Agents

Will keep this short. Since supporting Town from 1961 as a 5 year old in the Boys Stand in the Barrets, where my big brother took me with a flask of soup, this is where my love of the game happened to my home Club. After that first game, i walked into the ground watching the players train, autograph book in hand, and the players gave me much pleasure in signing every page of my book, i was in love. I even was invited to players houses, Brian Clifton, George Higgins, the list goes on. I even remember Bobby Ross coming through the tunnel onto the pitch with a cigarette in his hand, Goals?.. John Fielding with a right hand cross straight into the goal against Hull. A blimer. Anyway, onto the subject. In my childhood days, players were signed by the Club, and played for the Club. Negotiations were from the Chair to the Player, the Club owned the player on paper. Transfers was from Club to Club, no agents, just a fee. And now, here we go, its all down to agents who have jumped on the bandwagon, and think "Hello, i can earn money here". .... Ad since that first day, here is where the game has declined, and the beginning of a money game, and that has done the demise of lower Clubs. And in the future years, like today, the money and power has given the it to the higher league Clubs to dictate the laws of money. And also, since the laws of football was written, we now have an invention of showing footballers being offside by a computer which is slowly taking over the referee, who now has a fourth referee, who is just there to be moaned at by the 2 managers, who have umpteen substitutes to play with. And as im an oldie in this game, when i was a young Town fan, on my paper delivery job, i was always late delivering the saturday late paper, looking at the results, and grabbing a bag of chips n peas with scraps for 6 pence. And, the end of this moan, is.... what would happen if the FA put a law in, to sack all the Agents who own players that they rely on, and let the Football Clubs own the players again. I reckon if this happened, then it may get the name of the Beautiful Game again. Sorry for the rant, but at my 70 year old age, and 65 years at Blundell Park, i reckon i deserve it.

Quoted from dicko995

Will keep this short.

I’d hate to see it if you’d made it a long one.

Oh and agents don’t “own” any players in English football. They represent their clients to help them maximise their income from what is a short career.

Don’t be heading them old balls either!!

Games more exciting today, playing surface better, covered seating area not cold wet terracing, food and drinks available, best footballers on show from all over the world not just UK.
Don't be looking back and enjoy the present.
From a 84 year old

Quoted from GollyGTFC

Oh and agents don’t “own” any players in English football. They represent their clients to help them maximise their income from what is a short career.

There have been examples of players owned by 3rd parties who have been 'leased' to clubs, it's not that unusual in S America.

When Rio Ferdinand was at Leeds he wasn't owned by the club and the supporters went nuts when he was sold to Man Utd for a fortune and Leeds made b*gger all on the deal. Also, Tevas was owned by someone else when he was at West Ham (and Mascarano may have been as well). They both arrived from S American football.

I have a very good friend who works in finance and he has been involved in some deals in the North West and has told me all sorts of crazy stuff about these kinds of set ups. In the UK a former player who became an agent was a big mover in these kind of deals but I can't for the life of me remember who it is/was.

Whoever owns the player is effectively their agent. But this seems to have fallen out of fashion lately.

A pleasure to read the contributions from the "oldie" Mariners thank you.
At 58 I have along way to go
UTM

Wasn't Bonetti's image owned in some fashion I seem to remember?

I have an agent when I negotiate my contracts with potential new employers.  This is not a niche football thing -

They are a necessary component of any negotiation if you are dealing with two parties - it is so common as to be hardly worth commenting on.

I get that agents in football have a certain stereotype, but when you have kids in their early 20s (and they are kids!) you need someone to guide them through that process and get them a good deal.  Football is a festering cesspit and most people barely make any money (the average salaries at town are very low considering that is the "peak" of most players careers) - anything that helps people through that to get a good living i support.

Not everyone is on 50k a week

My solution for football would be for the PFA to employ agents for players to use to reduce the fees, possibly with a percentage on larger deals going back to grassroots / after career player support

Quoted from BobbyCummingsTackle

There have been examples of players owned by 3rd parties who have been 'leased' to clubs, it's not that unusual in S America.

When Rio Ferdinand was at Leeds he wasn't owned by the club and the supporters went nuts when he was sold to Man Utd for a fortune and Leeds made b*gger all on the deal. Also, Tevas was owned by someone else when he was at West Ham (and Mascarano may have been as well). They both arrived from S American football.

I have a very good friend who works in finance and he has been involved in some deals in the North West and has told me all sorts of crazy stuff about these kinds of set ups. In the UK a former player who became an agent was a big mover in these kind of deals but I can't for the life of me remember who it is/was.

Whoever owns the player is effectively their agent. But this seems to have fallen out of fashion lately.

It’s not 2002 or 2006 and we don’t live and watch football in South America.

It’s 2024 and we’re in England where the practice of third party ownership is banned.

Quoted from bedders78

My solution for football would be for the PFA to employ agents for players to use to reduce the fees, possibly with a percentage on larger deals going back to grassroots / after career player support

There would be a huge conflict of interest if that were the case. Players are competing with each other for deals after all. You can’t have them being represented by the same people.

Unions are for collective bargaining, not for separately negotiating thousands of individual contracts with clubs.

Quoted from bedders78

My solution for football would be for the PFA to employ agents for players to use to reduce the fees, possibly with a percentage on larger deals going back to grassroots / after career player support

I’ve thought this for a while now, that money paid by players to the PFA shouldn’t be the same for every pro player.  It’s £150 a season no matter how much they earn. Surely this should be interchangeable depending on which division you are in or a percentage of your salary. It could hopefully mean that more money gets to go through to grass roots football or help develop places like St George’s park all around the country (I know that’s owned by the FA).

Maybe agents should pay a percentage of every transaction in/out too

Quoted from WOZOFGRIMSBY

I’ve thought this for a while now, that money paid by players to the PFA shouldn’t be the same for every pro player.  It’s £150 a season no matter how much they earn. Surely this should be interchangeable depending on which division you are in or a percentage of your salary. It could hopefully mean that more money gets to go through to grass roots football or help develop places like St George’s park all around the country (I know that’s owned by the FA).

Maybe agents should pay a percentage of every transaction in/out too

0.5% of their salary to the PFA seems like a good deal. A footballer on £1k p/w would pay £260 per year. My professional accreditation is about that figure and I don't earn £1k p/w.

Quoted from jamesgtfc

0.5% of their salary to the PFA seems like a good deal. A footballer on £1k p/w would pay £260 per year. My professional accreditation is about that figure and I don't earn £1k p/w.

It’ll never happen though!

Quoted from WOZOFGRIMSBY

I’ve thought this for a while now, that money paid by players to the PFA shouldn’t be the same for every pro player.  It’s £150 a season no matter how much they earn. Surely this should be interchangeable depending on which division you are in or a percentage of your salary. It could hopefully mean that more money gets to go through to grass roots football or help develop places like St George’s park all around the country (I know that’s owned by the FA).

Maybe agents should pay a percentage of every transaction in/out too

Why on earth would any money from the PFA ever need to filter down to the grassroots football or St George Park (which is FA owned)?

You need to think of the PFA as an organisation that is there to support players. A bit like a trade union, but with other benefits too. It's players paying into to something to receive benefits and support.

Quoted from WOZOFGRIMSBY

I’ve thought this for a while now, that money paid by players to the PFA shouldn’t be the same for every pro player.  It’s £150 a season no matter how much they earn. Surely this should be interchangeable depending on which division you are in or a percentage of your salary. It could hopefully mean that more money gets to go through to grass roots football or help develop places like St George’s park all around the country (I know that’s owned by the FA).

Maybe agents should pay a percentage of every transaction in/out too

Why on earth would any money from the PFA ever need to filter down to the grassroots football or St George Park (which is FA owned)?

You need to think of the PFA as an organisation that is there to support players. A bit like a trade union, but with other benefits too. It's players paying into to something to receive benefits and support.

Quoted from DaleH

Why on earth would any money from the PFA ever need to filter down to the grassroots football or St George Park (which is FA owned)?

You need to think of the PFA as an organisation that is there to support players. A bit like a trade union, but with other benefits too. It's players paying into to something to receive benefits and support.

I know St George’s park is owned by the FA! The idea was a form of rehabilitation centre or where players out of contract could go to maintain fitness. Maybe even for those youngsters that get spat out by premier league teams have some kind of academy where they can still train or a unit where players/ex players can get help for addiction, depression etc

And I meant the money to filter down to those players that still pay into the services run by the PFA but aren’t accessible for some players. It’s ok if you are on £10k plus a week, as you’d probably be able to afford anything you wanted