to believe.

But unlike an auction you've only got a photograph and the seller's description to go by.

Autographs may look like the real thing but it's very difficult to tell looking at a computer screen if the signatures are real.

Inside Out put this to the test and purchased some items from the internet.

We found that some of the prices were certainly affordable including a Ricky Hatton signed photograph starting at 99p.

Inside Out placed a bid for the Hatton photo and was successful in placing an order.

We also found a Liverpool shirt signed by the entire first team squad - priced at £100 - more expensive but it appeared to be a good investment.

All our purchases were done at the click of a mouse - it couldn't be easier. All we had to do was wait for our goods to arrive.

Moment of truth

When our orders arrived in the post, there was the Liverpool shirt which we paid a £100 for and there were the three photographs signed by Ricky Hatton for which we paid between £2-£30.

Two of the Hatton photographs had certificates claiming they were authentic.

They look great but we're no experts so we decided to check them out with someone who is.

Signed Liverpool shirts are prized.

Bob McCluskey's business in Lancashire deals exclusively with the sale of Liverpool FC memorabilia. If anyone will know if the signatures on our shirt are genuine it's him.

Bob examines the shirt and concludes that it is "a replica Liverpool away shirt from this season".

"One of the obvious things that's wrong with this is that the players initials are far too close together. It's too regimented. It's basically too nice. It's a shirt that you would get if you had 22 players together sat down doing a private signing for you."

The sellers claimed it was signed after the Barnsley game in the FA Cup in the 2008 season but Bob says that this is impossible.

"You paid £100 for this? You've been had and somebody's having dinner on you tonight," he says.

Authentic or fake?

So how do you prove that sports memorabilia is authentic?

Bob McCluskey says that: "Ourselves and most of the genuine dealers these days will always go out with a camera. They'll take photographs of the players signing the actual items we're selling...

"We can send them details of the dates and times of the signings, which in most cases they can check back with."

Bob is shocked by the trade in fake memorabilia: "It makes me sick. Some mother or father would shell out £100 for this to give to their son, their daughter, for a Christmas present, a birthday present. Some mum or dad has been ripped off, the kid's going to get a worthless piece of cloth, it sickens me."

David Beckham signing autographs.

So is it possible to stop the trade in fakes?

"You stop it by making people aware it's going on," explains Bob.

"You stop it by reporting it. You stop it by the genuine dealers, and there are a lot of dealers out there who are reporting these things, who are making people know, who are making customers aware of what's happening."

It is very difficult to spot the fakes. The forgers are making tens of thousands from the sale of fake memorabilia and some of the autographs look very convincing.

It takes an expert's eye to spot a reproduction. One of the complications is that people's signatures can change.

Some sports stars such as Manchester United's Ronaldo have short and long versions of their signatures depending if they are in a hurry or caught on or off guard.

Ricky Hatton's view

The one sure fire way to check if our Ricky Hatton signatures are genuine is to ask the man himself.

After examining them, Ricky concludes that all three of them are not genuine.

Ricky Hatton checks the autographs.

"If it's your own signature you can just tell the minute you look at them if they're genuine or not...

"It's a terrible shame, and the certificate of authenticity, that's not worth the paper it's written on to be honest with you...

"It breaks your heart... if it wasn't for the fans coming to support you and coming to watch you and paying their own hard-earned money to support you, there'd be no sport stars...

"For them to be treated in this way and just for a few people to make a few little quid, it disgusts me to be honest."

Do your homework

Ricky Hatton offers his own advice to his fans who want to get their hands on memorabilia:

"Basically you've just got to do a bit of research. I mean there are a lot of memorabilia companies that are really genuine. And generally if you're looking for things to be signed and there's a picture of the person signing it, then that gives you a little bit of an indication."

Hatton's autograph is much sought after.

"I feel embarrassed that someone's making money out of me and ripping off someone that it means so much to...  It disgusts me to be honest…"

Inside Out will be handing our evidence over to Trading Standards.

But if you're a memorabilia collector, be careful to check out what you're buying and the reputation of the seller or you could be the victim of the fakers too.