Soccer.com

Full review
If you're like me, words like Diadora, Kappa and Zirelli are as foreign as the lands from which they come. However, once my baby brother began to get very competitive and perform at a higher level of soccer, these brand names became as common as Levi's or Nike around our house. For the true soccer afficianado, nothing is thought of spending $200.00 on specialty shoes, and $60.00 on a competition jersey and so on. For those that need/want these items I've found you can't just trot on down to the local sporting goods store at the mall, you can either shop at a specialty shop locally (read expensive!) or you can visit the amazing selection, and outstanding shipping at Soccer.com


What is Soccer.com/Eurosport?
Both Soccer.com and Eurosport are essentially the same site, you can get to one or another from each. Soccer.com is the shopping portal and Eurosport is the European partner site. Soccer.com is a North Carolina based website dedicated to soccer products of every kind. Their mission statement follows: (taken from website)
Our Mission: To be the world's leading authentic grassroots soccer company, building strong relationships in a vibrant, creative, and ethical environment. To inform, inspire, and innovate.

How do they do? Well, color me impressed! The shipping was lightning fast, and the selection amazing. I'll be back.


Shopping at Soccer.com-
The main page of Soccer.com is filled with current specials, and clever links to specialty departments. The Starting 11-is the top 11 sellers currently. The Great Saves link takes you to the outlet. They also feature a great search engine and a nifty link so that you can put in your zip code and find local soccer programming. Very innovative and witty. The links all work and appear current whenever I've used them.


Selection-
As I mentioned earlier, the selection is amazing. Products range from the average priced to the super-expensive, custom gear. Team orders are available for uniforms and custom work. For my brothers gifts I find plenty of selection of the European soccer team merchandise I can't find anywhere else. The sizes range from small adult to extra-large or extra-extra large in some items. Some youth sizes are available, but the selection isn't as vast.


Picking It Up-
After you find what you need, product detailing is broad, giving size and color availability on the spot. A thorough description is given with materials used. A few suggestions for coordinating products are also made. Once you pick color and size, one click will add your merchandise to your "gear bag" (clever again). Points needed to order from the Goal Club are also given (more on that later).


Checking Out-
My only complaint with Soccer.com came during checkout. Signing up for an account was simple enough, however I was really wanting to join the Goal Club. For a one time charge of $24.95 you save on every order you make, as well as earning points for every order to use towards free merchandise. I was not able to do this upon checkout, it appears a glitch in the system prevented me from joining at the time I made my order.

Payment can be made by Visa, Mastercard, Discover, AMEX and JCB. Soccer.com is a Verisign merchant to boot.

100% satisfaction guaranteed!-I love this policy, and frankly all merchants should stand behind their products in such a manner. Simply return the goods for exchange or refund. They'll ship back to you for free, however you'll need to pay for postage back to North Carolina.


Speedy, Speedy Delivery!
Wow, is all I can say. My Soccer.com order was placed late at night on Sunday and arrived Wednesday morning via USPS Priority Mail. Shipping charges were more than reasonable, starting at $4.49 and going up by price versus weight. (Until you get past $250.00 in value). The items were still folded in the manufacturers plastic with the tags on, very secure!

Order confirmation was made immediately via e-mail and again once the order shipped. Since it was priority mail, there was no tracking number.

*International shipping is available as well express and overnight delivery for extra fees.


All In All-
Aside from the frustrations of not being able to join the Goal Club on the spot, I can't think of a single thing that Soccer.com can work on. It was a treat to quickly and easily find just what I wanted and have it arrive before I could even think twice about it. If you have a soccer fan on your holiday list, please check out Soccer.com for just what you need.