In The Republic Of Georgia, Peyton Manning Has Never Won A Super Bowl

Quarterback Rex Grossman and the Chicago Bears won Super Bowl XLI over quarterback Peyton Manning, who would go on to never win a championship in his illustrious career.

Or, at least that’s how history would stand if this T-shirt could be believed. As a freelance journalist, I lived for four years in the Republic of Georgia. My wife is Georgian and we we’re back the in the country visiting the in-laws. I saw this shirt drying in the living room.

Actually, such bizarro-world shirts are relatively common in these parts. Basically, if you’ve ever wondered how they have t-shirts and hats for the champions of sporting contests in the U.S. as soon as the game ends, it’s because they make thousands for each team. The merchandise representing the losing team’s victory is then given to various companies that sell or donate used clothes to developing countries. NPR’s Planet Money did a great piece on this particular trade.

Even though the average Georgian knows nothing of the NFL, the shirts often end up being popular because, unlike other used clothes in the shops, these are brand new and decent quality having never been worn. Furthermore, like everywhere, it’s cool to wear the shirt from an obscure sporting contest in a different language. The only difference is that in this case all of the shirts and hats are celebrating losers.

So, as a Chiefs fan, I smile to know that in this country the Broncos quarterback has never won a Super Bowl in his much-discussed career. However, I also know that this is about to change as soon as the new shirts arrive, flaunting his victory over the Seattle Seahawks.