What Does a Football Agent Do (Explained)

Football in the modern day is focused on the financial workings of the sport. Some dislike it, but football is becoming increasingly impossible to win without money. Manchester City and Newcastle are both owned by Middle Eastern state nations, epitomising how the challenge is only worsening for the ‘smaller’ clubs.

As part of this, footballers are always thinking about themselves. It is their career after all — and most will do anything possible to increase their wages and move to the most successful clubs in the world. When you consider that their career may last less than 20 years on the pitch, it makes complete sense, yet it is only possible with help from agents.

Some have called them the ‘villains of football’ as they look to suck as much money out as possible from transfers, yet without them, the deals would become messy and potentially illegal. Acting as experts in the field, they are a middleman between footballers and clubs in the financial department. We have outlined everything you need to know about them.

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A football agent is a person who procures and negotiates employment and endorsement deals for their players. They obviously do it for a fee — and most typically receive a commission in each deal, which is usually around the five percent mark. Naturally, the best agents in the world receive a higher commission.

Some football agents will work solo as a freelancer, whilst others will be employees at larger companies. As is always the case in football, there is no set answer when thinking about the number of players an agent will represent. Some, like Charlie Kane, who represents one of the world’s best strikers and his brother, Harry Kane, has just one client, whilst others will represent hundreds.

Their main roles, which will be outlined later, come in the form of contract renewals and transfers, but they also have smaller things to take care of as part of their day-to-day life. They have to provide ‘career management’ to players, which may sound simple, but it can be complicated during challenging moments. Acting as a form of advice as footballers look to improve their career is never easy; it comes with immense pressure — and some agents controversially look after their self-interest by forcing a transfer for commission instead of the true best decision.

Alongside this, they will provide welfare advice to footballers. The sport is not a 24/7 role on the training ground, so agents must be able to help set up deals for buying cars and houses, whilst also organising their banking and investment strategy. Most of the time they externally lend this out to others, but they can choose to look at it with both hands if they have the time. It all combines with agents setting a strong PR image for their footballers. There’s nothing worse than an athlete going into controversy; it can derail their career, so agents must be quick to ‘put out fires’ metaphorically if their players do something against the grain.

An Agent’s Role in Negotiations

It’s the most important thing an agent will ever do. As the summer or winter transfer window opens, the circus of chaos begins — and footballers look to secure their dream move. The pressure rises, the anticipation grows and agents look to help it all fall into place, which we have outlined below.

Transfers

In most cases, a football transfer happens when a representative from a club makes an official inquiry for a talented target who is registered at another team. If this team is willing to sell their player, then both clubs will agree on a transfer fee. This part of the deal is usually negotiated between intermediaries — known as football agents in this article.

Ability, age, future worth and the player’s current contract length are all pivotal factors when considering how much the fee will be — and agents will highlight that immediately when finding a move for their player. Players that are younger are often worth more because they will be capable of performing for a longer period of time. Once the transfer fee is agreed between both clubs, the player in question will be allowed to discuss personal terms with the buying club, which is also facilitated by the agent.

Agents are in charge of laying out the player’s demands and will liaise with a member of the buying club’s board to do just this, typically the chief executive or director of football. Modern-day footballers often ask for guarantees of playing time and help for their families, so negotiations aren’t always easy. Agents will look to iron out any issues, before agreeing a fee for themselves alongside the player’s wages and signing-on-fee. It’s the final hurdle before the transfer and contract can be signed.

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Contract Renewals

However, agents do not just leave as soon as a player secures a dream move. They are typically there throughout their whole career, helping them through the good and the bad. At the very top of the professional game, players now secure five, or even six-year deals, and agents will look to renew these when the final two years come into place.

It’s a similar process to transfers, but obviously they skip the initial negotiations when trying to find a buying club. The agent will outline why their player deserves a new contract, showcase their impact on the team and how they can not afford to lose him to another club.

In some cases, agents may even begin small yet crucial negotiations with rivals to force their current club into giving them a new contract. It epitomises how clever agents will be — and, once it is agreed that a new contract will be signed, agents will negotiate their commission and try to get playing time guarantees for their athletes. Every word in the written contract will be checked by them to make sure their client has the best life possible.

High-Profile Agents Over the Years

Jorge Mendes is the most famous one

There are believed to be over 15,000 agents worldwide, yet some are naturally more famous than others. The most well-known agent across the globe is Jorge Mendes. He heads the company GestiFute, which he founded in 1996, and he has had some of the best players of all time on his books over the years.

Cristiano Ronaldo, David de Gea and Jose Mourinho have all worked under him —and, according to Celebrity Net Worth, he is valued at over £100m. Meanwhile, alongside Mendes, there are other high-profile agents. Jonathan Barnett has made an incredible impact in the footballing world — and he is most well-known for helping Gareth Bale move to Real Madrid in a world-record move in 2013. He’s also worked with Jack Grealish, whilst, in 2019, he was named the number-one most powerful sports agent in the world, according to Forbes. Mino Raiola used to be one of the greatest agents around the world whilst working for Erling Haaland and Zlatan Ibrahimovic over the years, but he sadly died in April 2022. In doing so, he left behind an incredible and long-lasting legacy.

How Much Agents are Paid

Agents can be paid varying amounts depending on the level of club and footballer. For example, in non-league football, it may be minimal and less than £100, but at the top of the professional game, it can stretch to over £20m. In truth, it means there is no set pay for agents — and it can be a frightening job to go into as there are no guarantees.

During the 2022/23 Premier League season, it was revealed that Manchester City paid over £50m to a variety of agents to complete transfers, whilst bitter rivals Man United spent half of that at £25m. Even then, every club in the top flight of English football spent over £4m on agent fees, although they did not have to disclose how much of that went to specific agents.

Payments to football agents and the amount it can go up to is one of the more controversial aspects in a transfer, but there is no questioning the kind of important role and influence they play from the very beginning of a negotiation right to the very end.

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