(CNN) -- Obsession often brings joy and sorrow in equal measure. 

Inside that thin, shiny packet giving off a mystical glow sits five stickers -- five faces of five men whose very presence can turn lives upside down. 

Welcome to the world of World Cup sticker collecting. 

"My girlfriend gave me an ultimatum the other day, her or the football stickers? Shame really, I thought she was the one," Daniel Blazer, a British collector, told CNN. 

While most relationships survive the sticker phase, Blazer is not alone in his infatuation with the shiny adhesives which smile back at those dreaming of the holy grail -- the full sticker album. 

Some are relentless in their pursuit of that holy grail, setting up spreadsheets and even calling in their spouse to increase the odds of successful swapping. 

"My husband, Stephen, is obsessed with his sticker album," Emma Conway, who blogs under the name of brummymummyof2, told CNN. 

"He has his own spreadsheet so he knows what he needs and what he doesn't. It does get annoying. 

"Every time I go near a shop I have to get my three-year-old daughter some stickers and then get some for my 31-year-old husband. 

"He's a fantastic dad to our two children but I think the opportunity to collect stickers reminds him and his friends of being kids. 

"When I go to work, he gives me his swaps, and I swap them with my colleagues and then bring them back. 

"I'm like a drug dealer...but with stickers." 
What event are the stickers associated with?
World Cup sticker collecting. 