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Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin apologizes for botched Eagles gear: ‘It’s a failure on our part’

“I let some of you down and I apologize," Rubin wrote on X (the platform formerly known as Twitter) after dozens of Eagles fans received lopsided kelly green shirts and jerseys from Fanatics.

Shealyn Kilroy, of Northern Liberties, uploaded these photos of her boyfriend Josh wearing a kelly green Jalen Hurts T-shirt from Fanatics to X on Sept. 14, 2023. "Did anyone else's Kelly green Eagles merch come in from the official NFL shop uhhhh crooked?" read the caption. The post has been viewed 3.2 million times.
Shealyn Kilroy, of Northern Liberties, uploaded these photos of her boyfriend Josh wearing a kelly green Jalen Hurts T-shirt from Fanatics to X on Sept. 14, 2023. "Did anyone else's Kelly green Eagles merch come in from the official NFL shop uhhhh crooked?" read the caption. The post has been viewed 3.2 million times.Read moreCourtesy Shealyn Kilroy

Pro-tip: If you could complain loudly enough on X — the platform formerly known as Twitter — your problem might get fixed.

After disgruntled Eagles fans who ordered kelly green Eagles gear from Fanatics the day it dropped shared photos of their lopsided Jalen Hurts tees and jerseys on the platform, CEO Michael Rubin apologized.

“Anytime we let any fan down, it’s a failure on our part and that’s on me,” Rubin tweeted alongside a photo of an Inquirer article about the botched merch. “I let some of you down and I apologize.”

» READ MORE: Eagles fans are dunking on Fanatics for crooked kelly green merch

It started when Northern Liberties resident Shealyn Kilroy shared photos of her boyfriend posing in his new Jalen Hurts tee last week. The number ones happen to tilt toward the right.

“Did anyone else’s Kelly green Eagles merch come in from the official NFL shop uhhhh crooked?” Kilroy wrote, eventually receiving more than 3.2 million views.

Kilroy’s post generated an internet pile-on of the distinctly Philadelphia variety: Some joked that the jerseys would look straight after pounding Twisted Teas at tailgates, while meme account @ArtButMakeItSports compared them to impressionist art.

Others used it as an opportunity to tear into the overall quality of Fanatics jerseys, which some likened to “shirseys” — jerseys that look and feel like workout gear.

A Fanatics spokesperson told The Inquirer that the company temporarily paused shipments of kelly green apparel to conduct a quality control assessment and had been contacting customers to resolve the issue.

» READ MORE: Some Eagles fans might not get their kelly green jerseys until the middle of the season

Rubin encouraged fans to email CustomerExperience@fanatics.com if they received a slanted product. “We’ll work fast to make it right,” he went on.

Founded by Rubin, a Lafayette Hill native, in 1998 as a sports apparel logistics company, Fanatics has grown to be the exclusive licensor of fan gear for the NFL, NBA, MLB, and NHL, last valued at over $31 billion in 2022.

Fanatics previously faced criticism for failing to offer Super Bowl jerseys for the Eagles and Chiefs earlier this year, and for delaying the shipment of some kelly green merch through the end of October, after the Birds debut their versions of the jerseys at the Linc.

» READ MORE: When will the Eagles wear kelly green this season?

“Nothing I love and appreciate more than passionate fans,” Rubin wrote. “You make us better.”