When you order from any reputable promotional products supplier you will in due course receive a "proof" which shows the proposed result of branding on the product you have ordered. It's important you check the proof as you are the best qualified to determine that your logo and contact details are accurate. Unfortunately it's common for clients to approve a proof and nominate problems with branding after delivery.
An English promotions company - which has asked to remain nameless and should know much better - has fallen into this age-old trap. As part of a program to profit from England's world cup campaign a junior staffer was asked to search the internet for images of the English players capped for the game and produce artwork which could be printed on mugs, cups, pens and mouse pads. Everything was fine until it came to reproducing the likeness of Manchester United defender, Chris Smalling. For reasons which have yet to be clearly explained his image was switched with Barack Hussein Obama, President of the United States of America.
Let this be a lesson to those who give their proof only a cursory glance. While Obama's recruitment to the English team most likely raised some eyebrows in diplomatic circles none were more surprised than the proprietor of the company which is now the unwilling owner of 2,000 coffee mugs from which he had hoped to sell for around $10 a pop. For a busy graphics studio with a limited interest in soccer it's almost understandable that this error could have been made. They should also, perhaps, have had a look at the "s" in "squad" while they were at it. The image below compares the genuine article and the pretender.
The promotions company which produced the mugs decided to unload the whole lot at one quid each through a discount retail chain. Combined with the failure of the English team to make an impact at the World Cup, demand until now for merchandise bearing the likenesses of the failed team has been lukewarm at best. What's the bet that this mug, like an inaccurately printed postage stamp, may already surpass it's "perfect" cousins in value?