1. SELECCION DE ARTICULOS DE INTERES
PUBLICADO POR THE SUN 01/04/2011 SOBRE LAS MALAS
PRACTICAS DE ALGUNOS AGENTES. ESCRITO POR IAN
WRIGHT, EX JUGADOR DEL ARSENAL Y DE LA SELECCION
INGLESA
These evil vultures offer kids cars, cash or even the deposit
on a house to sign their lives away
IAN WRIGHT
WHEN I kicked off my soccer career the football agent business was just a fledgling
industry.
Now it is full of vultures. You know what? They are worse than vultures.
Vultures feed off corpses — but there are now a number of unscrupulous agents who are
living off footballers.
They prey on the young, up-andcoming players who are the future of the game in this
country.
And they stalk established players, even international stars, and offer them all sorts of
bribes and inducements to switch over to them. But these agents have absolutely no
conscience and are simply putting making money ahead of building and prolonging
players' careers. It's a disgrace.
I have heard what they do and it stinks. They will go to a young teenage player, meet with
him and his parents, his family.
Often they take along a former professional player to impress them. Give them all the
spiel.
And then these people offer all sorts of incentives to the boy and his folks to convince
them to sign up. I have been told of young players who have been offered cars, offered
cash — and that cash can be £30,000, it can be £100,000.
I know of one player who has been given £30,000 by an agent to pay the deposit and a
year's rent on a house for his family.
I know of another young player at a London club who wants to leave his agent and this
agent is threatening to sue him for the £100,000.
What kind of start is that for a youngster's career? There are stories of parents having their
mortgages paid off, of brothers being given jobs on the firm — all to persuade them to sign
up. It's shameful.
Especially as they are exploiting people who often come from disadvantaged
backgrounds. Jerry Maguire There they are talking of amounts of money that these people

2. have only ever dreamed about. They are trying to appeal to their basic instincts, awaken
their greed. Imagine a BMW car, no mortgage, 100K!
It's a huge temptation and I can understand why some people are conned. But I would
urge any young player to run a mile from people like that.
I'd urge every parent, guardian, brother or sister to throw out anyone like that. They are
charlatans. If they are giving you £30,000, £50,000 or even £100,000 up front, it may
sound very appealing.
But it's a trap. Basically, you are signing up to be a slave.
The first thing these rogues will want to do is get that money back. And they won't let you
go anywhere until you've delivered.
Earning back their "investment" will become their priority NOT the best interests of that
lad's career.
So you will then be expected to do whatever these characters say.
For instance if a move comes up where they can earn a big fee they will push to do that,
even if it's best for the kid to stay put.
They will advise him to become involved in off-the-field deals, they will push and pull him
here and there. It makes me so angry.
To be honest some of the parents, some of the youngsters are just as bad.
I've been there when a young player has said, "What's in it for me?" Parents who have
said, "We've been offered this and that by so and so". The first time I felt so uncomfortable,
I didn't really know what to do.
But now if anyone dares say that to me, I'll get up and leave. I'll say: "Sign with them then
if that's what you think is important."
It's like the line in the Jerry Maguire movie starring Tom Cruise: "Show me the money!" My
answer is — show me the talent and then I'll show you the money. Do your stuff in training,
perform out on the pitch and the money will follow. Lots of it.
But let's do it in the right way and the right order. Put your football first and if you get that
right everything else will fall into place.
Forget a BMW car, one day it could be an Aston Martin, a Ferrari.
But not at 17 or 18 years old.
People will just think you are a flash p***k, it screams: "Look at me and what I've got."
I'd rather scream: "Look at me and what I can do."

3. I'll never forget when Jurgen Klinsmann signed for Tottenham. A real superstar, a World
Cup winner. And he turned up for training everyday in a VW Beetle. He could have had
any car in the world but he drove a Volkswagen.
And that was a much bigger statement than him turning up in the biggest, flashiest car.
Klinsmann in a Beetle was just so super cool.
Now I have to admit I have two nice cars — one's a mini which I love, it's an iconic British
car and I'm proud to have it. But I've also got an Aston Martin Vanquish.
And when I drive that I see it as my reward for my years in football and in the media and I
believe I have earned it — so why not?
The way things are going it won't be long before the likes of Wayne Rooney, Andy Carroll
and Jack Wilshere are earning £300,000 a week and more.
And if you are earning money like that then it's a big call for your agent to start laying the
law down to you.
Look at some of the scrapes some of our top players have got themselves into in recent
years.
Why? Because their representative is not doing his job properly. He doesn't want to risk
upsetting his cash cow, so they let them do what they want, when they want and with
whoever they want.
They should be saying: "Don't go nightclubbing when you shouldn't, don't go out boozing
with your mates, look out for those F-list girls who can't wait to sell their souls to OK
magazine."
That's proper advice, proper management.
I know what it takes to go to the top of the game, to be a star in the Premier League and
play international football.
I know the rewards and I know the pitfalls, the dangers.
I was lucky. I've had great representation for more than 23 years. But those sort of agents
are few and far between.
That's why I am now seriously considering getting involved. Someone's got to take on the
vultures, someone's got to take them down.
Players shouldn't just be talking about how much money they're going to make but about
their football because, as I've always believed, "If you do the business on the pitch, then
the business off the pitch will follow".
I fear that what we're eventually going to end up with are players who only chase money
— and not medals.