If you love sports and have been an athlete yourself in school, then working as a certified sports agent could be a rewarding and fulfilling career. You can get into the sports industry if you have a passion for sports and like coaching and guiding young’ uns. It is a tough job. Let us tell you – it requires hard work and effort to be successful. However, once you gain certification and land on the perfect job, nothing can stand on your way to success.
We have outlined the steps involved in becoming a certified sports agent in your state.
Sports Agents Job Description
- Sports agents essentially help aspiring athletes chart out their career plans and achieve their goals. Sports agents are just like modeling and acting agents that act as an intermediary between talent and sports franchises and event promotors.
- As a certified sports agent, you will help sportspersons set goals, find suitable teams, manage their finances, negotiate their terms with promotors, handle their activities, such as meets, conferences, interviews and public appearances, set up alternative careers for athletes after retirement, and help them advance in their careers profitably.
- Right from Virat Kohli to Shane Warn to Christiano Ronaldinho, everyone has a fantastic sports agent backing them.
- If required, you will also represent your clients in different scenarios, such as solving legal disputes, attending press meets and other events, and sign terms and contracts.
- You will work either with individual sportspersons directly or in a firm with other sports agents.
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How Much Do Sports Agent Make
Your salary will depend on your certification, the number of clients, the sports you have chosen, and the success of your clients. Most sports agents work on contractual or commission basis and earn money from the client’s final contract. So will you. Just like other sports agents, you can ask for a 4% – 5% commission from the final settlement. Once you gain credibility and experience, you can ask up to 10% per agreement.
While hugely successful sports agents (read Messi, MS Dhoni, and Serena Williams) earn in millions, the average salary of a sports agent falls between $40 000 and $100,000 annually.
How to Become a Sports Agent
Remember the words passion, dedication, and hard work. You must have these three to become a successful sports agent. While education and knowledge in sports are essential to finding sports agents’ jobs, you must also possess other invaluable off-the-books skills, such as leadership, management, communication, negotiation, diplomacy, and public speaking skills.
However, between these, communication and negotiation skills will be most useful to score an excellent deal for your client.
[Also Read: How To Be A Freelance Sports Writer ]
Earn a Bachelor’s Degree
A bachelor’s degree is the bare minimum to land the right sports agent job. While there is no particular sports agent education, a degree in business management, sports, or law can help you qualify. If not a bachelor’s degree, you can earn an associate degree or equivalent diploma from an original medium to become a sports agent. A primary degree in the said fields is more than enough to pursue this career.
While playing sports is not a compulsion for this job, experience, and knowledge of the game you want to represent will help you build your resume.
To gain knowledge, you can also take courses in sports management programs in subjects like sports finance and business, sports economics, athletes branding and promotion, ethics, event management and planning, sports law and order, and marketing and advertising.
Gain Experience by Interning
Once you have earned your bachelor’s degree or equivalent diploma, it is time to understand how the industry works for sports agents. Just like media and entertainment, this industry comes with lots of opportunities and a lot of challenges.
Therefore, the first-hand, real-time experience is essential to score a goal in this career. And the best way to earn experience is by taking on an internship. Internship won’t pay you much; in fact, you may not earn anything at all. However, it will help you in several ways, including networking with potential clients, meeting other professionals, working with real athletes and franchises, and participating in events.
However, make sure the company you choose to intern with has an excellent global reputation and has many clients.
Sports Agent Certification
Most states in the USA require candidates to gain certification to pursue a career. So, if you wish to represent aspiring athletes, you must register with the state. The registration application is pretty simple – you have to complete a few mandatory paperwork, pay a fee, and apply. However, specific rules or sports may also require additional certifications, such as surety bonds and insurance policy.
You must also comply with the standards and rules of the Uniform Athlete Agents Act (UAAA) that is created by the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws. The firm keeps upgrading its act and has recently done so to include sports agents that work with professional athletes.
Career Prospects of Sports Agents
You can work as a sports agent lawyer and provide athletes legal services(1). It is a critical and well-paying job. However, it requires educational qualification and a few years of law practice before you can enter the profession.
You can specialize in different kinds of sports, including professional sports, Olympic sports, premier league, cricket, and baseball. Many universities and sports academies across the country appoint sports agents to their student-athletes. However, the industry is dominated by California, Tennessee, Texas, New York, and Florida. You may also expand your horizons and search jobs in other countries where sports predominate, such as Australia, China, India, and England.
