I tried to complete the WC sticker book for free & got pretty damn near

It’s now two months since I stupidly decided I’d try to complete the 2022 Qatar World Cup sticker album without actually buying any stickers. Except it turns out it wasn’t actually that stupid.

I had it all mapped out. Never do a one-for-one swap, use big names and special stickers as bargaining chips, prey on the desperation of people close to completing a page or the album…31 stickers would turn into 670 in no time, right? Right?!

Well, problem one was that I’d seemingly forgotten that I’m no longer at school with hundreds of other children wanting to do swaps on the playground every day. It turned out that only a couple of mates were collecting this year – shame on them – and in my first month I only managed to increase my total to 101. That’s a 3.25x increase on my original tally, but I needed to step it up a gear.

I’d seemingly missed my chance with the in-person swap events that had been arranged near me – problem two – so the obvious next stage in my journey was to delve into the online world to bargain my way to as many swaps as possible.

It’s actually gone really bloody well, but there’s only a week left of the World Cup and it’s safe to say there’s work still to be done…

The online realm 

Having joined plenty of Facebook Panini swap groups over the last few weeks, my timeline is now dominated by posts of fellow Panini fans looking to strike a deal. I’m now fully engrossed in the Panini matrix.

At one point I thought I was about to land the ultimate deal. A fellow trader wasn’t far away from completing his collection and he claimed to have hundreds of excess swaps available. Jackpot, I thought.

Even sweeter was the fact that I had three of the stickers he was after. This was the breakthrough that I had been waiting for…until I saw he lived in the US. In retrospect I really should have paid for postage, but at the time it lulled me into a full sense of security that similar, more local, opportunities were just around the corner.

And seeing how tantalisingly close some people are to completing their collections was all the motivation I needed to get going with some swaps of my own.

Once I had integrated myself into several Facebook groups and forums, the proper work could finally commence. My aim was to at least double my output with each swap I was making.

And sure enough, plenty of people were now nearing completion of their own collection and so were more willing to part ways with a larger batch of stickers in exchange for the ones they so desperately needed. It was playing into my hands just as I’d predicted.

After some crafty swaps of two for six and five for 10, I started to gather some momentum. When I was around the 150 mark I managed to land a sweet deal for four of my stickers in exchange for 15 which gave me a nice boost. Reading it back now, it doesn’t sound a lot when you’re trying to get to 670, but it’s exhilarating let me tell you. I feel like Del Boy.

It’s only fair to also admit that everyone I have spoken to has been really interested in the challenge, with several people more than willing to throw in a couple of extras once I’d explained the strict rules.

Indeed, having struck a deal with some other traders who are close to completing their collections, I managed to surpass the 300 mark pretty damn quickly. My best deal yet was an exchange of three for 50 (fifty), which really did prove what I’d always believed – how many packets would that person have needed to buy to find those three stickers? Giving away 50 he didn’t need wasn’t that big of a price to pay.

So, you know what, this challenge could definitely be achieved. It’s probably fair to assume that I’m not going to manage it – at least not this side of Christmas – but I have turned 31 stickers into 341, an increase of more than 10 and just over half of the total needed.

If I had more friends collecting, had managed to get to some swap events, or even just headed online earlier, I really feel like I could be in home-straight territory right now. Maybe I’ll try again in four years!

I’d certainly advise anyone else to give it a go. Never has the sound of the letterbox opening been so exciting as during these past few weeks. There’s just something about collecting that brings out the child in you.

I would also advise anyone who does decide to try this in the future to get your admin sorted early. Keeping track of what I have, what’s coming in the post and what’s heading out has been by far the most difficult thing about the challenge. You will need a spreadsheet and a lot of patience.

We never actually put a date on when this challenge needed to be finished, and I’m definitely going to carry on swapping for a few more weeks so keep an eye on Planet Football for the final total, but this is me now begrudgingly admitting I’m probably going to fall short. Close but no cigar.

As an Englishman, it was ever thus.

By Ben Stewart

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