25 Jul 2026 00:17:33
I am an agent. But for writers, and directors.
I do this because I strongly believe in helping creative artists. It is a well regulated business - I have a commission rate, but I more often than not recommend that a client take a lower offer than the highest bid. Why?
Because it is about their long term career, and not the quick bucks. A creative needs to find their best collaborator, and not the biggest payer.
There is a clear difference in sport, when it comes to management or representation. Young players find themselves with agents whose sole incentive is to engineer a move. I am not sure of the figures, but I imagine they make way more than 10% of their client's deal, and get "bungs" at each end of the deal.
What is my point here? I am not entirely sure, but I think football could benefit from more regulated agents.
25 Jul 2026 08:22:25
I think the main difference with footballers though is that their career is so uncertain. A good writer will be a good writer for his whole career. A good director will be a good director until they retire. For a footballer, one manager dropping you can ruin your reputation and confidence (Joe Hart). One bad game can turn everyone against you (Loris Karius). Your form can suddenly just desert you (Dele Alli). A serious injury can completely rob you of the career you were destined to have (Daniel Sturridge). One crime off the pitch under the influence of alcohol can wreck your career (Jon Flanagan).
It's such a fragile career that you are constantly on a knife edge. With that in mind, I fully understand why players are seduced by agents promising to make them unfathomably rich.
I was listening to Troy Deeney the other day on the radio and he literally admitted that he got into football for the love of it, but after he established himself as a pro, every decision he made was about securing his family financially, and nothing to do with football. I would be willing to bet that a lot of footballers who grew up in poverty feel exactly the same way. Who am I to judge? I've always lived comfortably in a nice part of the UK and so do all of my family. Therefore, I simply don't understand the desire to lift my family, friends, maybe even my whole village out of poverty!
{Ed025's Note - its all about greed MK, if an average player gets a signing on fee of say £4m then that sets him and his extended family up for life, but then they want another move for even more money, then they think they can do what they want like Greenwood, Flanagan, Partey, Barton etc so dont feel sorry for them mate..
25 Jul 2026 08:43:05
Just to add on to MK's point, footballers have a very short career, unlike writers or directors. Creatives can continue creating even beyond their 70s. Footballers generally retire in their 30s. So I don't blame them for constantly choosing the option that provides them with the most money.
{Ed025's Note - Diddums..
25 Jul 2026 09:12:16
It must be so hard for them to have to slum it as an overpaid, clueless pundit when you stop playing.
{Ed025's Note - my heart bleeds SK.. :)
25 Jul 2026 09:26:48
Excellent post in full, MK.
25 Jul 2026 09:11:06
Ed025, that's very easy to say as someone who will never have to make that choice though. I think a lot of people lie to themselves about what they'd do if they actually had the talent to be in that situation. Maybe you would be one of the rare exceptions in the sport, but they are very few and far between.
I don't feel sorry for anyone playing in the Premier League as they get paid more money than I'll ever be paid, but it is a short career still and they live a certain lifestyle which means the money runs out a lot quicker. £4m sets you up for life as average people like us live, but if you want that life with Yachts, super cars, mansions etc to last the rest of your life, you need to make as much as you can as quick as you can.
You call it greed and okay, that is an opinion you're entitled to. But I'd do anything to give my wife and kids the absolute best life I can. If I could set up my family/community for generations of living in relative luxury travelling the globe, I absolutely would. I wouldn't even think twice. I think deep down, the majority of people would chase the money if they were given the choice.
Don't get me wrong, as a football fan I still find it frustrating when I see talented players make bad footballing career decisions for quicker money, but as a human being I do understand why they do it. I loved my old job and I made more than enough money to live comfortably. However I've now got a new job that is far less interesting/enjoyable but it pays 50% more. Maybe that makes me greedy, but I wanted to have a bigger house and nicer cars for my wife and my children. Everything is relative to the individual and footballers are living on a different scale to us, but morally it's pretty much the same decision. I didn't even want to be an engineer. I wanted to be a sports journalist but the easy/guaranteed money was in engineering. Maybe I am greedy. Maybe I don't care!
{Ed025's Note - i just find it hard to comprehend MK, when you see doctors and nurses working 60 odd hours a week just to survive and families using foodbanks and people living on the streets it irks me when i see footballers taking the piss, i may have a different moral compass to you mate and thats fine but i cant help how i feel..
25 Jul 2026 09:44:02
Personally I think the Premier League should take a lesson from NFL. There should be an annual team transfer limit and a team wage limit for your named 25 players in your squad. They should not be tied to turnover. They should be fixed amounts.
It should increase based on how low you finish in the top 17 places from the previous season. 18-20 get parachute payments.
It's the only way to get hold of the crazy transfer fees and the only way to maintain some level of competition.
25 Jul 2026 09:57:43
Monster, as someone who works with agents, reps and management teams across multiple different sports, I couldn't agree more. The amount of underhand dodgy crap that goes on is unreal. Most agents, even family members, are more concerned about their slice of the pie than what is actually best for their client.
I've told sportsmen and women to sack their agents, and put them in touch with ones that are better in that regard. Tbh, it's one of the reasons I started my latest venture of buying stakes in small agencies across Europe.
25 Jul 2026 10:12:38
Seen Rio Ferdinand saying the other day £30m in the bank by the time they stop playing isn't going to last! ducking clown
25 Jul 2026 10:26:14
Karius was rubbish before his one bad game in the CL final.
25 Jul 2026 10:32:03
Hi @Monstersouness, Spot on. This philosophy is exactly what separates great representation from simple deal-brokers.
As an aspiring writer-director myself, I see huge parallels between what you've written here and the creative industry. In both football and film, a young talent chasing the biggest immediate payday usually ends up on the bench or trapped in development hell (naming no names, of course). Finding the right person to represent you, who cares about tactical fit and long-term career development is everything.
It's incredibly refreshing to hear an agent prioritise the right collaborator over the biggest check. I'm actually currently looking for that exact kind of long-term representation for my own work. It would be great to grab a coffee or drop you a DM sometime to chat about how you apply this approach in your working life!
25 Jul 2026 10:39:24
Ed25 - your moral compass and football views are normally bang on to be fair. Pity you chose the bluenoses ?
{Ed025's Note - i did not pick to be an Evertonian Ecogsi...i was chosen mate.. :)