Fanatics apologizes for Super Bowl jersey backlash

Fanatics issued a public apology Monday night after fans complained about the rollout of Super Bowl LX merchandise for the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks, with frustrations centered on jerseys selling out quickly and patched alternatives drawing scrutiny online.

In its statement, Fanatics said the matchup created "unprecedented challenges for us because of the massive surge in demand we saw from Patriots and Seahawks fans," adding "we've let Patriots and Seahawks fans down with product availability -- we own that and we are sorry."

The company cited the unusual nature of the moment as the root of its supply problem, noting that both teams missed the playoffs a year ago and entered this season with long odds before making a sudden leap to the Super Bowl.

That, Fanatics said, is "an incredibly rare occurrence that led to these two fan bases buying nearly 400 percent more jerseys since Thanksgiving vs. last year."

Even with increased orders, the company said it has struggled to keep team color jerseys in stock due to overwhelming demand, while promising that more inventory is arriving daily and that it is offering other options.

Some of those alternatives have raised quality concerns, particularly non-team-color jerseys with a Super Bowl LX patch priced at $160.

Fanatics responded, saying it "can assure you that, despite some unflattering photos, these jerseys are identical to the standard Nike replica ‘Game' jersey -- one of the highest consumer-rated items we carry built on the core template that has been unchanged since Nike took over NFL jerseys in 2012."

Fanatics also addressed price criticism of the $130 "Game" jersey and reiterated that any dissatisfied customer can return purchases for free through its app, including orders made in stores operated by the team and the league.