As I have gradually modified the performance and handling of my GTI, I have found the standard seats more limiting. The standard seats are made by Recaro and are excellent and very supportive but if you get thrown about while spirited driving, you'll rein in as a natural reaction.
Just minor, but very important correction - the standard seats are not made by Recaro, they are designed and made by 'Sitech Sitztechnik GmbH' - a subsidiary of Volkswagen AG.
....Aha! I could swear that I read they were made by Recaro in sales literature. But of course that doesn't mean that you're not correct.
The standard GTI seats may have
some Recaro 'technology' (as will ALL VW seats) - but the 'overall' seat design isn't Recaro, and they ain't made by Recaro either.
The vast majority of genuine Recaro seats will have 'Recaro' on them - either embossed into the leather, or have another type of identification label. There are a few exceptions, very few, where Recaro will design and make seats for others without their own branding - but not very often, and not usually on German cars.
Look at
www.VolkswagenAG.com - hunt out some of their official company subsidiary publications, and it will list about 600 companies which VW own - including airports, an airline, a train service, components companies, and this Sitech seat company (who are actually based at Wolfsburg
).
And don't worry, there seems to be loads of people who think that Recaro make all VW seats - Ed38 and ClubGTI spring to mind.