Picture used for illustrative purpose only.

Qatar authorities said on Wednesday that they have seized 144 counterfeit World Cup trophies, the latest raid on fakes hitting the market ahead of the football tournament that starts later this month.

The interior ministry said officers launched an operation "acting on a piece of information about a website that promotes the sale of cups that mimic the true shape of the World Cup."

It released a photo showing the 144 life-sized trophies laid out across a floor and stated that "further legal procedures will be followed."

The ministry did not say where the trophies were found, nor whether suspects had been detained.

Football's governing body FIFA and Qatari authorities have stepped up warnings recently about distributing or buying World Cup fakes.

In June, Qatar warned drivers that it was illegal to have a World Cup logo on car number plates, after special plates were sold in online auctions.

One month earlier, police arrested five people for selling counterfeit clothes with the World Cup logo.

At the end of 2021, they raided a factory in the Gulf state producing perfume in bottles illegally using the World Cup brand.

Agence France-Presse