While the Ravens are preparing for Sunday's conference championship game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, the NFL has sent its own team to Baltimore: A group of investigators is seeking to curtail vendors looking to benefit illegally from the unexpected playoff run.
Hawkers selling unlicensed Ravens apparel: beware. The NFL is scouring the area, fiercely guarding its product and willing to alert authorities if its name is being violated.
NFL officials say that the unauthorized use of its shield and team logos on merchandise happens across the country every year, and that as teams progress through the playoffs, the issue grows substantially in the respective cities. The NFL has an exclusive deal with Reebok for its T-shirts, jerseys, hats and other apparel.
League representatives estimate that they lose a significant amount of money each year to hawkers using NFL teams' names, although they could not provide a figure. Anastasia Danias, an attorney for the league, said that U.S. businesses lose about $250 billion a year in revenue because of the counterfeit market.
"It hurts. To the fan, they're getting an inferior product," Danias said. "It's made much more cheaply and without attention to detail."
NFL owners evenly split merchandise revenue from all 32 teams.
Melvin Ruzicka, owner of the Rav-in store on Eastern Avenue in Baltimore, said he understands the NFL's argument, but he said there is plenty of money to be made all around from the billion-dollar industry.
Although Ruzicka sells only licensed apparel - including dozens of Joe Flacco, Ray Lewis and Ed Reed jerseys - he doesn't fault those who sell T-shirts and hats on the street.
"When the Ravens are into the playoffs like this, there is plenty for everybody," Ruzicka said. "I'm glad we can all make a couple of dollars off of this."
Ruzicka is dealing with a sensitive issue in his own right. In February, he decided to turn his Christian bookstore into a place specializing in Ravens paraphernalia. His business is not connected with the team, so he had to finagle the name just enough to let customers know what he specializes in.
So far, the NFL has left him alone.
"You've got to be careful," he said. "I really don't want any trouble."
Neither do the McClures.
The married couple has been in the T-shirt business for 20 years, and they've navigated the fine line that separates licensed and unlicensed apparel through much of that time.
