Agents want a place on the FA Council

[Dirk Gently]

This is not an eraly April fool - it's real!

Agents call for place on the FA Council
"Agents perform a valuable role. We should be acknowledged as stakeholders in the game. The AFA has more than 300 members* and I believe we should have a place on the FA council so that we can make a contribution, and other parts of the game can hear our voice directly."

That's a quote from Mel Stein, Chairman of the Association of Football Agents. He could have said something really spurious like "We bring a valuable level of investment into the game through our work with players; without it, we wouldn't see the best players in the English game, TV wouldn't be as interested and we wouldn't get the investment."

*By our calculation, if agents get one representative for their 300, then per-head, SD's and the FSF's membership should entitle supporters to around 3,000 representatives. Now all we need to do is find a room big enough.
Now, what do you think? Do you think they deserve to be represented in the governing structures of the game, or are they merely people who profit greatly for saying "My player wants a transfer/payrise/loyalty bonus"?

No doubt I've insulted a very small proportion of agents who might do rather more than that, so sorry if I have. But the serious point is that if they need to be represented in the game, don't others? Groundsmen for example? Look at their case: They perform a valuable role and their professional association (which in this case really is a professional association), the Institute of Groundsmanship, has 12168 more members than the AFA. Couldn't they bring something valuable to the Council and to the governing structures given their very direct involvement in the game?

Truth is, the case for having agents represented in the governing structures of football appears about as compelling as having the Institute of Groundsmen represented, and Mel Stein is going to have to do a better job than that to convince a cynical football going public that they do. Unless of course the FA care to adopt our proportional approach to representation. You know the number.

http://www.supporters-direct.org/news/item.asp?n=6295&cat=sd_eng

[zummerset]

Vampires call for place on National Blood Service

[Thaumagurist*]

Agents are just vultures on our game.

[handbags_harris]

It's interesting. Agents could theoretically perform a very valuable service to the game as, let's face it, the vast majority of players aren't intelligent enough to tie their own bootlaces let alone negotiate their own contracts. Unfortunately human nature is a fickle thing. It gets in the way and said agents appear to bleed the somewhat naive clubs of cash. A whisper in the ear of the somewhat dense player that he's no longer required at AFC and he needs a transfer (which the agent will negotiate for a fee from the club) leads to BFC expressing an interest, and subsequently buying the player (which the agent takes a percentage fee of). The contract is successfully negotiated by the agent (who takes a percentage fee of some aspect of the contract).

I suppose I'm saying they are nothing more than money-grabbing leeches who have a vested interest in nothing more than money. They do not have a vested interest in the game. Contract negotiations and the like are a service that the PFA and LMA could surely provide?

A place on the National Council? They can absolutely f*ck off.

[Smoking Kills Dancing Doe]

If football clubs did as good a job looking after their players as agents do, you wouldn't see half as many as you do....

[Dirk Gently]

Agents are fine, they do a decent and necessary job for players. The problem is that have a financial benefit from acting outside their remit, by moving players on unnecessarily. It's to their benefit and often the short-term financial benefit of the players, but not of the game or the clubs.

Perhaps part of the problem is that agents no-longer act just as agents - they also act as "brokers" - but a single set of regulations is being used to try to enforce both roles.

BTW, one thing I hear again and again is that clubs hate the fact that "dual-representation" (where an agent represents player and club together) was outlawed 2 years ago - a really hot topic amongst some, and something the PL and agents are fighting tooth and nail to be allowed again.

The straw that broke the camel's back was the Berbatov transfer from Spurs to Man Utd - he wanted to go there, they wanted to buy him, and everyone knew it. But Man Utd had to pay Berbatov's agent for finding and securing the services of his client, and he also represented Berbatov at the same time and got paid by him (actually by Man Utd) - many think this is massively wrong. (BTW - not singling out Man Utd - lots of clubs do the same, this is just an example.)

But PL & CCC clubs believe that they can't operate properly unless this dual-representation is allowed, for reasons I can't quite understand.

[handbags_harris]

The most obvious thing that a lot of people will be thinking is that dual-representation would surely just be a licence to print money? Or should that be more of a licence to print money?

And is it right to describe them as glorified Recruitment Consultants?

[Dirk Gently]

And is it right to describe them as glorified Recruitment Consultants?

More or less, although it's not just about finding the role, it should be about all sorts of career advice - really many agents do vast amounts for clients, like finding houses and cars, employing domestic staff etc etc - and always being available 24/7. Some players will - believe it or not - phone up their agent for minor things like bulbs needing changing - I've even heard of one who's wife called him at 2am one night for advice when the baby wouldn't stop crying!

But players don't need agents - Kevin Doyle, for instance, doesn't have one, and when he has a new contract etc he takes along a lawyer to advise him on the legal stuff.

[Royal With Cheese]

But players don't need agents - Kevin Doyle, for instance, doesn't have one, and when he has a new contract etc he takes along a lawyer to advise him on the legal stuff.

But Kevin Doyle is both sensible and clever. Unfortunately a lot of fotballers are neither.

I can't help thinking fotball was a nicer place before the minimum wage was aboloished.

[Dirk Gently]

Or before Irving Scholar managed to get the FA's Rule 34 abolished so he could setup a PLC.

Or before global TV money came in.

[Stooper]

Or before Irving Scholar managed to get the FA's Rule 34 abolished so he could setup a PLC.

Or before global TV money came in.

*Snigger*

[Baines]