How to become an agent: What it takes to pass the FIFA agent exam

“There’s a perception, perhaps from the outside and in many cases unfounded, that anyone can be an agent,” says Dean Eldredge, who runs Oporto Sports.

Aldredge works exclusively with managers and coaches who worked with Sven-Goran Eriksson before his death in August and passed the first test in April 2023.

Oporto have 15 coaches and managers including former Leicester and Bristol City boss Nigel Pearson, Barnsley’s Darrell Clarke, Rotherham’s Steve Evans and former Lincoln & Blackburn chief Michael Appleton.

“It’s easy to say ‘Oh, there’s a lot of money being wasted in the game because it’s going to agents’,” says Aldridge.

“Well, if the agents are good and the agency is well run then they are required to support that person.

“While the test is a positive step forward for the industry, it was of little relevance to me.

“I may be one of the very few people who is adept at working with managers to get something they can look at.”

The exam can’t get everything right, but it is enough to get a minimum knowledge about the international transfer system, how it works, how a player can be registered with clubs or how to represent the minors. This is the first step for.

Despite some criticism of the questions, the exam has been widely welcomed. It is estimated that the number of agents has been reduced by more than half.

FIFA accepts that these questions have little to do with an agent’s daily responsibilities – and should not. FIFA regulates the international transfer system and not the day-to-day care of players, so the test focuses on market knowledge, not humans.

“If it limits the number of bad agents in the game then it’s good. It shouldn’t be like you can just go in and work in football,” said Jimmy O’Connor, former Walsall and Doncaster defender. Joe Wasserman says.

It is one of the largest agencies in the world, whose clients include Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca, Manchester City and England defender John Stones, Liverpool’s Curtis Jones and Newcastle’s Harvey Barnes.

O’Connor is taking the test on his 40th birthday, after a 15-year playing career which began as an apprentice at Aston Villa and ended at Kidderminster.

Former Bristol City and Norwich striker Aaron Wilbraham – who passed his exams last year – is at Murdock Sports Group, which is led by former Preston and Northern Ireland defender Colin Murdock.

“I had bad experiences,” said Wilbraham, who played for 10 clubs and retired in 2020 at the age of 40.

“I remember my first agent used to say ‘It doesn’t matter who your agent is, if you do it on the pitch you’ll get your moves’. That’s not the case.

“Everything else off the pitch has to be taken care of so you can concentrate on football.

“If you’re doing well you need someone in the background to draw attention to it, spin the plates and generate interest.

“The player has someone to call if something goes wrong and he may not want to call his father, who may be a builder and not know what to do next.

“They have someone who knows football.”