BRUSSELS, Belgium -- The sale of fake World Cup merchandise could cost legitimate businesss millions of dollars, according to officials at a special seminar on fighting pirated goods.

"I would guess we are at a seven-digit figure with illegal activities and we also have to see that many activities do not only happen in Europe, but happen in countries like Brazil or Argentina, in those countries which are soccer crazy," said Jochen Schaefer, legal counsel of the Federation of the European Sporting Goods Industry.

The counterfeit goods include team shirts, soccer balls and other items being sold to fans for this year's tournament in Germany, which runs from June 9-July 9.

About 230,000 jobs in Europe alone were put at risk because of lost business, Schaefer told The Associated Press. The group represents companies like Adidas, Nike and Puma, all of which are involved in providing uniforms to World Cup participants.

More than 2,000 seizures of fake goods linked to the World Cup have already been made before the tournament, according to Michel Danet, secretary general of the 169-nation World Customs Organization.

"This is a worldwide plague that is ever increasing," Danet said. "We have to try and attract the attention of consumers to try to curb the problem ... We need to attack supply and demand and we are not doing that today."

Danet said Monday's meeting of experts, customs officials and business representatives marked a first attempt to bolster cooperation and coordination to fight the black market of pirated and counterfeit goods, which he said accounts for about 10 percent of world trade, or about $50 billion a year.

Counterfeit goods posed not only a risk to legitimate business and industry, but also raised safety and health concerns, Danet said, pointing to fake World Cup chewing gum and chocolate candy products, whose production is unregulated.

Officials said sporting goods was becoming a key growth area for black market goods, especially when sold in connection with major sporting events like the World Cup, the Olympics or next year's Rugby World Cup in France.

"The fight against fake products is crucial at the moment, and the business is getting ... bigger and bigger," said Eric Vlieg, senior marketing manager at Adidas.

German customs officers would be using new EU-wide data bases with which they could check goods seized at border points during the World Cup, to track down suppliers and sellers, said Thomas Schmitt, head of Germany's customs investigation division.

The seizure of counterfeit goods, including fake DVDs, high-tech goods and even food products, has risen sharply in recent years within the 25-nation European Union, senior EU customs official John Pulford said.

"The fakes are extremely difficult to spot now," Pulford said. "Customs are pressure points where we can do something."

At the seminar, experts were considering adding new computer chips to goods, including soccer shirts, to assure consumers they were buying official products.