Clubs Structure: Needed to Succeed

I have been an FA Licensed Agent now for 5 years this month. I have seen clubs rise and fall through the leagues and there is always a defining factor for those who are successful - organisational structure.

Where there is a clear organisational structure with staff who have defined roles, responsibilities and ultimately, accountability clubs give themselves the opportunity to succeed.

The clarity of structure makes it easier to identify who is doing well in their role and who is not. It means that no one individual is doing more than they should or being under utilized, likewise no one individual garners more power and influence than they should.

I have attempted to do deals with clubs that have no chief executives or managing director's - no singular point of decision making. I remember bringing forward a deal to a club worth half a million for them but it took months to get a decision because the club secretary needed to try to get feedback from foreign based owners or advisors. The deal fell through and consequently you can clearly see many other opportunities would be lost because of this lack of decision making right at the top.

It also happens deeper in the club. I have seen and worked with clubs with no Academy Directors no Head of Youth. So no responsibility for developing youth players lays at a singular point. This means shared responsibility and realistically a lack of accountability. The result of this after a couple years was not one player came through the academy, even though they had a plethora of talent.

I have represented clients in clubs with a lack of structure and it is infuriating for all involved from the player to the staff themselves. I have no doubt that without clear defined structure with defined levels of decision making and accountability, clubs simply cannot succeed.

Player Development: When do I next go to work?

So I just received a call from one of my young clients who I believe could go all the way to the top. He has the mentality and physicality to go become a premier league footballer one day.

He tells me he doesn't actually know when his next game is. The club hasn't told him or it hasn't been organised yet. 

This is a player that is a regular so it's not that they have games but he doesn't know if he's involved all the time. 

This is a professional club, a club that has significant financial investment behind it and a very good fan base. A fan base that would love nothing more than to see a local lad progress through and become their captain one day. However, their possible future captain doesn't know when he may next have a game. 

Players are majorly judged in games rather than training. It's like not knowing when you are truly going to work next. Games are where you can truly show your talents - but if a player doesn't know when they will next - how does this not lack of challenge or disrupt their motivations? How can you develop if you have nothing to play for, and this is the correct usage of this often abused term.

I understand as a fan you may think you'd never lose motivation if you were being paid in any way even if it's just £100 a week to be a footballer but the reality is if you don't know when you're next going to play there is an element of a desire to move to a club or country where you know you will be playing or ultimately just pure confusion. 

Being an agent to top youth talents exposes many of the problems the English youth system has. If you would like to share your experiences on a confidential basis and/or would like to bring them up in future blogs please do email me on max @ ssm.uk.com 

Player Development: Just one game a month?

Officially, Stoke City's under-21s have just one fixture organised for December (see this link). I ask you, do you think playing a game or two a month is good for a young footballers fitness let alone his development?

I am not picking on Stoke City here. It is endemic across all clubs because of the way the under-21 leagues are structured.

The under-21 leagues were supposed to bridge the gap for players that have graduated from their scholarships but were not quite ready to play for the first team. However, it's clear these players who are too old to play for the under-18s and are not perceived as first team ready are not playing very much at all. It even encourages players to coast along, to become content with not playing every week.

This has hardly bridged a gap between us and other countries either. In Spain and Germany for example, top clubs still have the ability to give their youth real competitive week in, week out football by providing opportunities in their B teams in the lower leagues. It looks like in England we struggle to even give some of our most talented youngsters a youth level match or two a month. Seriously. Why is this not being reviewed?

Simply Sport client, Jordan Keane has gone on loan to Tamworth to gain experience.

In England, clearly to play week in, week out a player can't rely on the u21 leagues and hence must still go out on loan, outside the ethos of a club, outside of the development path many elite clubs desire for their players. Much like how Andros Townsend had to go on loan to 9 clubs before his recent breakthrough - aged 22. Townsend is an exception to the rule that he actually has come through and continued to develop and it is that point that is most important to remember.

The loan system has it's part to play in the development of players when used correctly. However, in England we need to stop developing leagues, regulations and the like that are merely paving over cracks and look at what we need to be doing so our youngsters are developing, playing regularly and are getting exposed to as much competitive football as possible.

I am for one an advocate of competitive league B teams for a start.

Corruption in the Football Industry

I was in the Middle East, maybe just 6 months into being an agent, when I became aware a particular individual wanted to meet me to influence my decision making by offering a financial incentive.

I flat out rejected meeting this individual. I understand the offer was to convince me not to complete a deal I had for a player, so that he could bring another deal to that player.

It was like being in a film. You hear the stories of corruption. You hear about the seedy world of the football agent but I didn’t expect to be exposed to it so early on in my burgeoning career at the time.

I realised these types of individuals could dominate through their ease of paying agents, coaches, players, families or whatever it took to manipulate the right deals for themselves. The hardest thing to realise was this basic and obvious level of corruption was not restricted to the Middle East.

Even at the most innocent, non-financially rewarding areas of the industry there is always someone ready to fight their way to get 100 pounds stuffed in their back pockets. As if it is something of a right for being part of a multi billion pound industry – they are due a little extra slice.

When I hear it going on, there is always that thought in the back of my mind, do I really want to be involved in muddy waters? I have to consciously avoid getting into situations in ways you wouldn’t even hence to think about in the sanctuary of a typical office job.

I have young clients today who are not even professionals. However, you’ll hear stories about how an agent offered the father a couple thousand pounds if he could get his son to sign with that agency. You’ll hear stories of agencies offering cars and holidays to players and families. There will always be an agent beast out there ready to exploit families financial and structural positions (particularly divorced parents) by offering them an incentive difficult for them not to accept.

Don’t for a second believe these agents aren’t being backed up by a club employee themselves though more times than not. Agents, licensed or unlicensed, do not operate in a vacuum.

These scrupulous agents will collude with coaches and any club staff willing to promise them a bonus if they can get that member of club staff to encourage a player to sign with the agency. This happens more than one would think.

I’m not saying all clubs and club officials are influenced by agents or otherwise, there are some fantastic individuals in the industry, but likewise, like life, there are those prepared to dabble.

It is clear certain club staff will receive money on the back of transfers too. This all exists in the industry. Having worked for one of world’s largest organisation in Microsoft, I know how imperative it is to observe the law and recall the extensive training on corruption there, but football can be like the wild west – and they don’t care who knows.

Then again why would they care who knows particularly when debate over the legitimacy of decisions made within the world’s football governing body are also so prominent in the press.

With so much palaver at the top of the football pyramid going on, not much attention is going into what happens lower down. Then in addition to that it seems FIFA is going to get rid of the need for an agent to have a license so anyone can be an agent perhaps from next year. As a result of this and a new wave of those willing to do anything to be involved in football, I can only see corruption in the industry getting worse before if and when it gets better.

The biggest annoyance I have is on the odd occasion I won’t be able to close a deal without the possibility of someone asking to be paid, a club official or another agent acting for one at the last minute. I won’t do it. This means it doesn’t matter how good you are at being an agent, or selling/closing, the repeated question any fairly active agent is being asked at one time or another as they forge their career is not are you a good business person? But instead... are you corruptible?

So with that you have the embryo of the possibly accurate stereotype of the wildly successful football agent. Whereas the real question should be how the embryo is formed. 

Business Strategy: The Modern Sports Agency

From a strategic viewpoint, businesses are always emphasising the importance of putting customers and consumers first. From a sports agency strategic viewpoint where the emphasis lays is always interesting to assess and I’m going to speak frankly about this in my blog like you should all come to expect.

Firstly, what is a client – are they the customer, the consumer or in their own category? The complexity of categorising their role in the chain fluctuates dependent on the type of deal; whether it’s a sporting contract or a commercial contract.

Is there a club, as often there is, willing to pay agency fees on behalf of the player? From this question, I want you to extract the point a player may go through his career never physically paying anything to their agent because a club is prepared to on their behalf (and beyond). From that viewpoint, the agent may view the client as what their selling, to put it crudely, their ‘product’.

There are times, however, that the player will pay the agent directly for his involvement in organising his transfer or negotiating his contract, he may also do this or have the percentage due extracted from his earnings sourced and/or negotiated for their commercial deals. From this viewpoint, the agent may view client as their actual customer, not their ‘product’.

Then what of the 15-year old turning 16 soon an agency signs up? Yes there are exceptions that already have real market value at that age such as Dan Crowley who recently moved from Aston Villa to Arsenal. However, the majority don’t and won’t for many years and likewise the 2-year maximum representation contract means an agent may not be guaranteed to have those clients by the time they do have real market value. So what of these clients then? are they customers, consumers, just clients or investments? Is this where a typical company might categorise what they do as research & development, investment or still long-term business development?

Certainly what I hope I’ve explained is how defining a sports agency within a typical business framework is more complex than one may think – and beyond close relatives like recruitment agencies.

Prioritizing who and what is most important to focus your efforts on is key and also to fundamentally understand their complex role in the chain of income generation and in cost of sales. Otherwise an agent could happily spend 24 hours a day on the phone to clients, they may be a councillor to their players, friends, parents, spouses but when it truly matters negotiating that deal, helping a club bring in a player that is equivalent of 6 months running costs of your agency or getting your client that sponsor can the agent deliver when it counts – or has the agent been distracted by what isn’t important – even if they mean well. The client after all needs the agents instruction also about what’s important or frivolous, this is often forgotten by the agent. Maybe also at times by the client too. 

Priotizing and understanding a client’ true role is the be all and end all of the success of the modern sports agency. It is not merely as I hear all the time about finding a young gem, sticking by the family for years and getting rich. An agent won’t survive like that, it’s the wrong impression and if you an agent yourself or are looking to become one please heed my message. Of if you're an everyday sports fan, I hope it gives you a little more insight into the agency world. 

Apparently even Zidane wasn't good enough

I often recall the story of agent Barry Silkman when he offered Newcastle United, Zinedine Zidane for around £1.2m in 1996 but he was rebuffed by the club saying he was not good enough for the Division 1 (equivalent now of the Championship) - all this before he went onto become one of the world's best ever players.

I even recall my first year as an agent in 2008-2009 where I brought a spanish youth winger to trial for a small club where I was told he was good and would be a top player - but not in England. He went on to sign for Real Madrid.

Zidane: Not good enough for the Championship??

The stories are frequent and my own experiences of such are often. I experienced the same again in this transfer window. I worked with an agent representing a 20-something talented attacker in Spain, I offered him to one of the newly promoted Premier League teams only to be told he wasn't good enough for them. A month later he went on to sign for a top 4 La Liga side and is doing extremely well for them.

I have to say the transfer window is one of the most fascinating times for me as an agent just because you can see just how differently people/clubs view players.

I also think the amount you hear about how expansive scouting networks are and the diligence involved in transfer target identification in modern football is wildly over-exaggerated. You'd be surprised how even some Premier League clubs still have little information on players even in leagues like Spain or Germany beyond the chief scout or manager calling a friend there for an opinion, watching videos, listening to an agent or using statistics to make an assessment.

Even if a club has an expansive scouting network it can mean little more than a lot of scouts adding info to a database remotely with little quality assurance or direct influence at the highest level. Look out for a future blog where I will go into more depth about the realities of player identification within clubs...

Time vs Money

One aspect of contract negotiations many players are still novices in understanding and appreciating (but not all I must stress) is the time value of money.

It is one of the most fundamental aspects of financial management taught at business school.

Basically, it is more important to have money in the hand now than it is a later date. For various reasons to include the likes of inflation.

In other basic ways, time and money come into a play when negotiating a new contract. Sometimes when the 1st or 2nd offer isn't right it is the correct strategy to wait until the right deal is tabled or receive another elsewhere.

However, getting this balance right between waiting and accepting a deal is important. Wait too long on the best deal you have tabled and any perceived financial increases or additional benefits you may have gained by receiving a later offer may be eliminated or in-fact left you in a worse position because of the amount of time you've had to wait for that offer.

Chief Executive play on time v money situations often - but the problem for them is, not all players, partners, parents or families grasp it - so it's a strategy that is not always a good one for Chief Executives and likewise if an agent doesn't explain it properly to their Client - they may end up not advising them correctly - but there are also those players who don't want to listen because they don't understand and don't want to learn - as a player never be one of those!

The fundamental thing I'd advise clients is to let their intelligent, financially sensible brain come to the forefront of decisions rather than ego. I've seen players turn down £49,000 a week deals to hold out for £50,000 but if it takes 8 months of holding out to ascertain that figure who is the winner? A players ego may feel better at that at figure because it looks pretty and competitive within the squad - but in-fact the club got the better deal. Not just in the difference there but the difference from your original pay packet.

I have to say to players of all ages, if you have a good agent who does understand the time value of money, listen to them and forget about comparing yourself in the dressing room. If you start comparing your finances in the dressing room you're thinking more about ego than financial sensibility. I've seen all the problems from 17 year olds to 37 year olds, all I can say is be smart, be respectful, be different from the others and make sure you sign contracts that are smart financially and at the end of the day let you just get on and play.